Saucebowl Rumble: Papa Johns vs Little Caesars!

[Blue_Adept]

[Rollo]

1. There's a Papa John's about 2 blocks from my home...

... it replaced a locally owned pizza shop that had a "fire"...

I understand the previous pizza place was pretty good. I never tried it, though.

From everything I've read, Papa John's pizza is mediocre at best. So I haven't tried that, either. Fuck that Nazi asshole Schnatter.

For me, it's Costco for pizza, or a 12" frozen one from the supermarket.

Or better yet, something healthier made at home.

[Blue_Adept]

2. I have lots of pizza options in my area

but I really enjoy Papa Johns stuff from the franchise that we had. Sadly, it closed up shop suddenly a year ago. I do get amused at the lengthy threads about how awful the pizza is and wonder what percentage of them have actually had it and how many are just predisposed against it because of the Schnatter or parroting what others have said. Pizza can be a divisive food for many, especially if you're in an area where there are lots of great varieties. I'm not in Boston but have had some fantastic stuff there. Out in the burbs, my selection's a bit more limited.

But I'm also probably pretty much an awful person because once or twice a year I'll have some chickfila after trying it for the first time down south a few years back and just loving it.

[NoMoreRepugs]

3. Papa John's and Boston area pizza should

not be mentioned together in the same library.

[Blue_Adept]

9. I wish I could get into Boston more for some

But my favorite pizza place is a little shop up in York Beach in Maine. Twice a year I make up that way for it, soooo good! Nothing like it anywhere near where I am.

[Submariner]

26. Try Regina's Pizza when you get the chance

I grew up getting Regina's from their original North End pizzeria. They have suburb branches now. Best flat pizza in the land.

[Blue_Adept]

29. They've had them in the malls for ages

Which has never appealed to me, though I've tried it. Just something about it feels more like something I'd get from the frozen shelf at a supermarket.

[crazycatlady]

6. My confession

Homophobic chicken sandwiches are delicious.

I wish CFA tasted bad.

[Blue_Adept]

8. Yup, it's a struggle

It's why I limit myself. But now one is moving into the next town over and it's no longer a haul to get to where one is. The temptation grows.

I will continue to believe that the curve of the universe will bring us to a better place and an occasional chicken sandwhich won't slow it down much.

[volstork]

10. My Chik-fil-a story:

A friend and I were road-tripping out of town to the wedding of a gay couple who are dear friends. We got out on the road and were trying to decide where to grab a bite; she saw a billboard and said, "Hey! Let's go to Chik-fil-a!" I retorted, "We can NOT go to Chik-fil-a on our way to a gay wedding! That is, unless we flip them off as we go through the drive-thru and scream, 'FU, Chik-fil-a! We're going to a gay wedding!!!'"

[forgotmylogin]

17. I just unsubscribed from Papa John's discount code alert list.

Which hurts, they put out a great product in the franchise near me. Apparently, Pizza Hut and Dominos are both very Republican? Who to switch to?

I've got availability to Papa Murphys, Imos, and Little Caesars.

I've never been impressed by Little Caesars, but I don't know if I've actually ordered from them before (just did $5 instant carryout)

Who's best to patronize? Murphy's and Caesars? I've got some local St. Louis franchises too, but none of these have email ordering and/or delivery, sadly.

[Blue_Adept]

23. The only pizza chain in my area is Papa Ginos

which is decent but unexceptional. Papa Johns topped them easily with what I liked, but that's how it goes. Once Papa Johns left I have had far less pizza.

There are a few decent local places but the ease of being able to order via Papa Johns online/phone and delivery really made a difference compared to the local places that don't have any online presence at all.

[askyagerz]

28. Only thing I miss about st louis

Is Imos... It just doesn't get better then provel cheese on pizza

[cannabis_flower]

34. Didn't know about Domino's and Pizza Hut

We have a local chain in Houston that caters to Hispanics - Pizza Patrón - they're pretty good, also cheap.

[forgotmylogin]

35. This actually worked out.

It motivated me to google map around me, and I found a local family-owned non-chain pizzeria that has online ordering, delivery, and high ratings! Gonna give them a try next pizza night.

[haele]

24. Chain pizza quality depends on the quality of the manager and franchise owner.

Spouse used to manage a Dominos back in the bad old days (before their recent improvement in sauce), and he understood how to proof pizza dough, manage the oven and the way to assemble a pizza so that each bite had the right amount of sauce, cheese, and ingredient ratio, instead of just thawing out the dough and tossing handfuls of stuff on the pie before shoving it into an oven willy-nilly. You don't need to do anything special to pizza dough - no "garlic and herb", just flour, salt, yeast and water - you just need to proof it properly so it will bake to optimal taste and texture. You don't need any special ingredients for the sauce and toppings, you just need to know how much to put on and how to disburse them.

Spouse managed the shop as if it was his own family pizzeria, and it showed in the quality of his product. And a couple years ago we had Dominos so bad that spouse asked to talk to the manager about how he handled his product - in fact, in one shop, the manager suggested "if you know so much about this, show us"...and spouse went in the back and made a couple dozen pizzas on the spot that were so much better, we got free pizza for 3 months for his coming over and training the crew and manager...

The times I've had Papa Johns, the experience was always underwhelming at best. If the owner treats his employees - including his managers - as cost burdens, you're not going to have a employees who are invested in ensuring their product is good.

Haele

[Blue_Adept]

25. Yup, all of this. It's easy to write off chains but that's missing the forest for the trees

[forgotmylogin]

41. Yeah, I'm a little sad because PJ was my go-to.

They are close (in carryout driving distance to save $) had generous discount codes, and their pizza is really good--I've had Papa Johns from a bad franchise location so I understand how much the product can vary in quality.

Pizza Hut and Dominos are okay...PH is kind of mass-produced (I appreciate their $20 box deal) and Dominos has been enjoyable since they reworked everything about how they make pizza years ago.

My next favorite is Papa Murphy. Their pizza is great but you have to pick it up and bake it yourself.

Hopefully the family-owned place I just found near me will fill in the gap. And they have a specialty pizza with brisket and provel cheese!

(I'm in St. Louis, so yes, I like Provel and micro-thin crust pizza...as well as most every other kind.)

[cannabis_flower]

30. I have eaten Papa John's pizza...

but I have never bought it. Managers at work used to get it for us every once in a while. I found the crust rubbery. I much prefer Domino's, Pizza Hut or Pizza Inn. I also find Kroger rising crust frozen pizza better than Papa John's.

[Rollo]

52. I usually get the Safeway Select house brand rising crust pizza...

Their spinach/mushroom is quite good.

Supreme OK, but I really don't care for pepperoni. I'll have to try their chicken and other offerings.

[appleannie1943]

39. I ate it at someone else's house and did not even know where they got it.

I did not care for the sauce. After the game was over, on my way to the bathroom, I saw the empty boxes in the garbage. So I did not like it before I even knew where they bought it.

[Rollo]

51. Your local PJ's might have been an exception...

Recently checked out ratings of pizza chains, and Papa Johns consistently scored relatively low.

[Blue_Adept]

54. eh, so many things like that and yelp can be gamed so easily

While I do take a gander at those and incorporate into my view overall, it's not going to define things fully for me. There are a great number of movies and TV shows that I enjoy that are "scored relatively low" by many. hell, for years being a comic book fan was to be truly on the fringe. But now everyone loves it.

Not saying everyone will love Papa Johns by any stretch. But let's be honest in that there's definitely an agenda driven view of the company. I'd hazard that half of those saying how awful the food is never actually had it and are just bandwagoning.

[Rollo]

58. Well... not really... I looked at least five different surveys, and in four of them Papa John's....

PJ's scored out of the top five. In a few cases, out of the top ten. And sound reasons were given, not political.

That said, even if PJ's pizzas were the best, I probably would still not buy their product, because of their owner's extreme right wing politics.

[OriginalGeek]

56. Well I can't speak for everyone

but I hated Papa John's long before I knew any of this political stuff. I don't care for Dominos or Pizza Hut either. I worked for several different pizza places in my youth but they were all chains so I'm not putting myself out there as some kind of authority on pizza. But I have eaten a lot of pizza over the years and PJ is one of the worst. I generally find my favorites are small, family owned single places or local chains.

I'm pretty vocal about my displeasure at Chik Fil A's owners' thoughts on LGBTQ issues but I was also vocal about my thanks for one of the local franchises who came in and opened up on a Sunday to help feed the first responders after the Orlando Pulse shooting.

I seriously doubt you're awful.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

4. K&R

[crazycatlady]

5. While I admire the work of the Little Caesar's guy

As a (native) New Yorker, I'll say they both have terrible pizza.

Give me a locally owned pizzeria any day.

[Mosby]

12. the thing about little ceasars

Is that you can get a "hot and ready" pizza for 5 bucks.

How good does it need to be?

It's a bargain.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

15. How good? Life is too short for not-so-good food.

[crazycatlady]

16. Those hot and ready $5 pizzas are great

I'm a political staffer. When I need to feed canvassers or college kids (pizza is the easiest way to bribe them) they're great.

[Amishman]

19. The $8 deep dish is actually good.

And be sure to get the extra seasoning packets

[forgotmylogin]

43. I'll have to try actually ordering from a Little Caesars.

I didn't know they had a deep dish. I keep seeing the commercials for stuff like "bacon-wrapped pizza crust" and I never took it seriously since it seemed to be catering to college kids with cheap pizza and weird stunts.

Nothing wrong with a $5 pizza you don't have to order though. I've grabbed those in preference of fast food - you can't quickly feed 2-3 people for $5 even at McDonald's.

[RhodeIslandOne]

31. And Tonys Frozen Pizzas are a $1

And they suck too. You get what you pay for. Which is usually intestinal pain.

[Mosby]

49. I have eaten little caesars many times

Not only was it good pizza it never made anyone sick.

Maybe you should avoid pizza.

[RhodeIslandOne]

55. Nope

I’ve eaten my fair share of pizza. Very rarely have I gotten sick but Little Caesar’s and cafeteria pizza as a kid did the trick.

[Javaman]

13. +1 nt

[Johonny]

14. Yip

[lark]

7. Haven't bought anything from Pappa John's in many years.

Not since it come out that he's a firm part of the tealiban olligarchy and cares nothing for his workers, just himself.

[MontanaMama]

11. Never had PJ pizza.

Never will. There are scads of pizza options out there so why give this d-bag any of my money?

[NewJeffCT]

18. Back in the 90s

I took a second job to get some extra money and the place was in the same strip mall as a Papa John's. I'm sure I had a few Papa John's pizzas at the time just because of the convenience. However, I am positive I have not had any since that time. I doubt I hated the pizza, but in Connecticut, we have so many good local choices that it's silly to go to a national chain.

[left-of-center2012]

20. Peyton Manning often appears in Papa John's TV ads

Peyton Manning is a friend and supporter of Donald Trump.

[Sneederbunk]

22. Manning owns 21 of the franchises.

[Blue Owl]

21. Porta Johns for the loss

[Cuthbert Allgood]

27. I'm 51 and make a comfortable living. I don't need to eat shitty food.

But, yeah, the Little Caesar's guy is CLEARLY a better person. Both pizzas are shit.

[dreamland]

32. Blaze pizza rocks!!

We've got them all here but for the taste and money it's Blaze pizza hands down. I don't know about their politics but LeBron James was one of their original investors. I refuse to touch a Dominos and stopped going to Papa John's four years ago when he started criticizing Obamacare.

[TexasBushwhacker]

48. Yeah, I think it's more likely that PJs is losing market share to Blaze

They are expanding and they've become super popular. Also Dominoes sales have gone up in the past year. They attribute it to their super easy app for ordering.

[packman]

33. What kinda profit is there in a $5 pizza

I mean, the dough (flour, water, salt, yeast) is a few pennies- throw in the toppings (maybe 50cents or so) - energy cooking it, employee wages, storefront, etc. Makes you wonder what is the profit margin that makes these guys multi-millionaires?

[forgotmylogin]

46. They make it up in volume I'm sure.

Since they're constantly making pizza anyway, the ovens are going, they've got employees there... why not have them ready to be bought "off the rack"? If they're selling three every 10 minutes during a rush (three seems to be the number they hold ready and I have seen them sell that fast), that's an extra $90 an hour without the extra overhead of taking orders on the phone or customizing an order on the line.

The $5 instant carry out was the best idea they ever had. The few times I've gone in they were constantly walking out the door. The convenience of being able to go "Hey, there's Little Caesars, I'll pay $5, BAM you're on your way with your pizza isn't matched anywhere except perhaps places that sell by the slice.

[George II]

36. That makes the choice clear if one is trying to decide where to go.

[Firestorm49]

37. Boo Fucking Hoo !

Maybe the little bitch should try to make an edible pizza instead of that sloppy crap that he peddles. Typical Gomer Trump philosophy - blame everybody else. Republicans are the ones who fart blue when you don’t pull yourself up by the boot straps - no pity for the downtrodden, get your ass out of bed and get to work. Instead, this little pussy is blaming the NFL. That’s the theory, unless it happens to you, right?
I’ve had one Papa John’s Pizza, and I more than likely never finished it, and that was probably 15 years ago - no offense to those whose taste runs in that variety of fare.
This guy should STFU and get back to work instead of blubbering like an infant that it’s not his fault. What an ass.

[demmiblue]

38. K&R

[trc]

40. There are multiple Papa John's in my area

and we used to buy from them on occasion. Then I saw Papa John giving a speech to (I believe share holders) wherein he railed against the ACA, claiming it would cost his company 17 cents out of each pizza sold to pay for employee healthcare. He was at that time running an ad during football games offering to give away 2 million pizzas. Have not been back to a Papa John's since.

[Fritz Walter]

42. How about Mellow Mushroom?

I prefer their “ketchup-on-toast” over other chains, especially PJ.

[LudwigPastorius]

44. Papa John's pizzas are hot circles of garbage.

Support your local mom & pop pizzeria.

Or better yet, make your own at home. It ain't that hard.

[Honeycombe8]

45. Little Caesars, Little Caesars! (Seriously, I don't eat pizza, so.....)

There comes a time when the older body just can't eat good stuff without piling on rolls of fat around the midsection or raising blood pressure. If I spluge, it's fried chicken for me.

[cab67]

47. Ive been fortunate.

I grew up in the northeast (MA and northern NJ). Lots of excellent pizza.

I lived in Chicago for a while. I cannot, in good conscience, call the deep-dish pies there ‘pizza,’ but they can be good - and again, lots of local actual pizza options.

Otherwise, I’ve lived in college towns. There will always be non-chain pizza in college towns. Some of it will always be good.

I get the difference between a local franchise and the overall corporation, but I prefer not to have to worry about it.

[snooper2]

50. Pizza Hut is better than both of them hands down

[ProfessorGAC]

53. I'll Second That

For chain joint pizza, it's consistent, the soft crust is really good, they don't scrimp on sauce, and the price is right compared to the actual pizzeria food. If i have a taste for pizza and don't want to spend 28 bucks on one, i'll go for the pan crust Supreme in a heartbeat. (Besides, the PH To Go is only 4 blocks from my house That said, the best pizzeria is about 200 feet closer.)

[area51]

57. At Papa John's

as an employee, you have to wait a year to purchase health insurance.