Beloved Frozen Pizza Brand With IL Ties Discontinued After 60 Years

WOODRIDGE, IL — An iconic frozen pizza brand with ties to the Chicago area has been discontinued after nearly 60 years, according to reports.

Conagra Brands recently announced it has discontinued production of Celeste pizzas, the popular frozen pizza aisle staple sold across the country.

The frozen pizza's recipe and name come from Celeste "Mama Celeste" Lizio, an Italian immigrant. In the 1930s, she and her husband, Anthony, opened a small grocery store in Chicago.

"While Celeste made dinner in the store's back kitchen, the delicious smells drew the WPA (Works Progress Administration) workers," according to the family. "The store became known for Celeste’s food rather than the groceries."

The couple later opened a restaurant, the Kedzie Beer Garden, on Chicago's West Side. The name of the eatery was later changed to Celeste's.

Later, the family—including their four adult children who had grown up working alongside their parents—started selling their homemade products to other grocery stores and restaurants. The restaurant closed in the early 1960s so the family could focus on their wholesale business.

"In 1969, the family sold the business to Quaker Oats, who went on to create the Mama Celeste brand that everyone knows today," according to the website for Clara's Italian Restaurant, which was launched in Woodridge in 1987 by Celeste's daughter.

Mama Celeste died in 1988, but her famed recipes are still being served at Clara's, according to their website.