Italian Chefs Scoff at Let's Pizza Vending Machine
Posted on March 27, 2009
Reuters reports that a new pizza vending machine has upset chefs who think the machine can't properly make pizza. The machine was developed at the University of Bologna. It does everything from making the dough to adding toppings. It makes a pizza in under three minutes.
The bright-red "Let's Pizza" machine uses infra-red rays and technology developed at the University of Bologna to knead flour and water into dough, spread it with tomato sauce and a choice of topping, and cook it -- all in less than three minutes.Its developer, Claudio Torghele, says the machine has proved popular in trials in two Italian regions, but gourmets say it is an affront to traditional methods of cooking the classic dish.
"This is not just a vending machine, it's a mini-pizzeria," said Torghele, 56. "It has windows where you can watch the pizza-making process. Kids, including my own, love it: when the machine is working, there's always a crowd."
Pino Morelli of the Association of Italian Pizzerias told Reuters that, "This machine is a toy. Perhaps it will find a niche overseas, but Italians are born with pizza: their mothers feed it to them as babies. They understand it."
Even if the machine can make tasty pizza it would need to be constantly replenished with fresh ingredients.
Here's a video showing how Let's Pizza works.