Pizza Logos

Famous Pizza Logos

The humble Italian street food (traditionally food for the poor) steadily became the most popular fast food in the United States and many other countries globally. Pizza is often people’s favorite food, and there are plenty of styles and brands to choose from. Loud and passionate arguments emerge from simply asking which city makes the best pizza. So ingrained is pizza in the American cuisine landscape that the names and logos associated with it are pop culture figures in their own right. Here are some of the most memorable pizza-related logos and a little bit of the history behind them.

Pizza Hut

Since opening its first restaurant in 1958, ‘the Hut’ has become the largest pizza chain restaurant internationally. Currently, over 18,000 Pizza Huts are dotted around the world, all with the iconic red and black logo attached to them. 

The most common version of the logo includes a red roof (or hut) above the Pizza Hut script. The most famous iteration of the script extends the letters Z and H to make the flourishes appear like a lingering pizza smell wafting over customers. The Hut color has always been red to connect with the sauce color on most pizzas.

Other logo versions used from 1999-2014 included a yellow underline and a green dot above the letter I. The green refers to bell pepper, and the yellow line refers to cheese, all commonly found ingredients in Pizza Hut pizzas.

Domino’s

The main competitor to Pizza Hut, which many argue has overtaken them, is Domino’s. A massive chain in their own right, Domino’s has more locations around the world. Their first location was in Ypsilanti, Michigan, in 1960 after two brothers took over a local pizzeria called DomiNick’s.

The Domino’s logo is widely recognized for its simplicity and for remaining unchanged throughout the brand’s existence. The current shortened logo features two square boxes at a diagonal angle. The first box is blue with two white circles; the adjacent one is red with a single red circle. While on the face of it, they look like a domino piece, the shapes are deliberately reminiscent of pizza boxes, and the reason for two dots plus 1 is a reference to the first three restaurants the Monaghan brothers opened. The red, white, and blue color scheme is a nod to patriotism, and Domino’s American take on the famous Italian dish it makes.

Little Caesars

Another massive American pizza brand that emerged from Michigan is Little Caesars. The much-loved chain began operating in 1959 with Mike and Maria Ilitch, originally named “Little Caesar’s Pizza Treat.”

The black typeface of the company’s name and the Caesar figure enjoying a hot slice has remained consistent throughout the years. He holds a spear aloft with another portion drooping down too. The Roman figure wears an orange robe, and the pizza is also orange.

The Little Caesars pizza logo hasn’t evolved much since 1971, nor has the “Pizza! Pizza!” slogan. When you have a good thing, why change, right?

Sbarro

For an insider’s tip to those visiting the Big Apple, get a slice at the famous Sbarro’s. At least that’s what Michael Scott told us in The Office. Sbarro these days has grown far beyond its New York roots and is in airports and strip malls up and down the United States.

The most recognized version of the logo involves an inverted Italian flag with the Sbarro name in lowercase yet bold black typeface across the white middle bar. The current logo still has the Sbarro name in the middle, yet instead of a flag, it is surrounded by an inverted pizza triangle in Italian red and green again. The company also lists its origins with the pizza slice “NYC 1956”.