# Restaurant Chains that Have Improved Over Time **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 13, 2020, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/restaurant-chains-that-have-improved-over-time/846375 "2020-01-13T22:31:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2020, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/restaurant-chains-that-have-improved-over-time/846375/81 "2020-01-20T04:42:22Z")
Ok, just doing a sanity check: > [@](#): > > The sauce was actually a pretty nice improvement. I was a little worried about the advertised sweetness of the new sauce, because I hate sweet pizza sauce. To my surprise, sauce tasted less sweet than before. [From here](https://www.epicportions.com/2009/12/18/dominos-new-pizza-recipe/). > [@](#): > > The thing that gave me pause the most when I read the Domino’s press release was the bit about the sauce: “Sweeter, bolder tomato sauce with a medley of herbs and a red pepper kick.” To my taste, the old Domino’s sauce was already too sweet. Making it any sweeter would push it into the realm of Papa John’s, which I think has the sweetest sauce of the major chains. This was a big mistake on Domino’s part, I thought. > > […] > If anything, the sauce seems less sweet than before—maybe it’s just more balanced now. From [Serious Eats](https://slice.seriouseats.com/2009/12/how-does-dominos-new-pizza-recipe-taste-what-is-it-like-slideshow.html). They apparently advertised their sauce as “sweeter,” but I sure as hell don’t notice it as being sweeter than their old version. Maybe the comments about it being more balanced with other flavors are right and there’s just other flavors balancing it out now. But that’s not the essential difference between their inedible pizza of the 90s and their current pizza. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2020, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/restaurant-chains-that-have-improved-over-time/846375/82 "2020-01-22T21:29:54Z")
> [@Purd\_Werfect](#): > > One that’s a California chain you might want to check out the next time you’re in Santa Cruz is Ike’s Love and Sandwiches on Ocean St. I first encountered them in Davis and was really pleased when the opened one here. Good selection of decent bread and great sandwiches. Holy cow, they apparently do have hundreds of sandwiches. There’s no definitive list I could find online, but their website has [nutritional info on the entire menagerie](http://www.loveandsandwiches.com/menu/nutritional.pdf). Wow. Will mos’ def’ check them out, although I have to drive almost past my current sandwich addiction, [Surf City Sandwich](http://www.surfcitysandwich.com/) to get there. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2020, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/restaurant-chains-that-have-improved-over-time/846375/83 "2020-01-23T05:52:07Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Ok, just doing a sanity check: > > [From here](https://www.epicportions.com/2009/12/18/dominos-new-pizza-recipe/). > > From [Serious Eats](https://slice.seriouseats.com/2009/12/how-does-dominos-new-pizza-recipe-taste-what-is-it-like-slideshow.html). > They apparently advertised their sauce as “sweeter,” but I sure as hell don’t notice it as being sweeter than their old version. Maybe the comments about it being more balanced with other flavors are right and there’s just other flavors balancing it out now. But that’s not the essential difference between their inedible pizza of the 90s and their current pizza. You can actually order their older sweeter sauce off the menu, it’s under “Marinara Sauce” instead of “Tomato sauce” that goes on by default. I order almost all my Domino’s pizzas using Marinara Sauce instead of Tomato sauce because I actually liked old school Dominos pizza. You can also have the garlic seasoning taking out of the bread as well so you can have a total 90’s era Dominos Pizza with marinara sauce and plain crust if that’s what you’re into. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2020, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/restaurant-chains-that-have-improved-over-time/846375/84 "2020-01-23T06:01:32Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > You can also have the garlic seasoning taking out of the bread as well so you can have a total 90’s era Dominos Pizza with marinara sauce and plain crust if that’s what you’re into. Why would I want to do that? 😉 (I actually would be fine without the seasoning in the crust. I honestly didn’t notice it the last few times I ordered it. The crust itself is different now. Or at least there’s more options and my impression of it was being better than what I got in the 90s, and it’s not a matter of spicing but the actual bread.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/restaurant-chains-that-have-improved-over-time/846375.md?page=4)