> The ‘Pizza Meter’ is based on a simple causal relationship: during national emergencies, staff at defense or intelligence agencies work overnight, and delivery pizza becomes their only meal option. The term gained prominence in the early 1990s when Frank Meeks, a Domino’s Pizza franchise owner in Washington, revealed, “Pizza orders are more accurate than news in gauging Washington’s political climate.”

> Historical cases confirm the ‘Pizza Meter’s’ high accuracy. On August 1, 1990, just before Iraq invaded Kuwait, CIA headquarters saw pizza orders surge more than fourfold. The day before the Gulf War (Operation Desert Storm) began in January 1991, White House orders jumped sixfold, while the Pentagon’s rose more than tenfold. The pattern extended beyond military actions: during the Soviet hardliners’ coup in August 1991 and the Lewinsky scandal impeachment phase under President Bill Clinton in 1998, pizza shops near the White House and Congress operated all night. A similar surge was reported ahead of the U.S. airstrikes on Iran in June of last year.