Here we will look at just one pizza chain, and it’s Dominos. So, where do they stand on a gluten-free base? Does Dominos make gluten-free pizza, and if so what’s it like?
With more people becoming aware of either an intolerance to gluten or a complete allergic reaction, knowing if a chain has a gluten-free pizza makes sense.
After all, why should you miss out on pizza just because of a small thing in the crust? You may already know the answer to this question, but we do have some other ground to cover regarding the gluten-free options available at Dominoes.
This subject is a serious one as it can lead to various health issues if not handled correctly. So, let’s get into the question and hopefully put your mind at ease regarding the options available to you from Dominoes.
The Answer
Domino’s does indeed make a gluten-free pizza, so if you wish to avoid gluten in your diet, then you don’t have to then avoid Dominoes. However, don’t expect to be met with a number of options if you order a gluten-free pizza.
That’s just not going to happen. Instead, and you will find this a common thing if you try to avoid gluten at a pizza chain, your options come across as seriously restricted. However, at least there is something on the menu you can have.
Of course, Domino’s does have a couple of other gluten-free options on their menu, but in this instance, we wish to focus on just one thing, and that’s pizza. So, what happens when it comes to limitations, and what options do you have regarding toppings?
What are the Limitations?
Domino’s offers only one single gluten-free pizza base, and it only comes in one size, which is a 9.5-inch pizza.
So, if you feel like a larger pizza when avoiding gluten, then you end up forced into buying two, which doesn’t feel like a good deal.
But Domino’s is not the only pizza chain that takes this approach with its gluten-free offerings. At this point, we cannot come across as too harsh on them when they simply imitate almost every other pizza chain out there.
Their Gluten-Free Crust
Domino’s does stress how their gluten-free crust does not contain wheat, rye, or barley, so they do have you covered from every eventuality.
Also, they do note how their crust has less than 20ppm of gluten, but that it is made in a shared environment with gluten products.
However, they try to do everything they can to avoid cross-contamination. Also, that warning does come with pretty much every single thing on the market classed as gluten-free.
But this issue of cross-contamination is a huge deal. Yet while it’s a scary thought for people who need to avoid gluten, we do have some good news.
A number of the procedures carried out by Dominos have been examined by groups linked to Celiac disease, and that’s a good thing.
After all, it does mean groups linked to people who can have a serious allergic reaction to wheat says Domino’s does a good job of reducing that contamination.
So, if you do have Celiac disease, then you might feel safe ordering your pizza from Dominos.
But There’s a Problem
However, we do feel the need to add another point, and it’s connected to this cross-contamination issue. It turns out that the care taken over possibly mixing gluten products with a gluten-free crust is not the same at every store.
Instead, you will easily find a number of customers posting online about how they witnessed staff making up the gluten-free pizza on the same table as gluten products, so there would always pick up flour containing gluten in the pizza.
That’s not good, and nor is the fact they use the same equipment. So, you may need to stress the absolute need for the store to take complete care of what they do if you suffer from an allergic reaction to gluten.
Your Toppings Option
But we do quickly run into a problem when it comes to your gluten-free options, and we don’t mean with the fact you just have a single base to choose from. Instead, you also need to contend with very few toppings.
With a normal Domino’s pizza, you get to customize the top, if you want to do that, but this option does not really exist with a gluten-free crust.
Instead, you find yourself told which toppings you can have, and this list hardly comes across as extensive either.
It does feel like Domino’s has put a gluten-free crust on there because it felt it had to, but that it’s something of a pain and gets in the way of things.
Surely it wouldn’t take much to have staff add your own toppings depending on what you would like?
However, Domino’s is not the only pizza chain that takes this approach, so once again you may find yourself used to encounter these types of problems.
But there is a List of Toppings
But we do know of one good thing, and that’s the list of gluten-free toppings at Dominos. However, the list you can find online does not come across as anything really different from what other pizza chains will offer.
Also, some of the ‘toppings’ Domino’s includes in an official list do not work that well on pizza. They seem to also include dressings that would go with other products available on their menu rather than something appearing on a pizza.
But that aside, if you do have a Domino’s where they will willingly allow you to customize your pizza, then you have different things you may wish to include in your pizza.
Items such as bacon, all of the different cheeses, and all the vegetables will come as no surprise. Also, different meats such as ham and even pepperoni should not pose any problems to people searching for a gluten-free option.
But as we said, the real issue is the difficulty surrounding the ability to pick and choose your toppings. That’s the hardest part to contend with, and it’s something that Domino’s could do with improving on.
Is the Gluten-Free Crust Any Good?
It’s difficult finding a really good gluten-free pizza crust, so it comes as no surprise that this offering from Domino’s fails to hit the mark as well. While you feel relieved that a gluten-free crust does exist, that doesn’t make it taste any better.
But one thing we must say about the gluten-free crust is that it generally does not taste that good. Often, it will come across as disappointing and lacking in any real flavor.
Now, any individual used to eating gluten-free products will know that good products do exist, but this crust by Domino’s does not appear to fall into that category.
Also, people have reported times when the crust comes across as if it was manufactured from cement. It’s fine having a crunch to the bite, but it must come with some sort of limit. Sadly, sometimes Domino’s appears to go past those limits.
Also, Domino’s does tend to buy gluten-free crust from other suppliers. It’s not something they make themselves, so they do find themselves at the mercy of what other people create.
But even this should make it better. In some countries in Europe, they use a well-known brand to supply them with their pizza crusts, so that may then come down to them simply not cooking it right at times.
We know this does all sound rather disappointing when it comes to the quality of the crust, but at least you can give it a try and not completely miss out on eating pizza from Domino’s when all your friends order their own pizza.
Overall Conclusion
Domino’s does indeed offer a gluten-free pizza option, but don’t expect a range of sizes on the menu. Instead, you have one option, and one option only.
However, the fact they work hard to avoid that cross-contamination with gluten products may very well tempt you into ordering from them. If only they sought to have different size options rather than the single 9.5-inch pizza.
Sadly though, their gluten-free crust does not come across as the best on the market. The taste remains poor, and you must hope that the toppings pull the pizza through into something that comes across as edible.
That really does hurt saying that. With so many people now becoming aware of eating less gluten, you would like to think a company such as Domino’s would invest in a quality gluten-free crust.
However, it feels as if they simply threw an option on the menu without much care or thought to it. But if you can stomach the crust, at least you can still order pizza, so that is one good thing to think about.
