Deer My Readers, when you think of hamburger chains in Japan,
which ones come to mind ?
For many of you,
these will come to mind.
・McDonald’s
・Mos Burger
・Burger King
・Zetteria
・Wendy’s
・Freshness Burger
and so on
Although it is not a hamburger chain,
some of you may have thought of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
However, the restaurant I will focus on this time is this one.
I, hiikun, also saw them around town when I was a child.
However, as an adult, I never saw them at all.
How many people know about DomDom burger,
which is called “endangered species” ?
The scale is small, but unique products are sold there.
In recent years, it has been mentioned rather frequently on social networking sites and in the mass media.
I was fascinated by such Dom Dom Burger.
This was my first time trying Dom Dom Burger items.
This article is intended for the following people.
・Those who have never been to Dom Dom Burger.
・Those who are interested in Dom Dom Burger products.
Through this article,
I hope you will find Dom Dom Burger appealing.
Please read to the end.
Thank you for your cooperation.
What is Dom Dom Burger?
Dom Dom Burger was founded in 1970 (Showa 45),
when the first Osaka Expo was held.
It was the following year 1971 (Showa 46)
that McDonald’s opened thier first restaurant in Japan.
In other words, it opened earlier than McDonald’s.
It is the oldest hamburger chain in Japan.
I, hiikun, thought that
McDonald’s was the first hamburger chain to be established in Japan.
Therefore, I was very surprised when I learned of this fact.
At its peak, the company had approximately 400 stores nationwide.
As I said at the beginning,
when I was a kid, I saw Dom Dom Burger stores in many places.
However, it entered a period of stagnation after the 2000s.
The number of stores declined sharply due to various factors, including the rise of competitors.
I, hiikun, have seen almost nothing at all since I grew up.
Nonetheless,
Dom Dom Burger survived.
They sold a series of unique products not found in other hamburger chains.
As a result, the company succeeded in recovering its business performance.
Compared to its heyday, there are far fewer stores.
I counted the number of stores on the official website.
The number of stores is only 27 (as of May 2026/Reiwa 8).
Nevertheless, their unique products attracted consumer interest.
From standard products to limited time offerings and store-specific products,
all of them are very interesting.
In recent years, it has attracted so much attention on social networking sites and in the mass media.
*There are a number of videos on YouTube about why DomDom Burger was able to recover its performance. Please search and watch them if you are interested.
In Osaka, where I, hiikun, live,
Dom Dom Burger has only two locations.
The other day I visited one of them, “Dom Dom Burger Aeon Suita”.
In the next section,
let me show you the items I tried at that time.
Dom Dom Burger AEON Suita Store
First of all, I would like to introduce the route to “Dom Dom Burger AEON Suita”.
Only 3 stops from JR Osaka Station on the JR Kyoto Line.
Suita” is the nearest station.
It takes about 10 minutes by local train.
Continue toward the apartment complex with the Aeon sign on your left.
On the ground floor of the Aeon Suita store,
Dom Dom Burger AEON Suita is located in AEON Suita.
It is very close, about 5 minutes on foot.
In December 1979 (Showa 54), at the same time that the Daiei Suita Store, the predecessor of the AEON Suita Store, was opened,
this store opened.
I, hiikun, was born in May 1980 (Showa 55).
It have been in business here since before I was born.
Because it has been in business since the Showa period,
the interior of the restaurant seemed slightly dim and old.
However, the atmosphere was filled with some warm and nostalgic feeling.
The restaurant was crowded with locals.
I wonder if it is really an endangered hamburger chain.
Luckily, there was no one else in line.
So I was able to order easily.
I could have eaten in the restaurant.
It was rather crowded, so I decided to take it home.
I would never have dreamed of traveling this far just to buy hamburgers.
Now, let’s take it home and eat it at home.
Food I actually had
Now let’s take a look at the actual items I had.
These are the items I purchased this time.
I was going to eat them at home.
Unable to bear the hunger, I decided to eat them at the food court of the Aeon Mall Osaka Dome City branch.
I wanted vegetables so I bought a salad.
I also wanted to drink alcohol.
But I decided on a non-alcoholic beer for my bike ride home.
I will have them then.
Let’s start with this.
I will have the Big Dom Burger.
I was surprised when I opened the package.
It was much larger than I had expected.
The truth is that there is cheese in it.
I, hiikun, am not a fan of cheese, so I asked the staff to omit it.
It features a large amount of lettuce, so much that it protrudes from the bread.
There are two luxurious pieces of meat.
In addition, I am happy to see tomatoes in it.
It is very satisfying and filling.
Next, I had the shrimp cutlet burger.
It was quite some time since I purchased it.
The crispy texture of the shrimp cutlet batter and the cabbage was lost.
However, the taste was perfect.
If I had eaten it freshly prepared in the restaurant,
it would have tasted even better.
I forgot to mention one thing.
Speaking of Dom Dom Burger,
Here is the elephant logo.
His name is “Domuzo-kun”.
Domuzo-kun has his friends.
Products related to “Domuzo and Nakamatachi” are also available.
For more information, please visit the official Dom Dom Burger online store website.
From here, I will introduce the two side menu items
that I have always been curious about.
First, here…
Burdock stick.
It is a dish that would be served in a Japanese style izakaya bar
, not a hamburger chain.
The savory flavor of burdock root whets the appetite.
Even while traveling by train,
the aroma of burdock root wafted from the bag.
Because a considerable amount of time passed since the purchase,
it completely cooled off.
The crispy texture of the batter was also lost.
Still, it was delicious.
No salt, mayonnaise, ketchup, or other condiments are needed.
The batter itself is seasoned, so please eat it as is.
The soy-sauce flavored batter and burdock are a perfect match.
As well as the shrimp cutlet burger,
If I had eaten it freshly prepared in the restaurant,
it would have tasted even better.
And here’s what I bought for dessert…
Karinto* buns. *a Japanese deep fried brown sugar snack
I never expected to see buns sold in a hamburger chain restaurant.
There were also a certain number of people on social networking sites who praised the karinto buns.
It was very interesting.
I decided to give it a try.
I took a bite and was impressed.
It’s insanely delicious.
The savory aroma of brown sugar whets the appetite.
The smell is completely that of karinto.
The inside is moist.
The outside is crispy.
The sweet bean paste inside is also not too sweet.
It was very tasty, combined with the bitterness characteristic of karinto.
Summary
This time, we presented you with the first time I had the products of Dom Dom Burger,
a hamburger chain that was considered an endangered species.
How was it?
As for my hiikun opinion,
the overall rating is quite high.
Taste and quantity are perfect.
The price is reasonable.
I was really impressed especially with the karinto buns.
We hope that you will enjoy this bun.
If I have one complaint,
salads are not sold.
When I hiikun go to a hamburger chain restaurant,
I order a salad along with the main dish, a hamburger.
For those of us who try to eat a balanced diet,
I am somewhat disappointed.
That said,
both burgers and sides,
all the items I had were delicious.
I really liked them.
Karinto buns, burdock sticks, etc,
Dom Dom Burger offer several unique products
that you will never find this at any other hamburger chain.
Although it is considered an endangered species by many,
the company took advantage of this and sold a succession of unique products.
That is why it was able to win the hearts and minds of consumers.
Next time I visit it,
I would love to try other products.
Deer My Readers,
if you have a Dom Dom Burger restaurant in your area,
please visit them if you like.
Thank you very much for reading this issue to the end.
See you in the next article.
