Now That’s How We Roll . . . at Domino’s!

The old adage . . . be careful of what you eat, was never more appropriate than for the following incident, which occurred at a Domino’s restaurant, located in Conover, North Carolina.

Two employees, perhaps vying for attention, decided to film one of the most grotesque videos depicting what may or may not be happening in the kitchen at your local Domino’s.

The videos, which have appeared innumerable times since they were uploaded by these two imbeciles, depicted Michael Setzer, 32 putting cheese up his nose, and then putting the mucous laden topping on a pizza.

Narrating this stomach turning affair was Kristy Hammonds, 31:

“In about five minutes it’ll be sent out on delivery where somebody will be eating these, yes, eating them, and little did they know that the cheese was in his nose and that there was some lethal gas that ended up on their salami,” Kristy said. “Now that’s how we roll at Domino’s.”

The salami that Hammonds’s narration refers to was from another video, showing Setzer blowing an ill-wind on the cold cuts, prior to placing them on sandwiches.

A blogger who had seen the videos alerted Domino’s.

You Tube has since pulled the videos because of a copyright claim by Hammonds.

“We got blindsided by two idiots with a video camera and an awful idea, said Domino’s spokesman, Tim McIntyre. “Even people who’ve been with us as loyal customers for, 10, 15, 20 years, people are second-guessing their relationship with Domino’s, and that’s not fair.”

I beg to differ—why shouldn’t the public doubt Domino’s reputation?

The company’s initial reaction was not to pursue this incident aggressively, in the hopes that it would soon blow over. They underestimated the far reaching power of social media. Once Domino’s realized that the video incident had grown exponentially, they decided to act by creating a Twitter account and posting their own video on You Tube.

In the video, Patrick Doyle, President, Domino’s U.S.A. tries to reassure the public that the following steps have been taken to restore their confidence:

• Felony charges have been brought against the two terminated employees and warrants issued for their arrest.
• The restaurant in Conover, North Carolina has been shut down and sanitized from top to bottom.
• We’re reexamining all of the company’s hiring practices to ensure that individuals like Hammond and Setzer never make into any Domino’s stores.
• We have auditors across the country, in every store making sure that the company’s cleanliness standards are maintained and that high quality food is being delivered to consumers day in and day out.

Although Hammonds has apologized and claimed that it was a hoax, and none of the tainted food was ever delivered, the public should still be wary.

When one patronizes any food establishment, a sacred trust is placed in the hands of the individuals that are employed there, and when that confidence is shattered, things are never quite the same.

Mr. Doyle concluded the company’s response on You Tube by issuing the following statement:

“It sickens me that the actions of two individuals could impact our great system, where 125,000 men and women work for local business owners around the U.S., and more than 60 countries around world. We take tremendous pride in crafting delicious food that they deliver to you every day. There are so many people who have come forward with messages of support for us and we want to thank you for hanging in there with us as we work to regain your trust.”

Perhaps a poor choice of words by Mr. Doyle . . . but rather than being overly distressed about a hit to the brand, Domino’s should be more concerned that no one has been sickened by the actions of those two moronic individuals, and should investigate what was the person in charge doing while these videos were being filmed.

Perhaps in her own bizarre way Hammonds’s statement was correct:

“Now that’s how we roll at Domino’s.”

Bradley Booth/Freelance Commercial Writer/Author