Feeling a little dom

Before there was McDonalds in Japan, there was Dom Dom.  In 1970 Japan was first introduced to the fast food burger (McD's came just one year later).  Although the chain is no longer very popular, there are still a few around. 

While out running errands, my husband thought it would be a good idea to relive his childhood burger joint.  He didn't go often, but eating a teriyaki burger at Dom Dom was a vivid memory for him.  So, we decided to give it a chance.

The closest Dom Dom to us is tucked inside the front corner of a Maruetsu grocery store.  It's actually owned by the grocery store, so it made sense that it was located there.

The interior featured a pretty typical order counter and not so typical pink seats.  I don't know if the pink is the company color, but it was a surprising choice.

Looking at the menu, we found lots of interesting choices like shrimp-katsu burger and okonomiyaki burger.  With a hesitant attitude, I ordered the chicken meatball burger with renkon (lotus root) and a side salad.  My husband ordered the teriyaki burger as well as a tamagoyaki (grilled egg) sandwich.  My son wanted a kid's hamburger. 

In true fast food fashion, our food was ready pretty quickly.  My son's burger was a thin beef patty with a squirt of ketchup on a bun.  It was as basic as you can get.  And it was not good whatsoever.  Mine was interesting, reminding me of exactly what the description said - a chicken meatball topped with fried renkon.  My husband's teriyaki burger was 60% sauce, 30% bun, and 10% meat.  I could barely swallow it.  But I'm also not hugely into sauce.  The best item we ordered, in my opinion, was the tamagoyaki sandwich.  Although it had too much mayonnaise (which was mixed with Japanese mustard, which is pretty spicy), it tasted just like a super simple egg sandwich.

As we dined, my husband set down his burger and said his memories had been ruined.  I find this a common theme with foods from our childhood.  When I tried SpaghettiOs in college, I was quickly informed that they are not what my memories tell me they are.  I completely understand his disappointment. 

It was interesting going to Dom Dom.  It is a part of Japanese history, just like A&W and Artic Circle was a place from my past.  Of course, not all things from the past need to be revisited.  I guess we learned our lesson.