In the agricultural plain southeast of Naples, the San Marzano tomato has a growing season that ends with harvesters picking ripe fruit by hand. The plants grow upright on supports, their elongated tomatoes destined for the peeled products and sauces that have made the region famous.
It is a long way from an American home freezer, but this landscape belongs to the culinary story behind Antico Casa. Giovanni Di Palma’s pizza brand draws on San Marzano tomatoes, Bufala mozzarella, and Italian flour, bringing together food traditions associated with Campania and the city of Naples.
Follow those ingredients back to their origins, and the familiar Margherita becomes a journey through farmland, dairies, and a family-run flour mill.
The Tomato Fields Beneath Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius is one of the defining landmarks of the Naples region. Its volcanic history helped shape the surrounding landscape, including the agricultural soils of the Agro Sarnese-Nocerino area, where protected San Marzano tomatoes are grown.
