Papa John's Just Launched Its First New Crust in 35 Years
Over the past 35 years, we've had six presidents, 22 models of the iPhone, and exactly one version of Papa Johns' pizza crust. This week, however, things finally changed. That's right, folks: Papa John's crust just got its very first upgrade.
The new dough is a little different than what the original Papa John imagined. Infused with garlic sauce, this crust has artisanal Parmesan-Romano cheese baked right in, landing it squarely in the realm of cheesy crust—but better. (If there's one universal maxim, it's that one cannot possibly have too much garlic.)
In 1984, the pizza chain found fame thanks to its astoundingly simple dough: six ingredients, never frozen. The first draft did the trick, and Papa John's hasn't tinkered with it since. But you needn't worry—their new modification doesn't sacrifice any of the doughy simplicity of the old. Actually, a big part of the reason the franchise even made a change to begin with was just due to the extreme popularity of its signature Garlic Sauce.
"There's a lot of fan love for Papa John's signature Garlic Sauce, so we knew [the] first-ever innovation of our original crust had to feature it," Paul Fabre, senior vice president of menu strategy and innovation at Papa John's, said in a press release. "It's the first time we're adding flavor to our fresh, never-frozen original dough…we're working to innovate more than ever while maintaining our commitment to quality."
The new crust is now available nationwide, so you'll want to stop in and get your first taste of it! The Garlic Parmesan crust can be added to any Papa John's pizza, including the chain's Handcrafted Specialties and Create Your Own versions.
And like any great, splashy new launch, Papa John's is doing its first in style. To make sure pizza-lovers get their fill of the new crust, the chain introduced a limited-edition "Crust Luster" pizza. Besides having a super catchy name, the Crust Luster is also a neatly wrapped gift to carb-lovers. Roughly 90 percent of the pie is Garlic Parmesan crust, with a shrunken inner circle dedicated to all the sauce, cheese, and toppings that make a pizza a pizza. (We'll take two orders, please!)
Sadly, this particular pie, which puts the crust as close to center-stage as it's ever going to get, is available at just six specific locations nationwide:
- Atlanta: 990 State Street NW
- Chicago: 230 W. Division Street
- Dallas: 3501 McKinney Avenue
- Los Angeles: 701 W. East Cesar E. Chavez Avenue, Suite 109
- Miami: 1315 W. 49th Street, Hialeah
- New York City: 896 Amsterdam Avenue
The promotion on the limited-edition Crust Luster Pizza wraps up on Sunday, November 10th.
If you can't make it to one of those specific shops before the Crust Luster bell tolls, head to your local Papa John's anyway and drop the code CHEESYCRUST. You can get this deal by phone, going to PapaJohns.com, or using the Papa John's app. That'll get you a one-topping Garlic Parmesan pie for just $10. No matter how you slice it, that's worth the price—and the 35-year wait.
