Papa Johns Is Bringing Back the Shaq-a-Roni Pizza This Month

Papa Johns Pizza is bringing back one of their most acclaimed pizzas this month—the Shaq-a-Roni Pizza! Created by basketball legend and Papa Johns franchisee Shaquille O'Neal, this fan-favorite pizza is returning for its 6th consecutive year, available starting Monday, April 14. So what's on this pizza? We're talking extra cheese, extra pepperoni, and extra-large slices — all for just $12.99. That is an extra-special deal!

Papa Johns fans are obsessed with the pizza, and express heartbreak whenever it goes out of rotation for the year. "I come to you all to express my grief over the fall of the Shaqaroni Pizza at this establishment. After taking a two week hiatus from my usual pizza habits, I decided tonight would be the night I would order another Shaqaroni. I'm sure you can imagine the horror on my face when I discovered that the Shaqaroni left on December 31st, 2023," one humorous Redditor shared last year.

"It's my favorite PJs pizza as an employee. The crust turns out way better than the normal crust," another fan said. "Last time I had it, it was like an extra large double pepperoni pizza with a thinner crust. It's 13$ where I'm at which isn't too bad for something of its size," a third commented.

Other customers noted the sauce on the pizza is a little sweet, which is either a pro or a con depending on your taste. "Yah I don't mind a sweet sauce," one fan said. "I recently had Papa John's for the very first time and my only complaint is the sauce is far too sweet," another commented. "The only solution I've found is lifting the cheese and using the special seasoning packets directly on the sauce to give it some much needed salt, and using the garlic dip. It almost makes me want to order cheese sticks instead of pizza but man the stuffed crust is the best thing Papa John's has on the menu that I've tried so far."

The Shaq-a-Roni Pizza is just one of the ways Papa Johns is focusing on growth by getting "back to basics" with flavor, value, simplifying the menu, and focusing on new technology. "We've made our restaurants really tough to operate," said Papa Johns CEO Todd Penegor, via Nation's Restaurant News. "We've added a lot of SKUs over the last few years, and a lot of rhythm-breakers. We'll take a look at some of the lower-moving SKUs and pull them out of the rotation. We want to sprinkle in some great innovation around the core menu…We really need to get back to being the best pizzamakers in the business."

The chain also recently announced it is partnering with Google Cloud to revolutionize the pizza maker's ordering and delivery experience using the power of AI for a more "joyful" pizza experience that builds "lasting loyalty", according to Penegor.