Until now, it had never occurred to me

[EngLearner]

John and Sarah have been dating each other for some time. On one of their dates, John suggests that they go to a fast food restaurant. Sarah replies to him that she can't stand fast food. John says to her:

Until now, it had never occurred to me that you don't like fast food.

Should the "had" in bold be included or omitted in the above sentence?

 

[emsr2d2]

It should be included.

 

[EngLearner]

If the words "until now" are omitted:

It had never occurred to me that you don't like fast food.

Is the bolded "had" appropriate, or would it be omitted in this case?