garden salad with pizza bites on it

The Business of Pizza is Booming

Pizza in a position to grab a bigger portion of the growing and ever-more competitive takeout market.

According to Technomic, pizza consumption is at its highest level in four years—due in some part to the growth of more mature, dine-in consumers at fast casual and full-service pizzerias.1 The evolving consumer tastes and changing demographic appeal have put Pizza in a position to grab a bigger portion of the growing and ever-more competitive takeout market.

The catch: the lunch crowd wants more than pizza. In fact, 1 in 3 consumers want pizza places to offer more non-pizza items,2 and many of the growing items on Pizza menus are dishes like appetizers, sandwiches and fries.3

Set yourself up for recurring lunch business with some new one-of-a-kind lunch ideas that can build versatility and variety into your menu:

  • Stacked Chicken Sandwich – Chicken sandwich topped with beer-battered thick-cut onion rings for extra crunch in every bite.
  • Zucchini Pizzettes – Crisp beer-battered zucchini slices topped with sliced pepperoni and Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, then baked until melted and bubbling—served with tangy marinara sauce on the side.
  • Bac’n Cheesy Apple Salad – Crisp butter lettuce, red endive, marinated fennel and sweet Fuji apple slices dressed with a signature cider vinaigrette and finished with the buttery crunch of craft beer battered cheesy bacon macaroni bites.

1”The Evolving Pizza Occasion,” Technomic, June 30, 2016.
2Technomic, Inc. 2016.
3NPD CREST, YE July 2016.