The story of pizza's journey to Ghana is a fascinating one, reflecting global culinary trends and local adaptations. From international chains establishing a presence to local entrepreneurs creating their own unique versions, pizza has become a popular and evolving food in Ghana.
International Chains and Local Adaptations
Domino's Pizza, founded in 1960, has expanded its global enterprise to over 17,600 stores in more than 90 markets. In Accra, Domino's is located on Oxford Street in Osu and features an open concept, inviting interior, with great views of all the action of pizza-making.
"We are honored to be building beautiful new pizza theater stores in countries all over the world and attracting new customers to our dynamic brand," said Joe Jordan, Domino's executive vice president of international.
The Rise of Local Pizza Entrepreneurs
One notable example of local success is Pizzaman Chickenman, a fast-food chain in Ghana. The CEO of Pizzaman Chickenman used his hostel fees to start his business.
In August 2023, the company unveiled a project called The LunchTime Initiative which is to visit various workplaces to share lunch time moments with workers. The company has been rapidly expanding, with new branches opening across Accra and Kumasi.
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Pizzaman Chickenman has also engaged in marketing and promotional activities, including signing brand ambassadors such as AMG Deuces. In August 2023, the company unveiled a project called The LunchTime Initiative which is to visit various workplaces to share lunch time moments with workers.
Challenges and Controversies
Despite its success, Pizzaman Chickenman has faced controversies, including incidents of workers being jailed for stealing company property. These issues have sparked public debate and criticism.
There were times that I had to skip class and cook and my mates - my classmates, bought into the idea. They were like, Chris, you are too good academically. Why don’t you just do your masters and then probably get a job outside, like how our seniors have been doing?
At a point, one of my lecturers had to pray for me. He was our patron when I was a department president. He knew how academically good I was, and he was quite surprised.
He was like, what is wrong with Chris? Is it a spiritual attack? He was wondering because I’m the front seater in class, but then after class, I’m done - that’s it… to him, he felt I was under attack or I was losing focus.
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I feel whatever it is you want to do, if you want to do it, you won’t find excuses. Just manage your time well.
A Personal Anecdote: Pizza Preferences
The author shares a personal experience related to pizza preferences in Ghana. They describe the difficulty of ordering a pizza with half-pepperoni due to local customs.
One day, Uncle Q walked into a café. A waitress greeted him with a table and a menu. Q didn’t have to glance at the menu to know what he wanted. Isn’t that what I said? thought Q. “Yes. The waitress was still confused. Q raised his eyebrows. “You can’t? It was Q’s turn to be baffled. It wasn’t on the menu, and so what? Was it so impossible to heat milk and put it in a cup? Q sighed. He was going to have to do this the hard way. “Fine,” Q said. The waitress was finally at ease. “Wonderful. “Oh, one last thing,” said Q. “I’d also like the cappuccino without the coffee. She frowned. “Great. The waitress went and came back with a cup of hot milk. The moral of the story? -I.
I like pizza. I am also some kind of vegetarian. I don’t actually know if there’s a definite class for it yet, but I don’t eat meat. I do, however, eat eggs and all seafood, and diary products. It’s not pescatarian, it’s not strictly lacto-vegetarian, it’s not ovo-vegetarian. Whatever. If you want to become a vegetarian for fun in Ghana, chale, it won’t work. My brother likes pizza too. The problem is, he likes meat. But…must man always order two pizzas every time Ivana and Delali want to eat some? Everywhere else I’ve been, it has never been a problem. In Ghana, it’s always a different story. Once I open my mouth to suggest a half-pepperoni to any of these pizza people, they look at me like I just ordered a Martian from Venus. Not possible? NOT POSSIBLE?! Sure, man, it’s not possible to sprinkle pepperoni on only half of a pizza instead of all of it (and still have me pay the same price)! Yes, it is possible. You’re just a doofus, ya doofus! …But of course, I never say that.
The Story of Ibrahim Songne
Ibrahim Songne, an immigrant from Burkina Faso, opened a pizza spot called IBRIS in the Italian town of Trento. As a kid, newly arrived in Italy from Burkina Faso with his family, he took his first bite of pizza. His verdict: "Gross and completely tasteless." But he had a change of taste buds and as an adult started his own pizzeria in Trento.
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The media response to Goats and Soda's January article about pizza maestro Ibrahim Songne was so strong that ultimately he was forced to call a moratorium on interviews.
Ibrahim Songne created this pizza in honor of our "Goats and Soda" log. It's composed of goat cheese, dried figs, Trentingrana cheese shavings, rocket salad, pine nuts and spicy oil - quite a radical recipe by local standards.
The NPR story also gave a boost to his practice of asking clients to pay for a second pizza, which he donates to a hungry person. "I didn't realize what a huge thing NPR was until I started getting donations from around the world," he says.
Having just celebrated the fourth anniversary of his IBRIS pizzeria, Ibrahim has become a community fixture in his hometown of Trento. A local theater company has plans to stage a play about his life - detailing his story of immigrating from Burkina Faso at age 12 without knowing a word of Italian, overcoming a stutter and then becoming a self-taught pizza chef who has garnered international acclaim.
His achievements have impressed some Italians with African roots to make a pilgrimage to the pizzeria. Francesco, age 9, from the Piemonte region recently visited with his family, who emigrated from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Anna-Maria, age 5 and like Francesco a second generation Italian of African descent, traveled with her mother on a 3-hour train ride from the Emilia-Romagna region to sample Ibrahim's slices. She declared, "Now that I've met Mr. Ibrahim, I know exactly what I want to be when I get older: a pizza maker .... but also a doctor, too."
Here's a table summarizing the key milestones of Pizzaman Chickenman:
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 2018 | Started with limited funds and resources |
| 2021 | Opened 4 branches in Accra |
| 2023 | Unveiled The LunchTime Initiative |
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