Variety Friday: Domino's Millefeuille Pizza

Japan is well-known for its weird pizzas. I've been here long enough that most of them don't even catch my eye anymore. Tuna and corn has become as normal to me as pepperoni and onion. Even artful lattices of mayonnaise squeezed across the top of a pizza elicits a yawn from me after all of this time.

Recently, I got a menu from Domino's in my mailbox which contained a pizza that made (even) me take pause. This one went above and beyond the normal weirdness into a whole new realm of culinary adventure. Domino's has stepped through the pizza looking glass and they've come up with this:

Click this image for a somewhat bigger one on which it is easier to see details.

The basic concept behind this pizza is that it imitates a millefueille pastry by layering thin crusts. The diagram you see on the right under the actual pizza describes the layering as follows:

bottom: Italian crispy crust
2nd layer: baloney sausage and mozzarella "mix cheese"
3rd layer: Italian crust with Camembert pepper cheese
4th layer first half: roast chicken, apple slices, almond slices, tomato sauce
4th layer second half: baloney sausage, grilled eggplant, grilled zucchini, red pepper, tomato sauce

If all of this is just a little too adventurous for you, you can order a pizza with only one side of the toppings. The apple version is called a Normandy Millefeuille and the eggplant and zucchini side is called a Bologna Millefeuille. There may be a place where apple and almonds on your pizza is mundane, but such a land is beyond my limited imagination.

I like apples and eggplant, but I'm not prepared to go for these funky pizzas. They may be incredibly tasty, but I'm just not adventurous enough, particularly when it comes to something which I regard as a relatively expensive indulgence. If I order a pizza, I'm going to be sure it's something I like that is worth the calories and the cash. For your reference, a 25 cm./10 in. medium is 2700 yen (about $26) and a 36 cm./14 in. large is 3950 yen (around $38).

teriyaki chicken, roast chicken (top right), shrimp mayonnaise, jalapeno (middle right), and meat sub (bottom right)

On the bright side, the same menu mentions that Domino's is starting to sell 15 cm. (5.9 in.) hot subs and those are in far more mundane varieties and much less pricey (550 to 680 yen or from about $5.50-$6.80). Such sandwiches are generally only available from places like Subway (of which there are none in my neighborhood) or somewhat expensive coffee shops in Japan. I'll be giving one of these a try, and passing on the funky pizzas.