Last night, Ted and I had dinner at Dewey’s, one of our favorite pizza restaurants.  We eat there frequently enough to make participation in their rewards program worthwhile.  After we spend $xx, we get $10 off our next dinner.  We’ve enjoyed the $10 reward a number of times, but had no idea there was a higher reward level.  Last night, when we presented our $10 coupon, the waitress said we’d be getting something special in addition to the $10 off the price of our meal, and the manager would be right over.  Something special?  And it requires a manager to present it?  We were mystified.

When the manager arrived, she offered us a choice of a Dewey’s shirt, a Dewey’s cap, or a Dewey’s glass.  Neither of us thought we’d wear the shirt or the cap, so we opted for the glass.  The manager left to fetch our choice and returned with the glass in one hand and a gift bag in the other.

We waited until we got home to open the gift bag and were surprised to see how much our patronage is appreciated.  Inside the bag was a very nice 20-ounce mug with (according to the box) “a vacuum insulated body (and a) copper-plated inner wall to help retain the internal temperature of the tumbler longer.”  According to the box, beverages will stay hot for 8 hours and cold for 16 hours.  In addition, there was an envelope with another surprise inside:  a $50 Dewey’s gift certificate.  At a pizza restaurant, that’s very generous.

Dewey’s slogan is “Taking pizza to the next level.”  They also take customer appreciation to the next level.