If you've spent much time exploring Indiana, you've probably noticed the familiar Pizza King signs popping up from one town to the next. Whether it's a towering yellow crown or one of the older vintage marquees, these restaurants have become as much a part of the Hoosier roadside as old motels, drive-ins, and neighborhood diners.

Pizza King
Peru, IN
Photo courtesy Mark Hackett

Pizza King got its start in Lafayette in 1956 when brothers Wendell and Bob Swartz opened the first restaurant. Just a year later, the brothers split the business, each taking a different half of the state and building their own version of Pizza King. While the restaurants share a common heritage, the two companies developed their own identities, creating one of the more unusual stories in roadside restaurant history.

The famous yellow crown became the trademark of the eastern Indiana locations, while restaurants in the western part of the state generally adopted a logo featuring a cartoon king enjoying a slice of pizza. A handful of western locations were allowed to keep their original crown signs, making them interesting survivors from the days before the split.

Pizza King
Peru, IN
Photo courtesy Emily Steele

Of course, the signs are only part of the attraction. Many eastern Indiana Pizza Kings still feature the famous "Ring the King" ordering system, where customers pick up a telephone at their booth to place an order directly with the kitchen. For first-time visitors, it's almost as memorable as the pizza itself.

No matter which side of Indiana you're on, the menu is instantly recognizable. Thin cracker-style crust, edge-to-edge toppings, square-cut slices, and a distinctive sauce have kept generations of Hoosiers coming back. Families have celebrated birthdays, ball games, and Friday nights at Pizza King for decades, making it more than just another pizza chain.

Pizza King
Peru, IN
Photo courtesy Justin Eikenberry

One of the fun parts of traveling around Indiana is discovering how different each location can be. Some still occupy classic mid-century buildings with vintage neon and towering roadside signs, while others have been updated over the years. Every now and then you'll stumble across an old crown marquee that looks like it hasn't changed in decades, and that's reason enough to pull over.

UPDATE: Pizza King remains a Hoosier institution with more than 100 locations operating across Indiana. While the buildings and signs vary from town to town, many of the classic crown marquees and vintage restaurants continue serving pizza much as they have for generations. 07-26

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