The Anthology of Pizza Box Graphic Design: One is the Loneliest Number

Nothing takes you out of the present moment like a plate of food cooked by someone else.

Mid-way into a difficult day I decided to treat myself to a decadent restaurant lunch. Time constraints turned my fancy solo lunch into a slice of pizza eaten in the unseasonably warm sunshine. By taking it to go, I got myself a bonus prize: a single slice pizza box.

Single slice pizza box with cigarette butts and leaves, Attempted Blogger, 2012.

Visual Assessment: Don’t let the triangular form throw you; this one’s still a 100% classic pizza box, right down to use of “pizza box red” and a font reminiscent of bygone 70’s sitcoms like Three’s Company. In fact, the design is SO kitschy that it reminds me of one of those fake vintage T-shirts you get at the mall. You know, the ones with silk-screened text that says “Jack’s Tackle Shop” or the name of a high school sports team in Minnesota.

Generic Product Claim: A slice is a-nice. Well, maybe they don’t have the a- in there. But don’t you automatically read it that way, given the line art Italian stereotype poised beside it?

Italian Stereotype: He’s a real peach, and he’s even winking at me!