The Rise And Fall Of Build Your Own Pizza

Overview

When it comes to pizza, everyone has a favorite topping. But for a while, some restaurant chains wondered if choosing toppings wasn't enough and dared to ask: What if customers could build every pizza from scratch? Inspired by the assembly-line success of brands like Subway and Chipotle, chains promised fresh dough, unlimited topping combinations, and blazing-fast ovens that could cook a personal pizza in just a few minutes. Make-your-own-pizza sounded like the future of fast casual dining. And for a while, it worked.... until, it didn't. On this episode of Weird History Food, we dive into the make-your-own-pizza movement to see how it got started, why it took off so quickly, and why it died out just as fast.