Midwestern roots, now a national star.
Since, 1951, when Rose and Jim Totino baked their first pizza, we've been all about serving up quick and fun deliciousness. And now? A company that began as a family pizza parlor in Minneapolis, MN, now serves over 300 million Crisp Crust Party Pizzas every year. Together with tasty, bite-sized Pizza Roll s snacks, they're the best selling hot snack and frozen pizza in America today.
The Beginning
Rose and Jim Totino met at the Viking Dance Hall, and soon after they married and settled down in Northeast Minneapolis. The two quickly became involved in the community, making pizzas from her mother’s recipe for neighborhood friends. Family and friends urged this young couple to transform their family’s “Italian Pie” tradition into a business, and on February 7, 1951, Totino’s Pizza restaurant was born.
1951
The restaurant was an instant success. Family members were soon recruited to help meet the demand of the business, which sold up to 500 pies every day. In 1962, Totino’s built a frozen pizza plant in Fridley, MN to support their fast-growing retail business.
1975
Rose sold Totino’s to Pillsbury®, where it would eventually become part of the General Mills family. Rose then became Pillsbury’s first female corporate vice president, and worked with Pillsbury scientists to perfect frozen pizza. She and her colleagues devised a way to prepare pizza crust that helped keep it crispy throughout the freezing and thawing process.
1978
Totino’s introduced the “Crisp Crust” frozen pizza to the U.S., and became the country’s first nationally distributed pizza. The Crisp Crust that was patented by Totino’s in 1979 is still a key attribute of the products today. In 1986, Pillsbury acquired Jeno’s Pizza to broaden its product offerings. In 1993, Jeno’s Pizza Rolls were rebranded as Totino’s® Pizza Rolls®, which are still thriving today as America’s #1 selling hot snack.
2008
Rose Totino was inducted into the Minnesota Inventor’s Hall of Fame for inventing frozen pizza and revolutionizing its crust. Her accomplishments live on in Totino’s products today.
Today
On average, Totino’s sells on million Party Pizzas every day, and our Pizza Rolls are America’s #1 selling hot snack. Born in the Midwest over 50 years ago, Totino’s has been bringing tasty goodness to more Americans each day. And we’re just getting started.