Romano's Macaroni Grill is thinking ahead

On a visit Saturday night to our local Romano's Macaroni Grill, we saw two pairs of eyeglasses sitting on a table behind the podium.

"Wow," we said, chuckling, "forgetfulness must be catching."

"No," the greeter said, "we keep them for people who forget their glasses."

Did you hear our palms slapping our foreheads?

That's thinking ahead, Macaroni Grill marketers.

But that wasn't all.

Your sneaky ploy — offering us a complimentary taste of Chianti — worked to perfection.

A couple of sips and we were hooked, no matter what we'd planned to do when we sat down to study the menu.

These people are dangerous ... in a good way.

Savvy marketers. Gotta love 'em.

Buon appetito!