AVENTURA HOSPITAL BRINGS VARIETY AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION TO THEIR CAFETERIA WITH ITALIAN STYLE, FRESHLY BAKED PIZZA

When Sue started at Aventura Hospital as a new Director of Food and Nutrition, in February 2020, she was tasked with adding more crowd-pleasing variety to the hospital cafeteria's menu. While the hospital—which ranks in the top 5% for patient safety in the U.S.—had a pizza option already on the menu, Sue found the pizza lacking in quality.

"The pizza we had was not really … tasty. We'd always have to make it in advance, and pizza doesn't hold really well," Sue explained. They didn't have a professional pizza oven or a budget to buy one and had to bake pizza in a conventional oven—which led to a soggy crust that quickly became stale.

Sue wanted to find an option that was cost-effective, easy-to-manage, all-natural, and—most of all—delicious. Once Donna Italia called, Sue was more than ready for them to stop out. Not only could Donna Italia's plug-and-bake solution allow her to add quick, freshly baked options to the hospital cafeteria's menu, but the investment-free pizza solution made it risk-free for her to try.

After learning more about Donna Italia's pizza and space-saving pizza oven, Sue signed up for a monthly subscription plan that required no up-front investment. She quickly received her first batch of pizzas, as well as a free professional grade, table-top stone pizza oven that would allow her staff to serve hot, made-to-order pizza in just three minutes. What's more, she didn't have to hire new employees, which became increasingly important in the rush to implement social distancing when the COVID-19 pandemic hit just a short while later.

According to Sue, the free stone oven and the simplicity of the product are the best features of Donna Italia's pizza solution. It takes no time at all for her staff to make crowd-pleasing pizza with the perfect crust every time!

While cheese pizza is their most popular request, Donna Italia has allowed them to add customizable pies to their menu with a simple, ten-option topping bar that allows diners to add 3-4 toppings of their choice to their pizza at no additional cost.

Sue believes the subscription model helps make it easy and convenient. "The minimum subscription requirement is easily manageable, even during COVID-19. And the diners love it because it's something fresh that they can have right out of the oven!"

Even though hospital staff are still able to use delivery services like Uber Eats--and patients are limited to one guest at a time—the café has still seen an increase in activity in the middle of a pandemic, even with social distancing strictly enforced in the cafeteria. More importantly, the growth has come from word-of-mouth and customer satisfaction! Cafeteria diners are loving their new fresh-baked pizza option, and Sue is looking forward to what Donna Italia is going to offer her next.

"Donna Italia has helped us increased the variety in the cafeteria, and it's increased our sales. It's a great pizza, and it's easy to manage. We love it!"