We Have to Save Pizza 

Americans have failed ourselves, failed each other, failed our foreparents, and now, we’ve failed the one thing that was there for us when nothing or no one else was.

Pizza.

According to a new report in The Wall Street Journal, headlined, “America Is Falling Out of Love With Pizza,” pizza sales in the U.S. are lagging, pizza chains are filing for bankruptcy, and none of us are ordering large pepperoni pies like we used to.

The writer reports that pizzerias were once the “second-most common U.S. restaurant type,” but are now outnumbered by coffee shops and Mexican spots and, in 2024, pizza was only the sixth most popular cuisine in the U.S. Everyone’s increasingly opting for fast food rather than ordering from their local pizzeria, and unfortunately, “the outlook ahead isn’t much brighter,” they write. Jesus Christ, guys.

Obviously, money is the biggest factor. Pizza prices—especially at local shops—are climbing, while fast food chains keep offering cheaper and more aggressive deals. The Journal spoke with a 26-year-old in Georgia who said he only orders pizza when Domino’s has deals, because he’d feel “silly paying 50% to 100% more anywhere else even if I can afford it.” Gen Z remains…problematic.

I love and appreciate Domino’s (especially their cheesy bread) as much as the next gal, but there’s a time and place for chain pizza—like 2 a.m. Please support your local pizzerias before they go extinct <3

The outlet further reports:

Today, pizza shops are engaged in price wars with one another and other kinds of fast food. Food-delivery apps have put a wider range of cuisines and options at Americans’ fingertips. And $20 a pie for a family can feel expensive compared with $5 fast-food deals, frozen pizzas or eating a home-cooked meal.

Luckily, the Agriculture Department reports that one in 10 Americans will have a slice of pizza on any given day. Respectable, but it’s not enough. If Nicole Kidman can save movie theaters, if Taylor Swift can save record stores, and if Emily in Paris can be renewed for a sixth season, surely we can rally around the one thing in this country that’s never judged or abandoned us. Support your local pizzeria. Order a third slice. Surprise your friend, neighbor, or enemy with a free pie. This is probably the easiest, most accessible way to feel hope again.

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