Valley pizzerias prepare for the madness of Thanksgiving Eve

When you think of Thanksgiving food, you think of turkey, sides and pumpkin pie — not pizza. But for pizzerias, Thanksgiving Eve is one of the busiest nights of the year.

Slice, a company that supports local pizzeria operators with marketing, sales and pizza analytics, says the thousands of companies across the country using its platform see an average of a 68% increase in order volume on the night before Thanksgiving.

“The biggest challenge facing local pizzerias during high-demand days like Thanksgiving Eve is keeping up with all of the phone calls, especially during the busiest dinner rush,” Ilir Sela, CEO of Slice, said. “This leads to lost sales and poor customer experience.”

The busiest time for companies using Slice is noon to 5p.m., with an average order costing $39.

But what does this mean for valley pizzerias? The consensus is a lot more dough, literally. 

Venezia’s Pizzeria has seven locations in the East Valley. CEO Derek Clark said that company-wide, on Thanksgiving Eve last year, orders increased nearly 73%.

“I knew it was high,” Clark said. “I thought it was closer to 45 to 50%. But I ran the numbers and I was like, wow that’s actually really good.”

For Venezia’s, the orders build up over the holiday week. Earlier in the week, the company receives a lot of corporate orders for lasagna and spaghetti. But when Wednesday night hits, pizza dominates.

The stores double their staff and drivers and prepare more dough earlier in the week. They see a lot of 24-inch pizza orders, which are $4 off on Wednesdays and feed eight to 10 people. They will also have specials that bundle pizzas with other menu items.

Because it gets so busy, Clark recommends people place their orders early. Customers can call to request a deferred order, allowing them to schedule their pickup or delivery time in advance and bypass the long wait times.

Grimaldi’s Pizzeria has six locations across the valley. Corporate chef Hector Godinez sees a spike in both dine-in and takeout orders on Thanksgiving Eve, making it the company’s second busiest stretch of the year, behind only the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

“On Thanksgiving, everybody’s a little bit more forgiving and a little bit more understanding of the business flow, so definitely a change in how it feels,” Godinez said. “The people that are coming through and picking up are just a lot friendlier.”

For Godinez, this day is a data project and an exercise in predicting demand. The company analyzes business performance, economic conditions, historical trends, employee observations and inventory to decide things like how many staff to add and ingredients to prepare for this busy day. This year, they are preparing for a 35% uptick in orders. 

Grimaldi’s seasonal menu includes fall desserts like caramel apple and pumpkin cheesecakes, plus a buffalo chicken pizza. They also have some seasonal gift card deals that can help you save some money if you want to treat your loved ones or yourself to the gift of a pie. 

While Grimaldi’s and Venezia’s see a lot more takeout, Federal Pizza sees primarily more in-person dining. Tina Medrano, Area Director for Upward Projects, the parent company of Federal Pizza, said last year the restaurant on Central Avenue saw a 40% increase in total sales compared to a normal, while takeout orders rose only 10%. 

“We definitely have to increase… our ordering, but we have to be very nimble, and we have to be very smart about it. Medrano said. “We pull [data] to show how many pizzas we sell and that kind of thing, so we know how much dough to make.”

Because Federal Pizza’s cooks make the dough fresh, they have to produce exactly the correct amount of dough on Monday and Tuesday that will be used completely without running out on Wednesday. 

Medrano said the question of why people so many people get pizza the day before Thanksgiving is simple. 

“Everybody loves pizza,” Medrano said. “There’s always something for everyone… so it’s a great spot to take the family.”