The Worst Pizza Hut Menu Item Ruins A Popular Pizza Topping

Every so often, Pizza Hut experiments with something new, once again stretching the limits of how far they can go with reinventing pizza. From stuffed crust and specialty pies to toppings that make your mouth water just hearing about them, they've done it all. But have they always done it well? Even the most popular Pizza Hut menu items can be hit or miss, and as far as our ranking is concerned, the Tavern-Style Double Pepperoni pizza is a downright miss.

Hitting the main menu nearly two years ago, Pizza Hut's Chicago Tavern-Style Pizza immediately impressed customers with its signature Chicago crispy thin crust. However, our reviewer opted for the medium original pan crust for a thicker base to hold not one, but two types of pepperoni toppings. True to the name, the Tavern-Style Double Pepperoni Pizza features both crispy-cupped pepperoni and regular pepperoni slices, scattered over sweet marinara sauce, and finished with Parmesan-oregano seasoning.

It sounds like a pepperoni-lover's dream come true, right? Wrong — the reality is merely "overwhelming and greasy", according to our reviewer. As it turns out, there is such a thing as too much pepperoni. Once you've already got the crispy-cupped pepperoni, the remaining topping becomes redundant. It doesn't bring anything new to the table, except for more grease, slightly chewier bites, and unnecessary richness. The thick, oily crust certainly doesn't help, either. If you ever decide to give this pizza a try, our reviewer recommends going with the original thin crust to avoid piling even more heaviness onto this already loaded pizza.

It would appear that Pizza Hut's Tavern-Style Double Pepperoni Pizza isn't a fan favorite either. At best, it's "passable, but largely boring", with only the crust being a draw, according to Paste Magazine. Even then, NBC Chicago's Food Guy Steve Dolinsky finds that the thin crust, unlike actual Chicago tavern pizzas, isn't crispy enough to hold the loaded toppings. A reviewer over at Eater shares the same opinion, comparing it to bland, unseasoned crackers. For one reviewer at Westword, a lack of sauce is where this pizza falls short. This might also be the reason TikTok user apfoodie finds the pizza to be quite dry, making the overall eating experience seemingly unimpressive. Over on Instagram, food reviewer kingschratz rates this particular pizza out of all Tavern-style options a 5/10, sharing Tasting Table's sentiment about how disappointing it is compared to regular pepperoni pizzas from other popular pizza chains.

That said, there are still a decent number of customers who enjoyed the Double Pepperoni pizza. One Redditor complimented the well-done version of this pizza, which inspired a mixed batch of both positive and negative reactions. Other Redditors believe that it's adequate enough for something from a commercial pizza chain, particularly for those who prefer a thin crust. Topping-wise, the cupped pepperoni is an outstanding highlight but just doesn't need the addition of standard pepperoni, too.