History of Little Caesars Pizza
Explore the history of Little Caesars Pizza, from its 1959 founding by Mike and Marian Ilitch to its innovative ‘Hot-N-Ready’ model.
- Little Caesars opened a new grab-and-go location in Saint Johns.
- This is the only Little Caesars in St. Johns County and joins several others in the Jacksonville area.
- The restaurant is located in the Grand Cypress Marketplace, which will soon be anchored by an Aldi grocery store.
Known for its catchy brand tagline as well as its pies, a popular nationwide pizza chain debuted its newest “grab and go” restaurant in northwest St. Johns County.
Little Caesars opened Aug. 12 at 140 Little Cypress Drive in Grand Cypress Marketplace off Race Track Road in Saint Johns.
An official grand opening celebration is planned for Sept. 6 for the lone Little Caesars location in the county.
As a grab-and-go only location, the restaurant has no on-site seating.
The Saint Johns restaurant is among 19 in the Jacksonville area. It joins 14 in Duval County, three in Clay County, and one in Nassau County, the company website shows.
“As first-time franchisees, we couldn’t imagine a better place to open our first Little Caesars than right here in Saint Johns,” said Kyle French, one of the business operators.
Customers can expect Little Caesars’ signature menu offerings such as Hot-N-Ready pizza, Crazy Bread and wings. New on the menu are Crazy Puffs, which at $3.99 are “perfect for a quick lunch, family dinner or a late-night snack,” according to the announcement.
“We’re excited to become part of this community, build lasting relationships with our neighbors and serve local families with the fresh, delicious pizza, quality and value the brand is known for,” French said.
St. Johns County part of Little Caesars expansion
Founded in 1959 by Mike and Marian Ilitch as a single, family-owned pizzeria, Little Caesars — headquartered in Detroit — is a whole lot bigger today.
Little Caesars is the third-largest pizza chain in the world. It has restaurants in each of the 50 U.S. states plus 29 countries and territories.
The chain emphasizes its use of “quality ingredients like fresh, never-frozen mozzarella and Muenster cheese and sauce made from fresh-packed, vine-ripened California crushed tomatoes.”
Little Caesars is also known for its exclusive “Pizza Portal” pickup system, which is a self-service mobile order pickup station.
The system allows customers to place an order and pay for their pizza via the Little Caesars app. They then pick up their hot pizza from a portal within the store. The system is designed to be more streamlined and efficient by allowing customers to bypass traditional counter service, Little Caesars said when it launched the portal in September 2018.
In addition, Little Caesars is the Official Pizza Sponsor of the National Football League.
Little Caesars is newest tenant in the soon-to-be Aldi-anchored shopping center
Little Caesars joins other restaurants including Clean Eatz and Teriyaki Madness at Grand Cypress Marketplace, where Aldi becomes the anchor once its ongoing conversion of the former Winn-Dixie supermarket is finished.
When it opened in November 2022, the Winn-Dixie there was the first in a decade that its then-owner, Southeastern Grocers Inc. of Jacksonville, had built from the ground up.
The Aldi conversion is estimated at $810,000, according to a June 23 St. Johns County building permit.
Little Caesars moved into a 1,659 square foot store at the marketplace. The buildout cost an estimated $260,000, an April 2 county building permit shows.
The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Teresa Stepzinski is the dining reporter for the Times-Union. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @TeresaStepz or reach her via email at tstepzinski@jacksonville.com.
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