The city’s first day of offering ceremonies for same-sex couples who register as domestic partners was less than huge yesterday.

Only one couple showed up at the City Clerk’s Office on Worth Street downtown to take advantage of the new service, and they did it in private.

The ceremony, held in a small chapel, is meant to resemble a marriage ceremony. Couples have been able to register in the city as domestic partners since 1993.

The state does not permit same-sex couples to marry, and a vote to legalize gay marriage failed in Albany last December.