Article

How do I love thee? Increasingly ... with a pizza dough heart

By the end of today, pizza restaurateurs everywhere will be seeing hearts in their dreams after spending most of these 24 hours — otherwise known as Valentine's Day — churning out pies of the same shape ad infinitem. Yep, chocolate hearts have had their day. Say hello to "Happy Valentine-shaped Pizza Day."

Photo: iStock

February 14, 2020 by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

Not that long ago, heart-shaped pizzas were the exception, and consumers crawled all over one another to buy them from the few restaurants that sold them. Boy, has that changed.

This year, dozens of pizza brands are hawking hearts in pizza form and with good reason: They sell.

Don't take my word for it. Just put the hashtag, #pizzaheart in Twitter, and you'll get more renditions of these cheese-covered hearts than you thought possible. That includes everything from half-and-half heart-shaped pies, like this one (for all those red hot lovers who still argue about pizza toppings) ...

(Photo via Twitter)

... to what you might call the "Heartbreaker" pizza that illustrates the struggle operators face fitting heart-shaped pies in square boxes, like this one. 

(Photo via Twitter) 

Regardless, it's all in good fun, and no doubt generates sales, despite the few obviously lovelorn sourpusses who have been pointing out that heart-shaped pizzas "aren't actually as large as the round" varieties (sounds like somebody got turned down for this Valentine's Day, no?). 

Here are just a few brands that have baked up a little love in their ovens in hopes of raising a bit of that other kind of dough.

Boston's Pizza Restaurant & Sports Bar'sheart-shaped pies are part of its Boston's Cares campaign in support of No Kid Hungry. Since Feb. 3, it has prompted guests to provide a donation to the cause when they buy one of the pies to get a paper heart pinned on the restaurant's walls. Likewise, a dollar from the sale of each pie through Firday goes to the cause.

"Each year we look forward to our Boston's Cares campaign as it perfectly embodies the values of our brand —giving back to our communities through partnerships with respected organizations such as No Kid Hungry," Katie Borger, vice president of Marketing, said in a news release. "For over a decade, we have been participating in this fundraiser and we are thrilled to add to our cumulative donations of through this year's efforts."                 

Photo: California Pizza Kitchen

California Pizza Kitchen, which has been doing the heart-shaped thing for a while now, is continuing to offer the heart via its thin and crispy pies through this weekend. Or for those more ritzy romantics, the brand is offering its "Sweet Deal for Two," a prix fix meal that includes wine, Bolognese spaghetti, Hawaiian pizza and Key lime pie.

Hungry Howie's has a two-day offer for the frugal lover, who still wants a heart pie for his or her honey. The brand is offering a one-topping heart-shaped pizza for $6.99.

Mountain Mike's is putting the brand's curly pepperoni specialty and all other toppings all over a flat, but oh-so-effusive heart-shaped pie that spans 14-inches. And these babies are available all month, the brand said in a news release.     

Photo: Mountain Mike's

"The celebration of love deserves more than just one day a year, so we wanted to offer our pizza-loving fans a fun and delicious way to share the love all month  long," said Jim Metevier, president and COO for Mountain Mike's. "Nothing says 'I love you' more than a Mountain Mike's heart-shaped pizza loaded with our legendary crispy, curly pepperonis!"

Papa John's is all about tracking those Valentine Day sales by running its $11 heart-shaped pizza special through Sunday with guests who use the promotional code "VALENTINE." The single topping pies can also be had with a double chocolate chip brownie at $16 with a "BEMINE" promo code. 

Uno's is going upscale with its Valentine's Weekend Sweetheart Deal For Two that includes a three-course meal for a pair of lovebirds, including two entrees, an appetizer and a dessert to share for $39.99-$44.99 (depending on restaurant location). The meals span everything from pizza skins and a veggie extravaganza Chicago thin-crust pie, to shrimp Scampi, top sirloin and a deep dish sundae for those who want those kisses to stick. 

Villa Italian Kitchen is taking its direction this Feb. 14 from the date itself, by offering slices for $2.14 to guests enrolled in Villa Rewards. The pie of the day is a Neapolitan cheese pizza. "This Valentine's Day, we wanted to encourage our guests to display loyalty not just to their significant others, but with their favorite pizza brand as well," Mimi      Wunderlich, director of communications and digital marketing for the brand," said in a news release.

About S.A. Whitehead

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Pizza Marketplace and QSRweb editor Shelly Whitehead is a former newspaper and TV reporter with an affinity for telling stories about the people and innovative thinking behind great brands.