The story
Hawaiian pizza comes from Chatham, Ontario, not Hawaii. Sam Panopoulos, who emigrated from Greece to Canada in 1954, ran the Satellite Restaurant there, and in 1962, by his own account, he tried canned pineapple on a pizza. Cooking Canadian Chinese dishes had given him a taste for mixing sweet and savoury, and he paired the fruit with ham. The name came from the tins, made by the Hawaiian Pineapple Company. Customers were slow to warm to it, but it caught on locally and then around the world. Some have questioned his claim, though no rival town is widely cited.
Rival claims
Some have questioned Sam Panopoulos's claim, but no rival town is widely cited.
Also known as ham and pineapple pizza, pineapple pizza, pizza hawaiana.
On the Meridish menu
Hawaiian pizza was the main course on menu No. 31 on October 31, 2026. Its clue in the game, which hints at the place without naming it:
Ham and canned pineapple on a pizza, though it has nothing to do with the islands. A Greek-born cook tried it at his small-town diner in 1962, inspired by sweet-and-sour dishes.
In Meridish, every dish is pinned to the town or city most widely credited with creating it. A guess within 25 km scores all 100 points. How scoring works.
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaiian_pizza
- nbcnews.com/news/world/alleged-inventor-controversial-hawaiian-pizza-dies-canada-n770716
Food history is often disputed. Think we've pinned it in the wrong place? Tell us at hello@meridish.com, ideally with a source.
