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Our Japanese reporter finds the best Domino’s Pizza in Rome, Italy

Master Blaster Jun 8, 2023
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When in Rome, we don’t do as the Romans do.

It’s fairly well-known that major chain Domino’s Pizza is pretty much an entirely different entity in Japan than its home of the U.S.A. With toppings unheard of in the West and a level of quality that most would agree is superior, it’s amazing how different a brand can become in another country.

Our globe-trotting reporter Ikuna Kamezawa has been learning all about this recently, having visited chains like Marugame Seimen and Sushiro outside of Japan with pleasantly surprising results. So, while visiting Italy, Ikuna wondered that if Domino’s Pizza was so much better in Japan, then it must be outstanding in the very home of pizza.

More specifically, Ikuna was in Rome and ran a quick search on Google Maps to see if there even was a Domino’s in the ancient capital. A few popped up, which was a little surprising since she expected Italians by and large to view the super cheesy and meaty take on their cuisine with revulsion.

So, to see how this chain was faring in Italy, she headed over to her nearest location.

Only to find…

Ikuna was sure she was in the right place and it was the middle of lunchtime, but the entire place was shuttered up. There was also no indication at all that this was even a Domino’s Pizza.

This was confusing but Ikuna had neither the time nor the full stomach to try and solve this mystery. Instead, she decided to catch a bus to the next closest location on her map.

While riding the crowded bus, she wondered if maybe that restaurant went out of business or relocated and Google simply hadn’t caught up yet. That meant all the other locations on her map were also not promising.

Arriving at her next destination she walked up to a parking lot where a Domino’s Pizza was supposed to be located. But the iconic logo was nowhere to be seen.

Just then, Ikuna was able to make out the words “Domino’s Pizza” even though the sign was in a completely different style.

It looked a lot quainter than the restaurants back home, but there was no mistaking what the sign said.

The inside was also a far cry from your typical Domino’s Pizza.

Ikuna was especially surprised to see pizzas on display for people to buy individual slices. In Japan, pizza is almost always sold whole and fresh out of the oven except for at places like bakeries and supermarkets.

This was all so foreign to her, so she decided to ask the kindly old man working there for his recommendation.

Ikuna had no idea what the two items he served her were but they resembled something like a cross between a pizza and a quiche. Since it was a nice day, she decided to take them to the outdoor seating.

She also had trouble putting their taste into words, describing them only as unmistakably “Italian.” Even though in Japan this kind of food is preferred piping hot, these items were so delicious they were great even served at room temperature.

This Domino’s Pizza seemed to be very popular with the locals too. As she ate, Ikuna saw many people go in and out of the restaurant and everyone greeted her as they passed. She could really feel the warmth of those who lived here.

Our reporter was having such a great time that she decided to order some more food. This time she opted for some more standard pizza.

Though we use the term “standard” loosely because even despite all of Japan’s unique topping choices, cucumber and shrimp had been overlooked.

And that’s a terrible oversight on Japan’s part, because the combination was outstanding. Ikuna could see herself returning to Italy just to eat more of this pizza.

Before she knew it she had spent all day there and the sun was setting, so she headed back to her hotel. However, she still had no idea what connection that place had with the American pizza chain, if any. After doing some research, she found that the Domino’s chain had recently attempted to enter the Italian market, but closed up all their locations sometime last year.

Since the Domino’s Pizza that Ikuna visited is still up and running as of this writing, we can assume that there is no connection other than the same name. That’s good news, because as far as our reporter is concerned, it’s the best Domino’s Pizza in the world.

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[ Read in Japanese ]