Today, while out at lunch, the owner came up to my table and started a light conversation.
She asked me how the food was… told me a little bit about the dish I ordered and how she made it… and told me to be safe while driving because of heavy snowfall.
It couldn’t have lasted more than 2 minutes and wow… what an impression it made.
What’s more is that before she came to my table, she was chatting it up with another table that had a mom, a dad, and a newborn baby. And while they were chatting I overheard the mom say, “Yeah, it’s her birthday today and we wanted to bring her in to see you! …Can you believe it has already been a year?”
Now, I don’t know if they *actually* know each other outside of the restaurant or not, but I like to think she started a light conversation with them a year-ish ago and they, too, were impressed and kept coming back as a result…
This is really all it takes to make a lasting impression…
A little initiative… A good intention… and a genuine interest…
The rest… surely enough… tends to take care of itself.