All schools might be like this these days, preordering meals online, but I can remember just having to get in line to see what was for lunch before it was dumped unceremoniously onto my tray with an ice cream scooper.
But Fridays, no matter the time of year, I knew that it was pizza day. I'd love to watch that glorious 4 ft x 4 ft square-shaped pizza that the lunch lady would slide out of the oven; it's fake cheese that hardly melted. I'd lick my chops as the lunch lady cut it into tiny rectangular slices for us kids to enjoy.
I mean, who among us doesn't love a slice of pizza?
As a native New Yorker who grew up on REALLY good pizza (but now lives in an area with some of the worst pizza in the world), I consider a bad slice of pizza to still be a good slice.
One of my favorite things about going to school at all was the pizza on Fridays. Back in the 80s and 90s, it seemed like we'd have pizza for lunch in school, and that at home, it was the day of the week my parents reserved for pizza dinner as well!
What was it about Fridays that made it pizza day? Well, I'll tell you.
Historically, pizza Fridays can be traced back to the 1940s and 1950s, primarily due to Catholic traditions of observing meatless Fridays. Similar to the reason behind the creation of the Filet-o-Fish Sandwich at McDonald's, cheese pizza was an easy and affordable substitute for schools and homes to offer no-meat options under the older dietary guidelines. By the 1980s, pizza had evolved into a widespread end-of-week treat that was simple to prepare in bulk, required minimal effort, and was a small reward to boost student morale after a long week.
At home, during the late 80s and early 90s, we'd get pizza delivered on Friday evenings for dinner. In the mid-90s, due to quality issues and rising delivery costs, we switched to a different pizzeria in town that required us to drive over and pick it up. I always fondly remembered the pizza that was delivered to us, despite what my parents said was of failing quality. I overlooked the quality at that age, and I was more excited about the thicker cardboard box with bright red and blue painted on it. For a time, a mischievous little creature called "The Noid" was used by the company as a mascot on television. I loved The Noid so much that my parents even bought my brother and I a Noid bendy collectible toy.
That delivery pizza company was, of course, Domino's.
Domino's Pizza, at some point in the mid-90s, went from being one of the best, "trendy" things you could order to one of the worst. As my parents claimed, and I'm sure they are right, the pizza became terrible, and the "30 minutes or less" delivery became a punchline before being phased out altogether.
Then, about 15 years ago, the company went through a rejuvenation period where they admitted the food had been bad for a long time, freshened up their ingredients, and even invested in a (at the time) groundbreaking "tracking device" to see how your pizza progressed from order to oven before allowing you to follow your delivery driver.
This all seems commonplace in today's world of DoorDash or Uber Eats, but back in 2010, it was absolutely astonishing. People ordered food from Domino's just to check out the new tracking website.
I eventually gave them another shot, and to be honest, the pizza wasn't bad at all. I still order from them from time to time when I'm stuck in a hotel with nothing better to eat (or order).
As I ordered my daughter's lunches the other day, I began thinking back to the days when my parents would order Domino's pizza for the family's Friday night dinners and wondered... "Why would they call it Domino's? And how did a place like that get to be a household name? And how did they fall from grace to the point that they had to have a public apology?"
Well, let's find out!
The story of Domino's Pizza begins in the unassuming college town of Ypsilanti, Michigan (pronounced IP-sih-LAN-tee), on December 9, 1960.
Tom and James Monaghan, two brothers and orphans who had grown up in Catholic orphanages and in the foster system after their father died in 1945. Both served a term in the U.S. Marine Corps, and upon entering the civilian workforce, decided to join the food service business.
Tom, aged 23, was the driving force behind the venture, borrowing $900 to afford the $500 down payment on a small pizzeria called DomiNick's, located at 507 Cross Street near Eastern Michigan University.
His brother, James, was employed as a mailman at the time. He contributed to the initial investment but quickly grew tired of the long hours, carrying mail by day and serving pizza at night. In late 1961, James traded his half of the business to Tom for a used Volkswagen Beetle. Bad move, James.
With this trade, Tom became the sole owner of the business.
DomiNick's was an extremely modest operation, initially focusing solely on takeout and delivery to college students and local residents. Its menu featured only pizza, a few options of submarine sandwiches, and fried chicken.
The name "DomiNick's" came from its original owner, Dominick DeVarti, who had opened the establishment in 1959, just a year before selling it to Tom Monaghan.
Tom, a devout Catholic and entrepreneur at heart, streamlined the operation by simplifying the menu and eventually focused solely on pizzas by 1965. Tom emphasized using high-quality ingredients and a speedy delivery, which, at the time, was a novel concept, given that most pizzerias were sit-down restaurants.
In 1965, the restaurant began serving only pizza. Tom expanded by opening two more stores, one in Mount Pleasant and the other in Ann Arbor. Seeking a unified brand identity, he named them "DomiNick's."
The original Dominick DeVarti caught wind of the expansion and refused to allow the use of his original pizzeria name for the new locations. Tom needed a quick name change, and one day, a delivery driver named Jim Kennedy returned from a delivery run and suggested "Domino's Pizza." It was close enough to DomiNick's and was an easy name to remember. Tom was inspired by the domino game's tiles, and Jim had the idea of adding "dots" to represent each new store. This is why the Domino's Pizza logo has always featured three dots, as they represent the brand's first three stores.
Monaghan quickly adopted the name and officially incorporated the business as Domino's Pizza, Inc. Following the rebranding, the company continued to focus on expansion, shifting to a franchising model.
The first franchise opened in 1967 in Ypsilanti, Michigan.
The choice of Ypsilanti was strategic; its proximity to the original store and large universities close by (Eastern Michigan and the University of Michigan). This ensured a watchful eye from the company owners and steady streams of young, hungry customers who valued speed and convenience over ambiance and sit-down service.
By 1970, the chain had grown to 10 stores, primarily in the Midwest. The first expansion included locations such as Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois.
Tom Monaghan's early innovations included some of the company's most famous. Insulated bags were given to delivery drivers to keep pizzas hot. Monaghan also developed the "30-minute delivery guarantee" that was used by the original three locations starting in 1973. The 30-minute guarantee promised that the pizza would be delivered within 30 minutes of ordering, or it would be free of charge. Eventually, the "free" was changed to a discounted price before being phased out in 1993.
Monaghan's industry-changing ideas were soon adopted by nearly every other pizza parlor, especially the insulated bags, which are still used today. These early innovations set the stage for Domino's future dominance.
By 1975, Domino's had grown to 100 stores, and in 1978, the company reached its 200th location.
Growth was fueled by Monaghan's aggressive recruitment of franchisees, who were often college students pooling money or veterans seeking a new career. Monaghan used a standardized system that ensured consistency, including proprietary dough recipes and specialized training programs for both store management and hourly employees.
In 1978, Domino's merged with PizzaCo Inc., a Boulder, Colorado-based pizza chain, which added 23 stores and enabled the company to expand into the state of Colorado.
By the time 1980 rolled around, the store count had reached 500, including locations in international markets such as Winnipeg, Canada (1983), Australia, the United Kingdom, and Japan (1985).
By 1985, the Domino's Pizza brand was available in over 1,000 locations.
The company's "30-minute delivery guarantee" was introduced nationwide in 1986, following years of success earlier in Michigan. This promise drove innovations that helped cook pizzas faster and achieve shorter delivery times through optimized kitchen layouts, the creation of specialized conveyor ovens, and the development of delivery route-planning software.
The 1980s were the company's most explosive decade, starting in 1980 with 288 stores growing to 5,000 by the end of 1989. In 1981, under the leadership of Chief Operations Officer (COO) Don Vlcek, the company opened nearly 500 stores annually at its peak.
By 1984, 1,200 stores; 1985 saw 2,841 stores after opening 954—a rate of almost three per day.
The company's expansion focus turned to urban and suburban areas in the United States, particularly on the coasts. The store sought locations that featured heavy foot traffic near colleges or businesses with large crowds of employees seeking lunch, a take-home dinner, or a late-night snack during their studies (or parties).
1989 saw several challenges for the Domino's Pizza company. A trademark lawsuit from Amstar (which produces Domino Sugar) took up valuable time and resources for the company, although the pizza chain eventually won the suit. Shortly thereafter, the company's finances were threatened when safety concerns arose over the 30-minute guarantee. The complaints linked the guarantee to several accidents, including a reported 20 (!!) fatalities and many more severe injuries caused by speeding drivers trying to meet the deadline.
In 1993, a lawsuit in St. Louis was filed against Domino's when one of their drivers ran a red light and injured a woman. The verdict cost the company $79 million, and it led to the company phasing out its promise of fast delivery or free food by the end of the year. What once felt "trendy" in the 80s had soon become risky by the 90s.
For the remainder of the 1990s and early 2000s, the company replaced the "or it's free" guarantee with a slight reduction in the cost of the pizza, eventually offering only a 20% coupon off your next pizza purchase and/or the "Piece of the Pie Rewards" points. Today, the guarantee is nearly non-existent.
Amidst the temporary setbacks, the company opened its 1,000th franchise in 1990. To celebrate, the company began selling Pan Pizzas, something its main competitor, Pizza Hut, was already famous for.
The late 80s and early 90s saw an intense "Pizza War" between Domino's and Pizza Hut, with Domino's 30-minute guarantee clashing against Pizza Hut's sit-down family "night-out" appeal. Pizza Hut fought back with ads mocking Domino's The Noid character and offering free pizzas for late deliveries from its competitors, a direct shot at Domino's.
During the 90s, international growth accelerated. The company had over 1,000 overseas stores by 1995, and entered new markets in Mexico (1990), India (1996), and Brazil (1993).
The menu expanded again in 1992 when the company added breadsticks and thin-crust pizza.
In 1996, Domino's launched its website, complete with the early stages of online ordering. Online payments were still challenging at the time; payment was still required to the driver upon delivery.
Tom Monaghan, for all intents and purposes, exited the company in 1998, selling 93% of his stake to Bain Capital for just over $1 billion.
Jumping ahead ten years, by 2008, the company had stagnated. Sales were flat, if not down. The stock was at a new low of $8.76 a share. Focus groups lambasted the pizza as "cardboard" crust with "ketchup" sauce and "sawdust" cheese. The reviews were not kind, and as a college-age kid around that time, I can say for certain that no one my age was thinking about eating Domino's.
The company had tried various things, such as "The Dominator," a massive 30-slice, 3-foot-long pizza introduced in 1993 that rivaled Pizza Hut's "Big Foot," as well as other items like Buffalo Chicken Kickers, which failed to capitalize on the chicken wing craze of the late 1990s. These flops show the brand's desperation for a new "hit" and continued decline after years of leading the market.
In 2009, a video went viral of employees purposefully tampering with food, which fueled a continued public relations nightmare for the company.
In the winter of 2009, J. Patrick Doyle, the new CEO of Domino's, launched "The Pizza Turnaround." After testing 80 crusts and 15 different sauces, a new recipe was introduced that called for a garlic-seasoned crust, a bolder sauce from California-sourced tomatoes, and a blend of shredded provolone and mozzarella cheese.
In January 2010, the company began airing advertisements with Doyle admitting the company's flaws, showing real online negative reviews and customer complaints for "the worst excuse for pizza."
Personally, for me, this mea culpa impressed me and played a significant role in getting me to try Domino's again.
The company also introduced an innovative new pizza tracking software, known as the Domino's Tracker, to enhance customer experience by providing real-time updates on order status. The system allows customers to monitor their particular pizza from preparation through baking, quality check, and delivery or pickup readiness. Some locations even allow tracking of the delivery driver.
When I finally did try Domino's again, I was not disappointed. Apparently, neither were others, because sales surged in the first quarter of 2010, up 14.3%, and the company's annual profits doubled. By the summer of 2010, 70% of all sales were digital, thanks in part to the introduction of the Domino's Tracker. By 2020, that number had increased to nearly 93%.
Stock prices rose over 5,000% under Doye's tenure as CEO, who left the company in 2018 to become Executive Chairman of Restaurant Brands International, which owns Burger King, Popeyes, and Tim Hortons.
When Russell Weiner took over as the current CEO (since 2022), the main focus of Domino's has been more on the technology side of the pizza business. Domino's has focused on Artificial Intelligence in ordering and cooking, as well as developing the use of electric vehicles, drones, and autonomous delivery vehicles for pizza deliveries.
In 2025, Domino's leads the United States in pizza sales with $9.03 billion, ahead of Pizza Hut ($5.38 B), Little Caesars ($4.43 B), and Papa John's. Domino's has over 6,900 locations in the United States, compared to 7,000 Pizza Huts, 4,000 Little Caesars, and 3,500 Papa John's. Domino's, always looking beyond pizza, continues to list McDonald's and Starbucks as its biggest competitors in the quick-service food industry.
During the 1980s, Domino's marketing team embedded the brand into pop culture. The Noid, introduced by ad agency Group 243 in 1986, was a red-suited, rabbit-eared villain (voiced by Pons Maar) who ruined pizzas and deliveries for the fictional customers featured in the commercials. The Noid capitalized on the late 1980s claymation trend, similar to The California Raisins, created by Will Vinton Studios.
The "Avoid the Noid" campaign featured animated ads that encouraged customers to call Domino's to order pizza, taking advantage of its 30-minute delivery guarantee.
The Noid character spawned merchandise, including toys, T-shirts, keychains, and even a video game, as well as a planned (but abandoned) CBS cartoon series! A board game was also released in 1988, in which players raced to deliver pizzas.
To highlight how The Noid had entered the pop culture lexicon during the late 80s, he also appeared in Michael Jackson's "Moonwalker" music video and an early episode of "The Simpsons." The Noid also appeared on an episode of Family Matters.
In 1988, CBS planned a Saturday morning cartoon called "The Noids," based on the mischievous mascot. The series would have featured The Noid causing pizza chaos, fitting the era's mascot-heavy kids' shows, such as the California Raisins or Slimer from Ghostbusters. Unfortunately for us nostalgia fans, the idea was scrapped before it reached the television airwaves, due to shifting network priorities and the character's controversial real-world association.
After the series was announced to be in development stages, parents complained that the series would be one long commercial for Domino's Pizza. You know, as opposed to every other '80s commercial for toys or other products masquerading as a Saturday morning cartoon!
The Noid starred in two video games that scream retro gaming nostalgia. "Avoid the Noid" (1989, for Commodore 64 and MS-DOS) had players delivering pizzas while dodging The Noid's traps. It was followed by "Yo! Noid" (in 1990, for NES), a re-skinned version of a Japanese game in which The Noid battled enemies in New York City-esque streets.
These were promotional gold for Domino's, tying into the 1980s arcade and video game boom.
Sadly, a national news-making event occurred in 1989 that put an end to The Noid's tenure at Domino's.
On January 30, 1989, the mentally ill Kenneth Lamar Noid of Georgia entered a Domino's in Chamblee, Georgia, armed with a .357 Magnum and held two employees hostage for over five hours. Kenneth believed that the "Avoid the Noid" campaign was specifically designed to target and antagonize him personally.
After ranting to the employees that Domino's owner, Tom Monaghan, had stolen his name and identity, he forced them to call the company's headquarters to demand $100,000 and a white limousine to be used as a getaway vehicle. Later, he offered to exchange one hostage for a copy of Robert Anton Wilson's 1985 novel The Widow's Son. Noid went back on his word when a police officer brought him a copy of the book and later made the captive employees make him two pizzas. As he ate, the two employees escaped, and Noid surrendered to the police shortly after. He was arrested and charged with kidnapping, aggravated assault, extortion, and possession of a firearm during a crime. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity and spent time in a mental institution. Shortly after his release from the institution, Kenneth died by suicide in February 1995.
This event led to the Noid character's hasty retirement in 1990, although Domino's denies that this hostage incident had anything to do with the conclusion of the ad campaign. The Noid was briefly revived in 2021 for an ad campaign highlighting the autonomous delivery.
Even though Domino's main rival, Pizza Hut, sponsored the 1990 film's home video release with promotional campaigns and the "Coming Out of Their Shell Tour," Domino's Pizza was heavily featured in the movie. In one early scene, Michaelangeo and Leonardo can be seen waiting out the 30-minute guarantee. When Mikey announces the time is up, he gets excited that the cost of the pizza will be "Three bucks off!"
Quotable lines from the movie, like "Pizza Dude's got 30 seconds!" and "Wise men say, forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza!" are from this scene.
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will forever be tied to the Domino's pizza brand. During several episodes of the 1987 animated series, the turtles can be seen devouring boxes of pizza with a generic branding, but featuring a familiar blue and red box.
Domino's was indirectly referenced in several other pop culture sensations of the time, like the futuristic Domino's-style timed delivery in 1989's Back to the Future Part II (despite it being a dehydrated Pizza Hut pizza). Also, in the 1990's Home Alone (Little Nero's was a spoof of Little Caesars) used Domino's rushed delivery guarantee. Many also attribute the chaotic pizza scene in 1996's Space Jam to The Noid's chaotic commercials, although I' admit this is a stretch.
The journey of Domino's Pizza from DomiNick's back in 1960 exemplifies the company's resilience and futuristic vision. Monaghan's early planning, the boom in the 1980s, and advertising hits like The Noid have solidified Domino's presence not only in pop culture but also in the minds of many consumers as the "go-to" quick-service pizza joint. The successful revival of the brand in 2010 and the continued navigation around competition have ensured the company's dominance in its market as it continues to adapt its simple pizza store from Ypsilanti, Michigan, to the entire digital, global world.
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