On Jan. 3 there was a surge in pizza orders from U.S. government buildings such as the White House, the Pentagon, and the Department of Defense.
What is the Pentagon Pizza Index? The signal that spiked on Saturday during the U.S. attack on Venezuela
Pizza and the US attack on Venezuela and the subsequent capture of Nicolás Maduro. These two things, in themselves, have nothing to do with each other, but an event that took place in the United States on the same day as the offensive gave rise to a curious concept that could use the iconic Italian dish as an indicator to warn that something serious is about to happen.
It’s called the Pizza Meter Index. Last night, there was an unusual increase in pizza orders in the United States, specifically at pizza chains near government buildings, such as the Pentagon, the White House, and the Department of Defense headquarters.
The Pentagon Pizza Report posted on X an increase in activity at Pizzato Pizza near the Pentagon, shortly before 3 a.m. local time. This showed that the restaurant was busier than usual at the time of the drone strike.
The “Pizza Meter Index (or report)” refers to seeing an unusual spike in pizza orders last Saturday from pizzerias near key U.S. government buildings such as the Pentagon, the White House, and the Department of Defense headquarters. The thinking goes that where there is a potential major crisis, far more staff than usual are found working at these buildings as they deal with the situation and plan potential actions, and while they are stuck in the office working, they call out for pizza to keep them going.
Pizzato Pizza, a late night pizzeria nearby the Pentagon, has suddenly surged in traffic.
— Pentagon Pizza Report (@PenPizzaReport) January 3, 2026
As of 2:04am ET pic.twitter.com/P60jMKfT1d
The pizza effect: origins in the Cold War
The term, though highlighted anew by recent events in the Middle East, originated during the Cold War. At that time, Soviet intelligence services monitored similar indicators, tracking excessive pizza deliveries by couriers to gauge alertness to potential global crises. Their intelligence source was known as Pizzint. In fact, spikes in pizza orders from government buildings have also been recorded during other military events, such as the invasion of Kuwait and the Iraq War.
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