Papa John's Just Made A Risky Move, And Fast Food Pizza Fans Are Worried It Will Backfire

Papa John's may never be considered the height of cuisine, or even the best among the major fast food pizza chains (in our view, that honor goes to Jet's Pizza), but with its 6,000-plus worldwide locations, it has nevertheless carved out a devoted fanbase and set itself apart with a few distinctive eccentricities that immediately let you know when you're eating a Papa John's pie. For most, it's Papa John's signature garlic sauce. If you've tried it, you know there's nothing quite like it, and the only way you're getting it is to order from Papa John's — until now. To both the jubilation and consternation of fast food pizza fans, Papa John's has made the risky move of selling its garlic sauce in stores.

In a press release published in May, Papa John's confirmed that its Garlic Flavored Sauce would be available this summer at stores including Walmart, Kroger, Albertson's, Safeway, and H-E-B. "Our Special Garlic Dipping Sauce is one of the most iconic flavors in our brand, and our fans have a deep connection to it," commented Papa John's Vice President of Culinary Mark Gabrovic. "Our goal was to take that bold, buttery garlic flavor fans love and reimagine it for life beyond pizza night. Inspired by the flavors of our Special Garlic Dipping Sauce, this new Garlic Flavored Sauce delivers a rich, crave worthy garlic experience that's best served warm and is ready to dip, drizzle, or cook with at home."

The garlic sauce was previously only available in small tubs to accompany your pizza order, though this has never stopped Papa John's fans from requesting as many of them as possible — in one YouTube video, the viral content creator and Papa John's employee Jacob Bartoli (who goes by the name "Doughtoli") recalled one customer who asked for 10 tubs of the stuff to accompany a single order of cheese sticks. Given the adoration the garlic sauce inspires, it seems fair to assume its appearance on retail shelves will be a success.

Some, however, are less optimistic, wondering if anyone will bother ordering from Papa John's restaurants if their favorite sauce can be bought elsewhere. On Reddit, one user gloomily prophesied: "The company is completely beyond repair officially. The day we start selling our sauces in stores is the day they slowly start to dismantle the company part by part for profit. Only a matter of time before they sell off the rights to this for a quick cash infusion." Another echoed this sentiment, saying that "nobody will order pizza from them anymore for the sauce they'll just buy it."

Regarding the quality of the sauce, it seems legit. In a thread on the r/fastfood subreddit, one user commented: "Just bought it today, tastes identical to the one at [Papa John's] locations." That said, long before people knew Papa John's would be unveiling this product in stores, it had spurred many to try and recreate it, and a wealth of copycat recipes can be found online, many of which share our conclusion that the secret to Papa John's garlic sauce is margarine.