My wife, Deborah, and I went back to Bella Notte tonight mostly because, as I’ve said before, you always get a great meal there plus great service, and also to see what sort of reaction there was to my posts after the last visit. This was by no means a test, but it would tell me several things. What did I find out … I mean besides the fact that the food and service were excellent as always?

I saw that they get the whole service thing in ways many business owners haven’t begun to fathom. Not only did let the entire staff know what was said the next day after they hit the Internet, they also thanked me tonight for the posts - servers and manager alike. This is important for several reasons, including:

A. It shows they communicate with their staff … a lot
B. They are watching the Web for comments being made about them and using them as a tool
C. They have a very good grasp of the power of Web 2.0 (or 2.5 or whatever someone decides we’re up to)
D. They are integrating this smart marketing into their daily customer relations

There are many other reasons why this is important, but none more so than letting a customer know that you really care about their thoughts, feelings and satisfaction time and time again. Who checks on this? Mr. Toyoda himself.

Kuni Toyoda, the founder of Bella Notte, Fazoli’s and Smashing Tomato, is a smart marketer and, by all accounts, a good man. He and his wife eat at their restaurants almost every night. This is more than “eating one’s own cooking” (to quoin a phrase), it’s leadership. This shows his staff that he cares and pays attention to what they’re doing and what the customer reactions to his product and service are.

So, again, if you want a great meal and a really good lesson in customer service, tool on over to Bella Notte. Tell’em I sent you, but don’t expect anything for that - special treatment is standard whether my name is mentioned or not.