Pizza Pit

Question

Why do people call a pizza selling store "pizza pit"? "Pit" means a large hole, but why is it related to a pizzaria?

Vorpar · Accepted Answer

That isn't standard, it's usually called a "pizza parlour".

Pizza Pit sounds like a name, maybe to suggest a cheap place to eat.

Lcchang · Answer

I see. "Pit" may just mean the store is owned by "Pit". Is that Right?

Enoon · Answer

LcchangI see. "Pit" may just mean the store is owned by "Pit". Is that Right?

No, that would be "Pit's Pizza". "Pizza Pit" is a bit of a self-deprecating joke, a variation on "barbecue pit", I suppose.

Philip · Answer

Lcchang Why do people call a pizza selling store "pizza pit"? "Pit" means a large hole, but why is it related to a pizzaria?

I have seen a pizzeria named Pizza Pete, but not Pit. Maybe you heard it wrong?

CalifJim · Answer

Lcchang Why do people call a pizza selling store "pizza pit"? "Pit" means a large hole, but why is it related to a pizzaria?

I don't believe that a store that sells pizza is always called a pizza pit. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever heard one called that. It sounds like a commercial name.

In any case "pit" has a number of associations that allow it to be combined with "pizza".

People used to dig a hole in the ground (a pit) where they would build a fire. Then they would place a grill over the pit and cook their food on it. I suppose even pizzas could have been cooked that way, but nowadays they are baked in an oven. See "barbecue pit".

Vehicle maintenance is often done from a pit so that the mechanics can work on the underside of the car or truck. During a long race, racing cars periodically stop for a team of maintenance people to work on them. They pull into a special lane off from the racing lanes for this kind of maintenance. This temporary stop in their racing has come to be called a pit stop. A pit stop must be made as quickly as possible so as not to lose racing time. By analogy, any stop that people do as briefly as possible is called a pit stop, and even stopping for a quick pizza can be thought of as a pit stop. See "pit stop".

A very small and inexpensive place to eat (or any very small shop) is sometimes called 'a hole in the wall". A store that sells pizza might be this kind of store. Being no more than a 'hole in the wall', it might earn itself the name 'pit'. If you have an active imagination you can also see that 'pit' has a vague association with 'dive', a slang term for a run-down bar or nightclub. Anyway, the word 'pit' was chosen to signal that this establishment is certainly not a place that requires a suit and tie.

CJ

Lcchang · Answer

So clear an explanation, thanks.

Philip · Answer

LcchangSo clear an explanation, thanks.

You can expect no less from CJ!

Pizza Pit

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