Ever heard of Dewey’s Pizza? Me either until I moved to Cincy. I’ve eaten there now about a dozen times and it’s really great. The atmosphere, food and drinks are really good. But, what make Dewey’s GREAT is their service.

It only took me a couple of times to notice that every server in the restaurant came by our table at least once and then our regular server came by in between. I would say we never went more than a couple of minutes without someone checking up on us. I know, I know…I don’t like servers coming over too much either. But, here’s the weirdness of it all — none of the server ever said anything to us. They simply brought refills if we needed them and picked up plates when we finished. I kept thinking, how does he know I’m drinking root beer?

Finally, I had enough and asked for the manager. She came over, and I asked,

“How does he know what I’m drinking when he’s not the one who took my drink order?”
She said, “The color of your straw.”
“What?”
” The color of your straw told him what you’re drinking. Every drink is color coded to tell us what you’re drinking.”
“Why did he get me the refill, doesn’t he have other tables to attend?”
“Yes, but each server must check 2-3 other tables before they attend their own. It’s a team thing.”
“What?”
Yeah. Each server must check 2-3 other tables before they attend their own. Keeps everybody happy.”

Then, it hits me. What if the greeter and hospitality team at my church took the team approach? It would revolutionize how friendly and service oriented we are. What if we could adopt the “service culture” of Dewey’s Pizza at my church? Wow!

I checked the Dewey’s Pizza web site and read a little about the company. Under the “Culture” link I found one of the core beliefs founder Andrew DeWitt learned is that service matters. Here is their vision statement:

Dewey’s Pizza: bringing together warm, caring, intelligent people who love to serve.

You will also find Dewey’s story on the site. I love the way it reads in the first person. It’s personal and straight-forward, kinda like you’re having a conversation with the guy.

I hope this challenges you to take a look at the commitment to service you and your people have in your church. Isn’t funny what you can learn, even in a pizza joint.