A few months ago I asked Pizza Hut to place the pepperonis in the shape of a smiley face.

It wasn’t a totally random request, since they have a box on the online order form that specifically asks if you want anything special: “Want your pizza cut into squares?  Have another request? Let us know.”

I could hardly contain my excitement when I picked up the pizza and brought it out to my car, but disappointment instantly set in when I opened the box and saw no smiley.  I posted about it on Facebook and learned I was not alone.  My friend Holly said she once requested they cut her pizza into rhombi, but Pizza Hut just called and said they could deliver it uncut so she could cut it herself.

Yesterday, I tried again.  I was talking to AV when placing my order and she suggested I throw in a bit of trickery to try to influence the process.  “Say it’s your 5-year-old’s birthday,” she said.  “Maybe that will tug at their heartstrings.”

The only problem with the request section of the form is that it only allows you 28 characters to work with.  The word “pepperoni” is so long that you’re really limited in saying much else, but this is what I came up with:

I mean, come on, it’s for a kid!  How could you ignore that?  When I picked up the pizza, the guy behind the counter seemed extra happy about the process.  Granted, I’ve never met this guy before so it’s possible he’s like that all the time, but I want to think my order had something to do with it.  Unfortunately, there was nothing special about the pepperoni placement, but at least they got the spirit right:

I still want to find a place that will follow through on the pizza itself.  Let me know if you have any luck.