Did Pentagon’s pizza orders spike during China’s Victory Day Parade?

Did pizza orders at the Pentagon spike during China’s Victory Day Parade? That’s what some have claimed on social media.

A report in the South China Morning Post quoted a social media account affiliated with a Chinese state broadcaster as saying that the Pentagon witnessed a spike in pizza orders around the time of the Victory Day Parade in Beijing.

But what happened? What do we know?

Let’s take a closer look.

What happened?

Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account affiliated with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, claimed that Domino’s Pizza saw more than four times its usual customer traffic around 9 pm on 3 September.

Orders similarly increased at the nearby Papa John’s outlet around the same time – which coincided with the start of China’s Victory Parade.

“The surge in orders at both pizza shops coincided precisely with the commencement of China’s military parade,” Yuyuan Tantian claimed.

Internet sleuths have long monitored pizza outlets around the Pentagon and the White House – seeing their sales as a precursor to important events – in what is widely known as the Pentagon Pizza Index.

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The Pentagon Pizza Report social media account, which tracks orders around the Pentagon and the CIA in Virginia , is well known for doing just that.

The handle reported above-average traffic for the Domino’s closest to the Pentagon on 3 September. Earlier in the day, it also noted above-average traffic at the Domino’s outlet nearest to the White House – around the same time China was holding its military parade.

The account further reported a huge surge in pizza orders last week at outlets such as Freddie’s Beach Bar – the gay bar closest to the Pentagon – Domino’s Pizza, District Pizza Palace, and Crystal City Sports Pub.

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It wrote on Friday that “pizzerias near the Pentagon are reporting high traffic”.

“Pizzerias near the Pentagon are currently mixed, ranging between below average to above average,” it added later.

However, it offered no explanation as to why this might be the case.

The Pizza Index theory

Some argue this theory dates back to the Cold War. At the time, Soviet intelligence is said to have kept an eye on pizza outlets in Washington, DC to gauge what those in charge of America’s military and government were doing.

This became known as Pizzint – short for “pizza intelligence”. Several media outlets are said to have received huge orders at crucial moments in American history. The phenomenon became known as the Pizza Meter.

For instance, pizza orders are said to have spiked on 1 August 1990, ahead of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. During Operation Desert Storm in 1991, Frank Meeks, who owned dozens of Domino’s franchises in Washington, claimed that orders spiked ahead of every military action. Meeks also recalled a similar upswing during the impeachment of President Bill Clinton in 1998. During Operation Desert Fox in December 1998, “the White House ordered 32 per cent more extra-cheese pizzas than normal”, the Washington Post reported.

As journalist Wolf Blitzer, who previously covered the Pentagon for CNN, quipped in 1990: “The bottom line for journalists: always keep an eye on the pizzas.”

The Pentagon Pizza Report is also said to have “predicted” the conflict between Israel and Iran earlier this year.

The account posted Google Maps activity for four pizza establishments near the Pentagon – We, The Pizza; District Pizza Palace; Domino’s; and Extreme Pizza – all of which showed a massive upswing in orders.

“As of 6:59 pm ET nearly all pizza establishments nearby the Pentagon have experienced a HUGE surge in activity,” the account wrote on 12 June.

This came an hour before Iranian media reported explosions in Tehran.

“With about an hour left before close, the second-closest Domino’s to the Pentagon (about an eight-minute drive) is experiencing EXTREMELY high levels of traffic compared to a normal Thursday at about 11:00 pm ET (8:30 am),” it added.

However, it is important to stress that there is no scientific proof of this, and it remains merely a theory.

What we do know

Though much of the Pizza Index theory may be speculation, we do know that at least one person in the White House was watching the Victory Day Parade in China.

“I thought it was very, very impressive, but I understood the reason they were doing it,” Trump said on Wednesday. “And I was watching.”

Trump earlier on social media wished Xi “a great and lasting day of celebration”. He also told Xi to “give my warmest regards to [Putin and Kim] as you conspire against the United States”.

Over the weekend, as rumours of Trump’s demise circulated on social media, pizza orders are said to have spiked across Washington, DC. The Pentagon Pizza Index reportedly showed an increase of nearly 800 per cent.

On 2 September (Tuesday), Trump held a press conference at the Oval Office. He denounced rumours that his health was declining as “fake news”. During the press conference, Trump also announced that he would relocate US Space Command headquarters from Colorado to Alabama.