text: CLOSE Little Caesars is debuting a new pizza with 3 1/2 feet of bacon wrapped around the crust. This latest creative cuisine to satisfy bacon-lovers brings to mind some of the other more creative dishes featuring bacon. 
   
   Beginning Feb. 23, for a limited time, Little Caesars is offering a Bacon Wrapped Crust DEEP! DEEP! Dish pizza. (Photo: Little Caesar Enterprises) 
   
   Little Caesars has devised a brand new place to feed the public's obsession with bacon: wrapped around the pizza crust. 
   
   More specifically, 3 1/2 feet of bacon wrapped around the pizza crust. 
   
   Today, the innovative budget pizza chain will unveil plans to nationally roll out on Feb. 23 the Bacon Wrapped Crust Deep! Deep! Dish Pizza. At $12, the limited-time offer will be one of Little Caesars' priciest pizzas. 
   
   "Every time you take a bite out of the crust, you'll get bacon," says David Scrivano, CEO at Little Caesars. The pizza also comes with pepperoni and has bacon sprinkled on top. The promotion replaces the chain's Soft Pretzel Crust Pizza. 
   
   Like many food makers and food sellers, Little Caesars is looking for a new way to cash in on the nation's continued infatuation with all things bacon. Domestic bacon sales have climbed for five consecutive years, recently hitting the $4 billion mark, reports research specialist Information Resources. Bacon has shown up in recent years in everything from sundaes at Burger King to milkshakes at Red Robin. 
   
   Its popularity is sizzling. 
   
   "Bacon has become the ultimate indulgence," says Darren Tristano, executive vice president at Technomic, a research firm. As a comfort food, bacon has emotional connections for many consumers with Mom-made breakfasts and weekend morning family occasions." 
   
   But there's another silent driver, says Tristano. "It's a rebellious show of strength by many consumers to show that the health and wellness traction is like car tires spinning on ice." 
   
   Even then, if you want to enjoy that slice of bacon-crusted pizza, you might not want to look at the nutritionals. A single slice weighs in at 450 calories; 23 grams of fat; 830 milligrams of sodium and 40 milligrams of cholesterol. 
   
   "You can always get a plain, cheese pizza or a veggie pizza," points out Scrivano. "This is a more indulgent offering for a demographic that craves premium quality." 
   
   The concept, says Scrivano, came from Little Caesars' R&D team. A team member was dining out a few years ago and ordered a bacon-wrapped filet. That dining experience spurred the team to figure out a way to wrap bacon around the pizza crust, he says. 
   
   But there could be some challenges, says Tristano. 
   
   Among them, it could slow things down in the kitchen. The added complexity of wrapping bacon around the crust could disrupt efforts to sell other products, he says. Also, much like fast-food items like french fries and burgers, bacon wrapped around pizza crust might not "travel" so well, he warns. 
   
   At the same time, this is a bit of a stretch for Little Caesars, which typically appeals to a budget-minded customer, says Tristano. But with gas prices down and disposable incomes rising, the timing could work in the chain's favor, he adds. "Timing is everything," says Tristano, "and the timing for consumer spending and bacon's popularity may align for Little Caesars." 
   
   Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1EmTbeB ||||| By Edward Cardenas 
   
   DETROIT (CBS Detroit) – Bacon lovers rejoice! Bacon-bacon! Little Caesars is introducing a new crust that will blend chewy, cheese pizza and crispy bacon. 
   
   The Detroit-based company announced Wednesday it is introducing Bacon Wrapped Crust DEEP!DEEP! Dish pizza on Feb. 23. 
   
   “The Bacon Wrapped Crust DEEP!DEEP! Dish is another example of how we’re continuing to innovate and offer variety on our menu while fully leveraging our core strengths built around value, convenience, and quality,” Little Caesars Pizza President and CEO, David Scrivano stated in a release. 
   
   The new pizza, which will be available nationwide for a limited time, takes Little Caesars’ 8-corner, Detroit-style deep dish pizza and wraps the crust with two types of bacon and tops it with pepperoni. It will be sold at participating locations for $12 plus tax where applicable. 
   
   “Little Caesars focuses on giving customers new flavors and choices at a great value and with the sense of fun we’re known for,” said Edward Gleich, Senior Vice President of Global Marketing, said in a release. “With the new Bacon Wrapped Crust DEEP!DEEP! Dish we’re pushing pizza to its bacon limits with more than 3 ½ feet of bacon wrapped around the crust alone.” 
   
   The bacon wrapped pizza will be sold until late April, and will be available from 4-8 p.m., and by request.
target: – Love bacon? Love pizza? If so, Little Caesars is hoping you'll drool over its newest experimental pizza featuring a bacon-wrapped crust. Beginning Feb. 23, customers who fork over $12 can chow down on a deep dish pizza, topped with pepperoni and bacon, with 3.5 feet of bacon wrapped around the crust, USA Today reports. Officially dubbed the Bacon Wrapped Crust Deep! Deep! Dish Pizza, it replaces Little Caesars' soft pretzel crust variety. "Every time you take a bite out of the crust, you'll get bacon," CEO David Scrivano promises. At 450 calories per slice, "This is a more indulgent offering for a demographic that craves premium quality," he says. Scrivano notes the idea for a bacon-wrapped crust came from an employee in Little Caesars' research and development wing who ordered a bacon-wrapped filet at a restaurant. The pizza adaptation will be available nationwide until late April, CBS Detroit reports. A warning: it may not "travel" well, Scrivano says. In stranger pizza news, Pizza Hut has awarded pizza-themed nail polish to 30 people who wrote the chain cheesy love poems as part of a Valentine's Day competition, Time reports. They'll take home a set of eight polishes with names like "Say Cheese," "Voracious Veggie" and "Dough You Need Me." (Find out why you should always buy the bigger pizza.)