Domino’s has long been one of America’s go-to pizza chains, gaining popularity across the nation since its first pizzeria opening in 1960 thanks to its convenience, affordability, and quick delivery. But while it’s a dependable choice for pizza and there’s no arguing that the $5.99 value meal deal is hard to beat, Domino’s may not be the best place to order a pie if you’re vegan.
Pizza in general can be a tough thing to veganize since it’s covered in cheese by nature – but some pizza places offer vegan cheese options these days, and at many chains and pizza shops it’s possible to remove the cheese from your order and stick to vegan-friendly sauces and toppings.
Unfortunately, at least when it comes to pizza, Domino’s isn’t one of those places. The chain doesn’t currently offer any vegan cheese or meat options, but on top of that their pizza dough isn’t necessarily considered vegan-friendly (more on why below) – so their pizzas may be ruled out if you follow a vegan diet.
It’s not all bad news, though; Domino’s does have some other non-pizza items on the menu that you can order or modify for a some vegan-friendly food and drinks that are fast and affordable. Here’s the scoop if you’re eating vegan at Domino’s Pizza.
Why isn’t Domino’s pizza crust considered vegan?
First, let’s address the pizza crust issue, because it’s a bit of a complicated one. Domino’s offers several different types of crusts, but unfortunately they each contain ingredients that are either non-vegan or problematic for vegans.
The Brooklyn, Hand Tossed Crust, and Handmade Pan Crust all contain whey, which means those crusts are not vegan-friendly. The gluten-free crust contains honey, so this one is up to the discretion of each person depending on whether or not they consider honey an animal product.
And the most questionable crust is Domino’s Thin Crust. This is the only option without any animal ingredients, which makes it a hopeful choice for vegans, but it contains one ingredient that’s slightly controversial. It’s been confirmed that Domino’s includes L-Cysteine in their dough – this is an amino acid that’s often used as a dough conditioner, and the problem is that it’s often derived from animal products.
What’s unclear is whether the L-Cysteine that the chain uses is animal-derived or plant-derived. However, many sources (including those that have reached out to Domino’s recently) report that the L-Cysteine in Domino’s crust does indeed come from dairy products. So again, this is up to the individual vegan in terms of what they consider an animal product and what they’re comfortable with.
Vegan food and drink items available on the Domino’s menu
Since the Gluten-Free Crust may be acceptable for vegans who eat honey and the Thin Crust may be acceptable for those who are okay with animal-derived enzymes, we’ve included those options in the vegan-friendly menu items below – the caveat being that you can make that choice based on what you’re comfortable with.
If you do order a pizza, your best bet is to build your own pie with no cheese, your chosen selection of vegan-friendly toppings (all listed below), and the Robust Inspired Tomato Sauce. This is Domino’s standard pizza sauce, and the only truly vegan sauce available – unfortunately the Marinara is made with cheese.
If you decide against the pizza at Domino’s, there are a few other menu items you can order that are safely considered vegan. These include Domino’s build-your-own pasta, their veggie sandwich, and a garden salad. However, just keep in mind that the modifications necessary to make these items vegan aren’t always available online, so you may need to call to order these specific items.
Here’s everything on the current menu that’s vegan-friendly, which you can mix and match to build your order at Domino’s (along with any required modifications to veganize each item).
| Vegan Menu Items | Required Modifications |
| Build Your Own Pizza | If comfortable with crusts below |
| Build Your Own Pasta | Choose from vegan-friendly sauces + toppings |
| Garden Salad | No cheese No croutons Choose from vegan-friendly dressings |
| Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich | No cheese |
| [Possible] Vegan Pizza Crusts | |
| Gluten-Free Crust [Contains Honey] | |
| Thin Crust [Contains L-Cysteine] | |
| Vegan Pizza + Pasta Sauces | |
| Robust Inspired Tomato Sauce | |
| Vegan Toppings | |
| Banana Peppers | |
| Black Olives | |
| Diced Tomato | |
| Green Peppers | |
| Jalapeno Peppers | |
| Mushrooms | |
| Onions | |
| Pineapple | |
| Pepperoncini | |
| Roasted Red Peppers | |
| Spinach | |
| Vegan Salad Dressings | |
| Balsamic Vinaigrette | |
| Italian | |
| Vegan Dipping Sauces | |
| Garlic | |
| Marinara | |
| Sweet Mango Habanero | |
| Vegan Drinks | |
| Sodas |
While there are no known plans to offer these products in the US, Domino’s chains throughout the UK do have plant-based cheese and meat options and vegan crusts available – so it’s possible that Domino’s may introduce these products in the US in the future.
Domino’s Gluten-Free Crust includes honey as an ingredient, so it depends whether you consider honey to be vegan or not – but this crust is generally not considered vegan-friendly.
While Domino’s has used plant-derived L-Cysteine in the past, more recently the chain has stated that the enzymes they currently use are a byproduct of cow’s milk. Since the actual sourcing is a bit unclear, if you consider animal-derived L-Cysteine a problematic ingredient it’s best to avoid all of Domino’s pizza crusts to be safe.
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