Well, I can't really take your orders any more because I don't work there, sorry. You can try though.

Hi, I'm Tom. I used to work at a Dominos branch in south east England. I was there nearly a year before I quit which was more than enough time to have enough knowledge and stories that will hopefully answer any questions you have.

My Proof:

I still have the uniform because I never bothered to hand it back, thought it could be useful if I ever need a pizza guy costume when making a film one day ¯_(ツ)_/¯

Edit: Holy shit front page, gonna put this on my CV.

Edit 2: Thanks for all the questions guys! I'll be back tomorrow to answer more so you can leave more and I'll get back to you, Night! :D

Edit 3: Hello Americans! I see you found my AMA while I was asleep, I'll get back to answering now :D

Comments: 2446 • Responses: 62  • Date: 

forel2371084 karma

How much do you hate it during Freshers week when they give out the free small pizza vouchers?

TomDermotBrown1025 karma

We weren't that near a school so we never got bothered by it all. I'm hating the thought of it though. eugh.

EDIT: SCHOOL, UNI, FUCKING WHATEVER

LouThunders874 karma

Why is Dom Pizza Tracker unnecessarily annoying? All he needs to do is tell me what stage my pizza is in and when can I pick it up, what's with the short videos and cringey jokes?

TomDermotBrown723 karma

He became a thing shortly after I quit, I ordered online for the first time ever last week and I'm with you, he needs to make a different noise for progress on the order and his shitty jokes.

In fact yeah, just cut the jokes altogether.

ThisIsMarklar632 karma

Stupidest "delivery instruction"?

TomDermotBrown1121 karma

We get a lot of the regular "Draw something on the box" stuff, Had a few telling me to send the cute delivery driver and one contemplating why his wife left him.

LittleBitOdd465 karma

Do you judge customers who order the exact same thing every time? I used to order the same thing every Sunday, and I always wondered if they thought "oh here's that lonely cow who doesn't like cheese on her pizza"

edit: RIP my inbox. I don't like cheese, get over it

TomDermotBrown542 karma

Not really, I just see you as a dude who likes pizza. Nothing wrong with that

Anna_Namoose380 karma

What is the main difference between Domino's UK and Domino's US, pizza wise?

TomDermotBrown685 karma

Pizza wise I think the US just has... more. larger pizza, way more sides, Whether they taste any different I don't know, my salary wasn't good enough to be able to find out.

DracoAzuleAA494 karma

I work at a Dominos here in the US as a driver. I just checked the Dominos UK website. Your medium and large crusts are smaller by a mere half inch. For example, here our sizes are 12 inch for medium and 14 inch for large, where as your sizes are 11.5 inch and 13.5 inch respectively. However, our smalls are 10 inches, 4 inches bigger than your 6 inch smalls.

Also, we don't have...'Cumberland' sausage. We have Italian...unless maybe I'm mistaken and they just happen to be the same thing. We also don't have green chillies, pork meatballs...unless maybe it's another way of saying beef. No red onions either, we also have shredded bacon instead of sliced, also no sriracha sauce, tandoori chicken, sweetcorn, or tuna.

Also, crust stuffed with both cheese AND bbq? Another thing we don't do here, but it sounds really good. In fact we don't do stuffed crust at all in the US. The Pizza Hut across the street does though.

We do have pan pizzas though.

TomDermotBrown19 karma

What he said.

CaptainPedge329 karma

How much cocaine is in the garlic and herb dip?

TomDermotBrown945 karma

4 whole cocaines.

gman2093206 karma

Is there an easy, ethical way for me to get free pizza? Unethical way?

TomDermotBrown382 karma

Well I guess the most ethical way is to do a BOGOF deal, other than that there isn't really any ways to get free pizza unless you know someone who works there.

Unethically, you can order pizza normally then complain something was wrong, you'll usually be given the option of having your order remade and sent to you or having store credit for your next order. On a busy night the manager won't bother gathering proof that your order wasn't made properly and he'll just say fuck it have a free pizza next time.

youbeesix179 karma

Have you witnessed any staff tamper with any of the food?

Is the dough made fresh?

What comes ready made for the oven?

What should we avoid from Dominos?

Can we request for you guys to cut off the crust before its delivered? If we ain't having any fancy crust. Do people do that?

Cheers.

TomDermotBrown409 karma

The whole thing about people spitting in your food is total crap, the person you annoy on the phone isn't the person making your pizza and we don't turn round and say "Hey, take a big ol' shit in order #132!" And no one ever messes up orders on purpose anyways.

The dough is fresh, it's not made in store but we have strict guidelines about expiry dates etc. So the dough is always fresh.

Pretty much all the sides that don't involve dough. chicken, potato wedges, cookies etc. all come frozen in plastic bags.

I wouldn't say there is anything food wise to stay away from, the only advice I can give is always try and order one of the deals, you'll save a hell of a lot of money that way.

You can request anything you want, no one really judges you because we've seen all the bizarre orders before. On a busy evening it might not get done because the instructions don't come through the oven with the pizza so the guys on the cut table will treat it normally unless we tell them specifically, and we have plenty other jobs to do.

jhpb93173 karma

Is the pizza tracker accurate whatsoever?

TomDermotBrown440 karma

It's pretty accurate, there is someone in the store who checks off when an order has been made, going through the oven, and is being delivered.

Quality check means piss all though.

iwltliusa136 karma

Is there anything we should know about Dominos that only employees really know?

TomDermotBrown426 karma

We work zero hour contracts and it's bullshit, you never know when you're going home. My boss used to keep me until closing every single night when there were plenty of other people who could just because he didn't like me. That's why I quit.

Other than my own personal issues, we get a pretty okay discount, 50% off pretty much everything and if we work more than a 5 hour shift we get a free pizza.

Magical_Bob87 karma

What's your funiest late night / drunken person storey?

TomDermotBrown165 karma

We never really had any funny drunk person encounters, mainly because it was always at the end of the night and we were all pissed off and tired. It would always be either someone who takes forever to order something just as we're about to close or a bunch of pissed up lads who won't stop yelling and trying to take selfies with me.

Also fuck anyone who comes in with an open beer bottle and puts it on the counter with the menus and stuff.

Lvl_69_Meme_Master86 karma

Why breadsticks?

TomDermotBrown276 karma

Why not breadsticks?

We don't sell breadsticks.

milescool10173 karma

Hi, I'll have a mighty meaty medium sized pizza please. Actually you know what lets just go for the medium family deal, you know how it is. Thanks.

But seriously tho whats the craziest story you have from your time there?

Plus don't forget about my order.

TomDermotBrown175 karma

Craziest would probably be when a delivery driver nearly got arrested for speeding. A policeman came in saying he saw the guy driving too fast down the high street. We managed to calm him down to just giving the driver a warning and giving the policeman a free pizza if he ever ordered from us.

We also had a deranged old man come in asking for fish and chips once...

baildodger64 karma

Why the hell is Dominoes pizza so ridiculously overpriced?

TomDermotBrown263 karma

Because we spend so much money putting all those leaflets through your door ;)

HRglass6950 karma

Hello Tom, is it true that Dominos UK allow their staff to smoke weed?

TomDermotBrown110 karma

I'm personally not a smoker myself, and I've never touched a drug in my life. I did get offered cocaine from a large South African man once, but that's another story.

I wouldn't really know exactly because I don't go out the back with people when they smoke. But I really wouldn't be surprised if my manager would've turned a blind eye to anyone smoking weed.

okaythiswillbemymain49 karma

How much did Dominos go uphill/downhill after it stopped sponsering the Simpsons on Sky 1 and why?

TomDermotBrown34 karma

I think business has only gotten better but not at as rapidly as when they had their logo plastered over the ad breaks.

doughtyc49 karma

Is pineapple an acceptable pizza topping?

TomDermotBrown91 karma

I kinda like it ¯_(ツ)_/¯

Uhhhh yeah... Sports... for real dude.

taffyman1748 karma

how often do you have to redo pizzas because of a communication error or something of that sort?

TomDermotBrown75 karma

On a busy night it happens a fair bit, when there isn't too much going on it rarely happens and if it does and the customer brings the pizza back we get to eat it :D

I_tend_to_correct_u44 karma

What percentage of people actually tip? I've never tipped in my life because it hadn't even occurred to me but I just read a comment from one of our American cousins and it got me thinking whether I should or not.

TomDermotBrown151 karma

If you're paying cash on delivery, tip the drivers. If you payed by card, fuck 'em

Pandasonic941 karma

Is there a rivalry between dominos and other chain pizzerias?

TomDermotBrown123 karma

Not really, we have 3 different pizza places on the high street. There have been a few times when it was really busy and people would come in and my boss would tell them to go to Papa Johns across the road because it's quieter.

JusticeLegume36 karma

What toppings/specials do you have that we don't in the states? Any other foreign Dominoes serve toppings we've never heard of? When chefs toss pizza dough up into the air in Australia, does it spin in the opposite direction? PIZZA!

TomDermotBrown45 karma

We do a garlic and herb dip which is awesome, Other than that you guys pretty much do everything we do and way much more. I can't check specifically right now because my VPN isn't working.

TheWhiteStone32 karma

Please answer, this will settle a big argument in my house. IS there a freshness difference between normal pizza Base and a stuff crust pizza Base? I. E. Is the normal Base fresher than a stufft crust?

TomDermotBrown58 karma

No difference, the same batch of dough is used. Hope that settles it :)

TheWhiteStone28 karma

Thank you! It disproves my point but thanks anyway. I always assumed that the stuffed crust was frozen and the classic was fresh! Very helpful!

TomDermotBrown24 karma

No problem! in some stores you have a big window looking over the desk they shape the dough out on, it's quite interesting :)

chris2468027 karma

How do they justify to themselves charging £19 for what basically amounts to a slice of bread?

TomDermotBrown49 karma

Fuck knows. I feel bad when I tell someone that'll cost them £20 :(

MineTimelapser26 karma

What's the most stupid question you've ever received?

TomDermotBrown106 karma

"Do you sell pizza?"

varinator23 karma

I worked in Pizza Hut Delivery for a while some years ago, also in the UK. All of our meat - toppings and sides - were coming from Thailand, frozen. Is this also the case at Dominos?

TomDermotBrown40 karma

I don't know if they come from Thailand, but they all come in frozen, yeah.

exec_director_doom21 karma

I worked at Domino's in South East England with Tom. Are you him?

TomDermotBrown26 karma

Might be, and your name is?

MontanaKittenSighs20 karma

Is Domino's as shitty to their employees in the UK as they are in the US? I became a manager and recognized clear sexism when multiple superiors refused to pay me as much as my male counterparts, HR never took my complaints of sexual harassment seriously, and I was made to work 18-hour shifts regularly so the other managers at my store could take the day off together.

TomDermotBrown19 karma

That's fucked dude, I feel sorry for you. yeah my bosses weren't the best. We got a new boss shortly before I quit who would bully me a lot and he was the only person of authority there really so I couldn't do much.

batman16699320 karma

What was the weirdest special request that wasn't fulfilled that someone complained about?

TomDermotBrown82 karma

We didn't send the "cute delivery driver".

Ickleslimer18 karma

Who's the most memorable kind of "Only at Dominos" character you've ever come across in your time? I'm guessing you've dealt with your fair share of drunkards, any in particular worth telling about?

TomDermotBrown51 karma

Had a bunch of guys who were really cool and were asking me a lot of the questions similar to here. we played the game of see how many pizza boxes you can balance on your co-workers head when they're on the phone to a customer. I managed to beat them from a lot of practice

Martell270718 karma

Could you please tell us a fascinating secret about Dominos that they'd really rather you didn't tell us, but yet they cannot stop you?

TomDermotBrown87 karma

Not really a fascinating secret, but the branch I worked at used to be a bank and all the supplies are kept in the vault.

In general, there isn't really any. no trade secrets really, no nothing. Just a regular ol' pizza place.

SuperpoweredNutball17 karma

I don't have a question. I never get any replies when I ask a question on AMAs, so I just wanted to say hi.

Hi.

(P.S. if you're up for answering it, what's your favorite joke?)

TomDermotBrown21 karma

Sup dude :D I know how you feel, I always turn up late to AMA's.

Let's switch this round, what's YOUR favourite joke?

keyboyx15 karma

Why is Dominos so terrible in the US? I moved from UK to US and Dominos is just so different and awful out here.

Also, no garlic and herb dip, what the fuck?

TomDermotBrown15 karma

I've never had it but I assumed it was more greasy and unpleasant.

Garlic and Herb is the shit man, compliments the crust so well

Virtikle15 karma

Did you guys do the dough patch repair kit prank like we did across the pond?

TomDermotBrown13 karma

We didn't but I really wish we did.

BeCarefulNow13 karma

What was the craziest thing that happened in-store? Like any freakouts or anything

TomDermotBrown81 karma

I've had people threaten to kill me over the counter, that's always fun. One guy brought his arm up to hit me and I just took a step back because there's a huge counter in the way.

GustavoFringsFace13 karma

Why can't you guys put a decent amount of the double decadence sauce on those pizzas? God damn you to hell with that dry ass shit I always get. Still pretty delicious though.

TomDermotBrown22 karma

Dude i knowwwww, I had a DD last night and it was so dissappointing. You can always ask them to put more sauce in it

redplanets10 karma

What was the worst customer ever? Did you ever have to ban anyone from coming back?

TomDermotBrown26 karma

I have a lot of stories about bad customers, I had one threaten to come to the store and kill me personally if the delivery driver didn't bring a receipt.

Never banned anyone but there's a few people I would have liked to.

irregularchoices7 karma

My local dominos is horrific! A couple of time my husband and I have said "meh, we'll give them another chance" and every time they've been awful. We've had undercooked pizza (the base was still doughy in the middle), a pizza with no cheese, we've had missing items and once cancelled an order after waiting 3 hours! When we complain their attitude is "bad luck!" - they have told me to throw away food if I'm not happy with the quality of it, when I complained about missing items I was told I was lucky they delivered anything...!

I know it's a franchise, but surely this kind of customer service is brand damaging? There doesn't seem to be any channel to complain about a store...

TomDermotBrown12 karma

I wouldn't say it's brand damaging in a wider aspect. It's very damaging for the store but if you talk to someone in a different town they might say theirs is quite good.

That service is bullshit though, I'd walk straight in and tell the manager. You could always go to the regional manager but I don't know how you'd find out who that is.

G0ldengoose5 karma

I complained about a pizza once and they brought a new one. Will my house now be labelled and now I'll get shirty pizzas?

TomDermotBrown9 karma

Nope, doesn't get kept on record, you'll be totally fine

slumpadoochous4 karma

I also answered phones for Domino's Pizza. But this one was in Canada. Did you guys have your reps in store like they do here, or was it a call centre?

TomDermotBrown5 karma

All in store, I can't imagine how much more inconvenient it would be if we weren't

Noerdy2 karma

Can you PM me free pizza codes?

TomDermotBrown4 karma

We don't have any :P

raredaredevil2 karma

Is there a reason dominos do not respond to paypal disputes? I ordered from there a veggie pizza before and it had ham on . I complained to paypal and dominos never responded. So I won automatically. Since then I had about 20 free pizzas , I know im a scumbag but free pizza.

TomDermotBrown1 karma

I wouldn't know, you're better off phoning the store and we'll give you free shit worth whatever your order cost. Then again, 20 free pizzas, good one dude, I'm jealous.

Gavintaylorpip1 karma

You've only worked there 2 months? Can't really warrant an AMA?

TomDermotBrown0 karma

That's not nearly a year, is it.

Lancey1 karma

A year ago I analysed social media chatter around the UK's biggest food brands, including Dominos, and I noticed A LOT of complaints about people finding unpleasant foreign objects on their pizza (fingernails, chicken feet, etc). Is that something that happened a lot in your experience?

TomDermotBrown1 karma

At my store, never. I still don't understand how or why that stuff gets through

qwop2718281 karma

Is the pizza tracker bullshit? Several times I've had it marked as delivered when I've not got my pizza. Sometimes quite a while before!

TomDermotBrown1 karma

They don't have a way of saying an order has been delivered but everything else is pretty legit

888throwaway99981 karma

What kind of complaints warrant free stuff? Have you ever had to discontinue a conversation with a customer because they were angling for free things and making up complaints?

TomDermotBrown2 karma

Pretty much any, it depends how long the day has been.

I'm a pretty calm, patient guy. I can deal with bad customers but there was one who was just blatantly lying so I had to give the phone to my supervisor because I was so fucking done

DHThrowawayy1 karma

Hi, can I get a large pepperoni pizza and an order of breadsticks for delivery please? I'll tip well!

TomDermotBrown9 karma

I'm not a delivery driver so I couldn't give a shit if you tip well, if anything I'm just jealous of the driver.

Also we don't serve breadsticks in my store, they're too upper class for us.

You can have the pizza tho

consumememe1 karma

What are some of the craziest orders you encountered?

TomDermotBrown3 karma

We get a lot of ~£300 orders from a large military academy nearby full of rich dudes who throw parties every weekend.

I never got to witness someone ordering a pizza with triple everything on it though :(

thejj1001001 karma

Any prank calls?

TomDermotBrown2 karma

Ohhhh yeah. had one telling me my name was stupid and also one pretending to be ISIS. fun times.

Psych5551 karma

What possible insight could someone who worked less than a year at a teenage starter job have to give?

TomDermotBrown1 karma

More than someone who hasn't worked at a pizza place at all. The glass is half full, my friend.

isahammyasandy-2 karma

Is a hamburger a sandwich? Why or why not?

TomDermotBrown4 karma

an item of food consisting of two pieces of bread with meat, cheese, or other filling between them.

I guess so?

TomDermotBrown2 karma

Nah