News

Pizza Hut Bucks Health-Conscious Trend, Debuting Crazy Cheesy Crust Pizza

By Makini Brice | Update Date: Apr 04, 2013 12:08 PM EDT

For people who cannot get enough cheese on their pizzas, Pizza Hut has just the pizza for you. Yesterday Pizza Hut launched the "Crazy Cheesy Crust" pizza, which replaces crust with bread bowls filled with cheese. The move comes just in time for the final four in March Madness, a time when pizza sales typically rise.

According to Bloomberg, the introduction is one of the largest product launches of the year for the fast food manufacturer. Much research went into the creation of the dish. For example, the pockets were initially bigger, about the size of small tennis balls. The test kitchen also experimented with more cheese in the dish. However, Pizza Hut soon realized that there was a limit to how much cheese customers wanted. In addition, limiting the cheese also means limiting the most expensive part of the pizza.

Last week, Pizza Hut employees started training on the creation of the pizza. Each one is made to order and a cook is required to fold each crust into loops.

According to the Associated Press, the launch serves as a reminder that, even though fast food companies are rolling out healthier products to appease health-conscious consumers, Americans still have a taste for over-the-top creations. Burger King recently served up a turkey burger as a temporary addition to its menu, but also rolled out a beef burger with cheese and bacon bits.

The product is a limited time launch but, if the product is wildly popular, Pizza Hut may expand its offerings, adding items like bacon in the crust. If the Crazy Cheesy Crust pizza did make the transition into a full-time menu option, it would not be the first time that Pizza Hut added a temporary option to the full-time menu. In 1995, Pizza Hut added the Stuffed Crust pizza as a temporary item. It proved to be such a success, adding $300 million in sales that year, that it became a permanent fixture on menus.

People who spend a lot of time on the Internet may also note the similarity in appearance between the Crazy Cheesy Crust pizza and the Crown Crust pizza in the Middle East, which surrounds the pizza with miniature cheeseburgers or even hot dogs. However, Pizza Hut notes the difference; because cheeseburgers and pizza are both thought of as American dishes, it made sense to pair the two overseas. The Crazy Cheesy Crust pizza is made for American sensibilities, on the other hand.

© 2023 Counsel & Heal All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

Join the Conversation

Real Time Analytics