May 22nd is one of the most anticipated days of the year for us Bitcoiners: it’s time to celebrate Bitcoin Pizza Day!
Not just because we all make this sacrifice of eating pizza, but because we celebrate a historic transaction made on the Bitcoin network.
So, what is Bitcoin Pizza Day?
It was May 22, 2010, when Laszlo Hanyecz, a programmer who was involved with Bitcoin in its early days, made a post on a forum called Bitcointalk. His proposal was clear: he wanted to trade Bitcoin for pizza.
His message read:
“I’ll pay 10,000 bitcoins for a couple of pizzas… like maybe 2 large ones so I have some left over for the next day. I like to have pizza to nibble on later. You can make the pizza yourself and bring it to my house or order it for me from a delivery place, but what I’m aiming for is getting food delivered in exchange for bitcoins where I don’t have to order or prepare it myself, like ordering a ‘breakfast platter’ at a hotel or something, they just bring you something to eat and you’re happy! I like things like onions, peppers, sausage, mushrooms, tomatoes, pepperoni, etc. I also like regular cheese pizzas which may be cheaper to prepare or order. If you’re interested please let me know and we can work out a deal.”
Hanyecz had thrown down the gauntlet, and soon after, another Bitcointalk user, named Jeremy Sturdivant, agreed to take part in the transaction.
And so it was done. Hanyecz sent 10,000 BTC to Jeremy, he bought two pizzas for $35 from Papa John’s and had them delivered to Hanyecz’s address.
This is the picture of the original pizzas paid for with Bitcoin:
The coins Hanyecz used for the purchase were obtained by mining on his own laptop, a feasible practice at that time when personal computers were powerful enough to mine Bitcoin.
Check out this interview where Laszlo tells how the transaction happened:
What are those pizzas worth today?
At the time, the value of 10,000 BTC was around $41, or approximately $0.0041 per bitcoin. Today, those 10,000 bitcoins would be worth a staggering $670 million.
But does Lazslo regret spending 10.000 BTC on pizza?
Contrary to what many think, Laszlo doesn’t regret spending his precious bitcoins, on the contrary, he believes that it contributed to the network in some way and, if it hadn’t been him, someone else would have done it.
In fact, Laszlo continued using Bitcoin, and in 2018 he decided to reenact the historic purchase through the Lightning Network, buying two pizzas again, but this time for just 0.00649 BTC.
Historical Date
Due to this iconic transaction, may 22nd is now known as Bitcoin Pizza Day. It’s a historic date on the Bitcoin calendar, celebrating the first time Bitcoin was used as currency to purchase a real-world product.
On this date, bitcoiners worldwide eat pizza, preferably paying in Bitcoin, to relive Laszlo’s story and celebrate the use of Bitcoin as currency.
Around here, we love pizza, and every year we honor the Pizza Day ritual!
How to participate in Bitcoin Pizza Day?
Here are some options for you to celebrate this date by paying for your pizza in Bitcoin!
Find a pizzeria that accepts Bitcoin
The BTC Map can help you find establishments that accept Bitcoin as payment.
Order a pizza delivery and pay with gift cards
If there are no pizzerias in your city that directly accept Bitcoin as payment, you can use gift card services. Bitrefill app is an option, they accept Bitcoin on chain and Lightning, and you can use it to order your pizza.
Find events organized by Bitcoiners in your city
Many bitcoiners promote events in their cities to gather Bitcoiners at local pizzerias and celebrate the date.
I hope you all have a great and delicious Pizza Day!
Share on your social networks:
Founder of Area Bitcoin, one of the largest Bitcoin education projects in the world, she is a marketer, passionate about technology, and a full-time hands-on professional. She has participated in major Bitcoin conferences such as Adopting Bitcoin, Satsconf, Surfin Bitcoin, and Bitcoin Conference.
Enjoyed this article? Donate some sats so we can grab a cup of coffee and keep writing. ☕
