Zingerman's and Domino's: What is the origin of these company names?

Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig originally planned to name their Ann Arbor deli Greenberg's Delicatessen.

File photo

Turns out, it’s the result of a last minute switch from the restaurant’s original name: Greenberg’s Delicatessen.

The pair — who opened Zingerman’s Deli on Detroit Street in 1982 — wanted to name their business Greenberg’s after Hannah Greenberg, a regular customer at the fish market Saginaw owned, an MLive report says.

But Saginaw and Weinzweig had to change the deli’s name a few days before opening after a Farmington Hills business owner named Greenberg said they couldn’t use his name.

Domino's was founded in Ypsilanti in 1960.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

“We came up with Zingerman’s; it sounded zingy and fun,” Saginaw told MLive.

Ann Arbor Township-based Domino’s Pizza was founded in 1960 when Tom Monaghan and his brother, James, bought Domi-Nick’s pizzeria in Ypsilanti for $500. When Dominick wanted the name back, an employee came up with Domino’s.

The company’s three-dot domino logo represents the company’s first three stores.

• Read the MLive report to learn the name origins behind other Michigan-based companies.

Lizzy Alfs is a business reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at 734-623-2584 or email her at lizzyalfs@annarbor.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lizzyalfs.