National Pizza Day

National Pizza Day Facts & Quotes

• The world's largest pizza, named Ottavia, was made on December 13, 2012 in Rome, Italy.  With a surface are of 1,261.65 m², the pizza was made by Dovilio Nardi, Andrea Mannocchi, Marco Nardi, Matteo Nardi and Matteo Giannotte.  To spread a message of good health, the pizza was made entirely gluten-free.
• In the 5-year period ending in March 2018, the pizza restaurant industry grew by 2.5%, reaching a revenue of $47 billion in 2018. The industry also saw a 1.7% growth in the number of businesses and a 2.5% growth in the number of employees.
• In 2010, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) reported that 40% of the total daily calories consumed by 2-18 year olds were empty calories (calories from foods without nutrients). Six foods were the source of half of these empty calories: pizza, dairy desserts, grain desserts, soda, fruit drinks, and whole milk.
• According to gross sales earned by pizza chains, the top 5 American pizzerias are:
  1) Pizza Hut, gross sales of $13.4 Billion
  2) Domino’s, gross sales of $8.9 Billion
  3) Little Caesars, gross sales of $3.4 Billion
  4) Papa John’s, gross sales of $3.3 Billion
  5) Papa Murphy's, gross sales of $7.85 Million
  
• If I could eat whatever I wanted every day, I would have Domino's pizza with pasta carbonara inside every slice. And at night, I would have Neapolitan ice cream until I felt absolutely toxic. And then I would drift off telling myself, 'It's going to be O.K... It's going to be O.K. you're going to train in the morning'. - Robert Downey, Jr., Actor
  

National Pizza Day Top Events and Things to Do

• Visit your favorite pizzeria.  Most pizzerias will offer discounts and specials to celebrate National Pizza Day.
• Attend a pizza festival!  Here are some of our favorites to consider:
  1) Cleveland Pizza Fest
  2) Phoenix Pizza Festival
  3) Pizza Festival - Los Angeles
  4) Chicago Pizza Fest
  5) Pizza Fest Seattle: Annual Punk Festival+Pizza-Eating Contest
• Make your own pizza at home from scratch. Make the dough, perhaps gluten-free or whole wheat, make the sauce using tomatoes and spices, grate the cheese and finally cover it up with all of your favorite toppings.
• Try a pizza with unique toppings.  Here are some of our favorites:
  1) Chicken Tikka Masala Pizza
  2) Beer Battered Fried Calamari Pizza
  3) Butternut Squash and Sage Pizza
  4) Fried Chicken Pizza
  5) Brown Butter Lobster and Spinach Pizza with Bacon and Fontina
• Make it a pizza and a movie kind of night.  Watch the Academy Award nominees for ‘Best Picture’ (2016):
  The Big Short
  Bridge of Spies
  Brooklyn
  Mad Max: Fury Road
  The Martian
  The Revenant
  Room
  Spotlight

National Pizza Day References and Related Sites