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Super Bowl & Blizzard Makes For Big Pizza Delivery Day

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Delivery calls are coming in fast and furious at Giordano's downtown.

"It's been hopping. The phones haven't stopped since I got in this morning," said Manager Kendra Prior.

Prior says they've even gotten early orders to make sure the pies are delivered on time.

"I usually tell them an hour for delivery but tonight we have to extend that time with the weather factor so it could be up to two hours to get your pizza."

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According to research by Pizza Hut, two million pizzas will be ordered and eaten on Super Bowl IXILX. That includes about 1,700 orders per minute for the two hours leading up to kickoff.

Prior says Superbowl Sunday deliveries are usually high but the blizzard adds to those demands. She had to bring extra drivers to handle the rush.

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Prior says Superbowl Sunday deliveries are usually high but the blizzard adds to those demands. She had to bring extra drivers to handle the rush. (Credit: Lisa Fielding

"Oh yeah, we had to bring in extra guys. They'll be ok though. They all know the city and will get the pies out."

However, if you want Lou Malnati's after 6 p.m., you are out of luck. The Chicago pizza chain tweeted that all of their locations will close after 6 p.m. due to the weather.

At Lincoln Park's Italian Pizza Kitchen, Manager Joseph Genualdi says for every dollar the restaurant takes in, about 40 cents comes from delivery. He says the weather may mean delivery duration of 60 to 90 minutes.

"We don't guarantee times especially under these conditions for our drivers' safety and for the quality of the food also," he said.

Pizza Hut estimates 16 million slices will be eaten, which is enough to cover a football field twice. For this holiday, the pizza retailer plans to use 1 million pounds of cheese and 603,000 pounds of sauce. Research showed the top five states that consume pizza are Texas, California, Florida, Georgia and Ohio.

The top 5 pizza sales days are: Super Bowl Sunday, New Year's Eve, Halloween, The night before Thanksgiving, & New Year's Day.

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