As a consumer, fast food pizza is like a tennis match out there, and I’ve been watching Domino’s and Papa Johns volley back and forth. Earlier this year, Papa Johns launched toasted sandwiches, a mainstay on Domino’s menu. Then Domino’s was like, Oh yeah? We’re going to launch a Slice Sauce and stake our claim right on the packaging: “The Ideal Sauce for your Slice.”

Bold claims require bold evidence, and as a self-declared garlic butter loyalist, I was ready to officiate.

For context, Papa Johns’ Garlic Butter is one of the primary reasons that its pizza is my #1. I always have a spare garlic butter cup in the fridge; you know, for these moments, or impulsive late-night pizza eating.

So a direct head-to-head was non-negotiable.

The Slice Sauce runs $0.99 as an add-on in the app, where it’s described as “creamy and zesty with a hint of Parmesan.” Respectable price point.

In the container, it skews orange-ish, closer to Thousand Island dressing with the flecks and everything, but the smell is zesty and promising. On the first bite, the Parmesan and Asiago cheese blend shows up – genuinely the first taste, not just marketing copy. But it quickly gives way to something more ranch-coded, with a buttermilk finish that keeps things interesting.

To keep this tennis analogy going – here’s where it goes to deuce: I preferred it on the MeatZZa, where it amplified the cheesiness and left a tangy, ranch-like aftertaste that worked. On my mushroom vegetarian slice, it overly accentuated the tomato in a way that felt like there was too much tomato sauce.

Papa Johns’ Garlic Butter, by contrast, played nice with both – universally complementary, and deeply buttery in a way that just hits like a Serena Williams serve.

Would I buy the Slice Sauce again? Nah. It’s not bad, it’s just fine, especially when Papa Johns’ garlic butter exists and is elite. Domino’s talked a big game, and the sauce is a solid showing, but it wasn’t the upset I was hoping for.

Purchased Price: $0.99
Size: 1 cup (35g)
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 170 calories, 18 grams of total fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 370 milligrams of sodium, 2 grams of total carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 1 gram of total sugars, and 1 gram of protein.