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March 14: The irrational li'l sweetie 'Pi' that stole the pizza leader's heart

Hopefully, you as a restaurant industry executive have already appropriately "circled" this Thursday on your calendar as that celebration of all things circular — Pi Day, the pizza industry's new high holy day.

Mici Handcrafted Italian pizza takes Pi Day literally with its 3.14 pi pie promotion. Photo provided.

March 13, 2019 by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

Here in the U.S. we especially tend to love two things: holidays and pizza. Thursday, we get both. 

We speak, of course, of March 14 or Pi Day, the holiday once supposedly devoted to the math formula, Pi, equating to the number, 3.14 (plus an infinite number of decimals). But as we all know, this one-time mathematicians' holiday has long since been hijacked and taken over by pizza purveyors everywhere.

In fact, Pi Day is nothing short of a high holy day for that pie of Italian origin that ends with an "e." We know of this industry imperative here at Pizza Marketplace because we've been getting notices about Pi day from pi- and pie-stricken pizza makers and marketers for more than two months.

Yes, seems a little on the irrational end when it comes to preparedness, but then as it turns out irrationality is actually what Pi Day — the mathematics-related one — was actually about from the very beginning. Pi, according to the calculating minds at MathisFun.com, is in fact, considered an "irrational number." Not only that but it's also supposedly a "constant" too.

And this, dear readers, is where the lightbulb went on in the collective Pizza Marketplace brain about why there is really no better day to honor pizza pies than the day originally set for mathematical "Pi."  In fact, aren't they really just two of a kind in their irrational, but still constant selves? 

After all, there may really be few constants in life, but, think about it — pizza is, isn't it. It's always been there for us, with some saying back the first renditions of pizza harken all the way back to pre-history, before its famous resurrection in Naples a mere century-plus ago. 

Then, there is that irrational trait of both Pi and the pizza pie. We hardly even need explain this, right? After all, the stuff some restaurant brands will put on their pies these days could never be classified as "rational" choices. In fact, one of the most popular stories last year on this site revolved around that very topic of strange and new pizza toppings. It is textbook "irrational."  

Still irrational as we are about the pizza pie, we remain constant in our devotion to it. That certainly also holds true for the pie-plates full of brands that are pulling out all the stops this Pi Day on Thursday, March 14, to honor, the one and only pizza pie. Here are just a few that have crossed our desks. 

A day for love that &pizza loves

Each year on March 14, this self-dubbed "anti-establishment" brand devoted to the mission of global connectedness devotes itself to uniting new couples in love. This year the brand is hosting more than a dozen ceremonies for love-smitten pairs at locations in New York City, Philadelphia, Boston and its Washington, D.C. home base, where, of course, love is almost everywhere, right?

Couples include a pair of high school sweethearts, several duos who were caught up in the whole U.S. government shutdown affair and others. &pizza started these annual free Pi Day nuptials in 2015 and every March 14 transforms its stores into wedding central hubs complete with all the décor, flowers, all-you-can-eat pizza catering and personalized signature pies needed for the couples.

In fact, &pizza's top executives have even been ordained to officiate the weddings now, while the chain offers its customers who aren't making the "big commit," the option of $3.14 off its orders and Uber Eats deliveries from today through March 17, with a special code. The brand has also arranged a 1-800-Flowers co-promotion that offers 20 percent off buckets of buds ordered on Pi Day with a special promo code. 

Blaze Pizza will push out 250,000+ pies March 14

All but five of the more than 300 Blaze locations in the U.S., Canada and the Middle East will also be celebrating the big day in this sixth year the chain has hosted what it calls the "world's largest pizza party" featuring custom-built artisanal pies for, you guessed it, $3.14 each. All locations but those in Disney Springs, the Houston Airport, Los Angeles' Staples Center, George-Mason University and at U.C.L.A. are taking part.

In this particular brand's case, the day is all about signing customers up for its app. The effort started on March 4 and promises to send customers Pi Day rewards through the app, though the reward will remain locked until March 14 when the party kicks off for the brand's more than 1 million app users. 

"Math gives us a blueprint to solve a problem, whether simple or complex," Blaze President and CEO Jim Mizes said in the release about the day. "It's with that same spirit that Blaze Pizza was founded — to solve the important problem of how to get an insanely great, scratch-made pizza that's both fast and affordable. This year, we calculated that we will serve more than a quarter-million pizzas at $3.14."

Fired Pie, Fresh Brothers get literal... er numerical... on Pi Day

Arizona-based, Fired Pie and western U.S. brand, Fresh Brothers are among the brands that opted to put their Pi Day efforts into that now infamous 3.14 (with digits, ad infinitum) quantity. From 2 p.m. until closing, all Fired Pie stores will offer one-topping pizzas for $3.14 Thursday with a drink purchase. The brand's celebration of the savory circles takes place at all 19 Phoenix metro stores, as well as at the two locations in Tucson, though it does not apply to orders made via third-party delivery, a release said.

Relatively nearby, at the Fresh Brothers, $3.14 is the tab on personal pizzas with any amount or kind of toppings for Pi Day orders. Customers must simply use that magic word, PIDAY, to get the deal on pick-up, dine-in and delivery orders, though this does not apply to orders made through Grubhub, Postmates, UberEats and Doordash, a news release said. 
 

Mici makes 3 people happy ... the 4th maybe not so much

Mici Handcrafted Italian is taking the 3.14 idea to one of its possible conclusions by offering the first four people in line at its five locations at 3:14 p.m. on March 14 the gift of a pizza. Specifically, three of the four will get free 10-inch pizzas, while the fourth will basically get the shaft by receiving just 0.14 of that size pie. 

That's not much, as you can tell in the brand's photo in with the headline to this article. But, there is a 0.14 glimmer of hope for poor No. 4. The brand hinted, in a news release, that the store operators "might" give that guy or gal the rest of the pie to complete the circle. But then again, Pi Day is irrational, so maybe they will not. 

Pieology gets kinda 'cheesy' about the holiday

Pieology is putting its Pi Day focus firmly on the cheese, whether the wedge question be grated on its pies or at the center of a cheese pulling contest the brand is hosting this Thursday. As for the promotional goods from Pieology Thursday, the chain will offer a Buy One Artisan Thin Pizza, Get one for $3.14 at all U.S. locations, along with a $2 reward for Pie Life members. 

But what the brand is really stringing customers along with this Pi Day is its first social media-centered Perfect Pieology Pull cheese-pulling contest  wherein all those visiting a store are being prompted to document their cheese-pulling prowess on Instagram along with a special hashtag. The five entries with the most votes win prizes. 

Rapid Fired:  A Pi Day number rebel 

We're not sure what exactly failed to compute at Rapid Fired Pizza for their Pi Day celebration, but the brand didn't mention a single 3.14-based promotion in a news release about about its specials Thursday. In fact, it threw a whole bunch of other non-Pi Day-esque quantities into its promotion saying it would offer customers one single-topping 9- or 11-inch pizza for $5 on March 14. See what we mean? Is somebody at Rapid Fired suffering from a little math anxiety?

Villa Italian Kitchen drives Pi day devotees to website

At pizza QSR, Villa Italian Kitchen, the brand is pushing customers to go online to its website to download coupons for $3.14 Pi Day Neopolitan cheese pizzas as part of its third such celebration on this day in March. The brand said all of its more than 200 locations nationally will take part in the promotion.

"Our Pi pricing has become a tradition at Villa Italian Kitchen, and, just like with our other annual offers, we are thrilled to continue providing our delicious pizza to our guests at a special price for this fun holiday," Villa Restaurant Group Director of Communications and Digital Marketing Mimi Wunderlich said in a release. 

Your Pie goes all 'Hollywood" on us

At Your Pie, the brand's leadership said its annual Pi Day event has become one of its biggest each year for store foot traffic. This eleventh Your Pie Pi Day event is Hollywood-themed, with the star at each location shimmering over both Your Pie's famous brick ovens and the pizza they produce.

In fact, each store will have a Your Pie Walk of Fame, as well as games and those now infamous $3.14 pizzas, along with specials and chances for customers to win an Instagram-based contest.  

"For our team, Pi(e) Day really does feel like a highly anticipated blockbuster release, and we're excited to leverage that level of excitement and enthusiasm to create an unforgettable experience for our guests," Your Pie founder and President Drew French said in news materials distributed about the chain's celebration. "We can't wait for customers to experience this year's Hollywood-inspired event and express their inner pizza with us."

All photos: Provided by referenced brands.
 

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.