Pentagon Pizza Orders Surge Before U.S. Iran Strikes

Pizza orders near the Pentagon spiked in the middle of the night before the United States launched airstrikes against Iran on June 28, confirming what observers call the "Pentagon Pizza Index" has struck again.

According to the X account "Pentagon Pizza Report," orders at Pizzato Pizza near the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, surged at 1:28 a.m. Eastern Time on June 28. The spike occurred during normally quiet hours and coincided with the timing of U.S. airstrikes on Iran.

The account had flagged unusual activity the day before. "As of 2:42 p.m. Eastern Time, several pizza shops near the Pentagon are recording high order volumes," it posted on June 27, suggesting a military operation could be imminent.

The Pentagon Pizza Index is an informal indicator tracking the correlation between pizza orders near the Defense Department and national emergencies or major military operations. The theory holds that when military officials order large quantities of pizza during late-night shifts, significant military action may be underway somewhere in the world.

The X account began operating in August 2024. It uses Google Maps' "popular times" feature to track activity levels at pizza shops near the Pentagon in near real-time.

The index drew attention before Israel's large-scale airstrikes against Iran on June 12 last year. Activity at four pizza shops near the Pentagon spiked hours before news of the strikes broke.

Similar patterns emerged before the account existed. On August 1, 1990, the Central Intelligence Agency ordered 21 pizzas in a single night—an unusually high number at the time. Hours later, Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait, triggering the Gulf War. The incident became a defining anecdote for the Pentagon Pizza Index.

The Defense Department does not recognize the index as an official indicator. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth joked about it in a Fox News interview on June 22. "I've thought about ordering a ton of pizza on random nights just to confuse everyone," he said, suggesting that a surge in Domino's orders on a particular Friday night might just be him placing orders through the app.