Pizza Trends

Pizza has always been a leader in the broadening of America's palate. While classic pizza styles like New York thin crust and Chicago deep-dish will always be in style, pizza also has trends and innovations every year that have led the way in introducing new flavor profiles across the country.

In the 1980s, pizza chains brought Barbeque Chicken pizza to the menu, trading traditional tomato sauce for barbeque and beginning the trends that continue today of innovations to the base flavor of a pizza pie. In the 1990s, pizza chefs explored the possibilities of the crust when they introduced the stuffed crust pizzas. This trend has continued through to today, where stuffed crust pizzas remain one of the biggest sellers on every menu.

In the the 2000s, chefs explored pizza ideas that stretched beyond our traditional understanding of pizza as a savory meal item. The first reimagining came with dessert pizza, which used a cookie base to deliver traditional dessert flavors like fruit and candy to the palate. In the 2010s, pizza moved to the morning with the invention of breakfast pizza.

Today's trends in pizza are creating new flavors based on regional and international favorites. Chefs are exploring different cuisines to create new flavor profiles for their pizzas, as well as looking to American regional favorites for inspiration.

A Tribute To the King of Hot Sandwiches

In 2022, the best new flavor is the Philly cheesesteak pizza. Bringing all the flavors of that classic sandwich, both local connoisseurs and those who have never visited Philadelphia can experience the delicious combination that makes the Philly cheesesteak the King of Hot Sandwiches.

The Philly Ingredients

Philly cheesesteak pizza includes delicious cheese, thinly sliced steak, onion and green peppers of the classic sandwich. This timeless combination of flavors is perfect on pizza and is rated the number one new flavor by its fans. Add-ons that could elevate the pizza even further include mushrooms and hot or sweet cherry peppers.

All-Inclusive Options

Even folks who have had to forgo pizza in the past due to allergen concerns can enjoy this new flavor. Papa Johns CEO Rob Lynch, a menu innovator bringing new flavors and options to restaurants across America, has made sure that the Philly cheesesteak pizza is available to as many consumers as possible. This means that Philly cheesesteak pizza is available as a gluten free pizza in addition to other traditional crust options.

Pizza trends come and go, and not all innovations are successful enough to become regular items on American menus. But the classic flavors combined with crust options that are inclusive for those limited by special diets make Philly cheesesteak pizzas the best trend for 2022 and indicate that this trend could become a menu classic for years to come.