The "Pentagon Pizza Index," an unofficial indicator used to predict U.S. military operations, has once again proven accurate during the recent U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran.
The index tracks the correlation between pizza orders at shops near the Pentagon and national emergencies or major military operations. A surge in evening orders from these establishments suggests defense officials are working late at their offices, signaling that military action is imminent or underway.
According to the X (formerly Twitter) account "Pentagon Pizza Report," which monitors the index, orders at Pizzato Pizza near the Pentagon spiked at 1:28 a.m. Eastern Time on the day of the Iranian airstrikes.
The account had also noted elevated order volumes at several Pentagon-area pizzerias at 2:42 p.m. Eastern Time on April 27, the day before the U.S. launched its attack on Iran.
Activated in August 2024, the account uses Google Maps' "Popular Times" feature to track whether pizza shops around the Defense Department are busier than usual.
The index reportedly signaled activity before Israel's large-scale airstrikes on Iran on June 12 last year as well. Hours before news of the strikes broke, a surge in activity was detected at four pizza shops near the Pentagon—interpreted as a sign that U.S. military leadership was monitoring the allied operation late into the night.
While the U.S. did not immediately participate in those strikes, it subsequently launched "Operation Midnight Hammer" on June 22, deploying stealth bombers to strike three Iranian nuclear facilities.
The index has even been addressed at the highest levels of the Defense Department. In a Fox News interview on February 22, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth acknowledged he was aware of the tracking account.
"I've thought about ordering a bunch of pizzas on a random night just to create confusion," Hegseth joked. "If you see Domino's orders spike on some Friday night, that's just me messing with everyone through the app."