Papa Johns has announced the limited-time return of its fan-favorite Shaq-a-Roni pizza to menus this fall. Developed in partnership with board member and franchisee Shaquille O’Neal, this pizza with a purpose supports local communities, with Papa Johns donating one dollar from every Shaq-a-Roni sold through December 25 to The Papa John’s Foundation for Building Community.
In its third year, Papa Johns announces the return of Shaq-a-Roni by celebrating the big footprint The Papa John’s Foundation leaves on local communities, leveraging Shaq’s larger-than-life footprint. Between October 24 and October 31, fans are invited to “step” into Shaq’s shoes and help Papa Johns make a Shaq-sized impact in communities for a chance to win cool prizes. Fans can snap a picture in the Shaq-a-Roni Shoeprint graphic at select Papa Johns restaurants nationwide and post on Twitter using hashtags #ShaqaroniImpact and #Sweepstakes and mention @PapaJohns to enter. If a fan's shoe size matches, they win a Shaq-a-Roni pizza. If not, they will still be entered to win a Shaq-sized prize: free pizza for 22 years.
The Shaq-a-Roni features an extra-large pizza made with Papa Johns fresh, never frozen, six-ingredient dough, covered with extra pepperoni and extra cheese and cut into eight Shaq-sized slices. This year, the franchise has also introduced the Pepperoni-Crusted Papadia, hand-stuffed with real cheese and its signature pepperoni, toasted with more cheese and pepperoni on the outside.
“Customers love the Shaq-a-Roni because of its size and value—extra cheese and extra-large slices—and it gives customers a chance to give back in a big way,” said Shaquille O’Neal, Papa Johns board member and franchisee. “In the last three years, the Shaq-a-Roni pizza has raised more than $6 million for The Papa John’s Foundation which gives to local organizations—that’s an impactful footprint we wanted to highlight this year and give the fans a chance to get involved.”
Every Shaq-a-Roni sale supports The Papa John’s Foundation and builds on the more than $6.6 million raised over the last two years to support organizations working to provide hunger relief, reduce food waste, and build the leaders of tomorrow, as well as the Foundation’s Building Community Fund, which provides grants to local organizations nominated by our franchisees.
With help from funds raised by the Shaq-a-Roni pizza last year, The Papa John’s Foundation and the Building Community Fund will distribute nearly $1.6 million in grants this year to almost 180 local organizations across 33 states and 96 communities nationwide, including:
- 23 local chapters of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America: A national leader in youth development programs that supports local communities by building the next generation of leaders.
- Food Recovery Network: A national nonprofit that unites students at colleges and universities to fight food waste and hunger by recovering perishable food that would otherwise go to waste from their campus dining halls and donating it to those in need.
- Just Food of Douglas County: A local Lawrence, KS organization that aims to end hunger by increasing access to healthy foods, reducing barriers to health and well-being and cultivating self-sufficiency within the local community.
- Urban Harvest STL: A local St. Louis, MO organization that builds community around inclusive and resilient local food systems by growing produce across a network of urban farms to donate to local nonprofit partners.
The Shaq-a-Roni pizza and Pepperoni-Crusted Papadia are currently available exclusively to Papa Rewards members and will become available to the public on October 24, running through December 25. Both items are offered for $13.99 and $8, respectively.
For the duration of the campaign, Papa Rewards members can bolster their contributions by donating their Papa Dough—Papa Johns will direct these donations to The Papa John’s Foundation, up to $25,000.
More information about the Shaq-a-Roni pizza, including The Papa John’s Foundation and its grantees, can be found at papajohns.com/foundation.
