Q&As

You go to the restaurant. You eat the food. You like the food. You tell your friends. You go back to the restaurant. And if they know your name when you return, well, cheers, right?

Why then, do only seven of the top restaurant chains in the United States bother to have loyalty programs?

So how do you choose where you go out to dinner? Maybe you look for a cozy little bistro with a nice wine list? Or you ponder whether to nosh on upscale Italian or sushi?

If you’re dining with a small child, chance are your criteria runs more along the lines of “What toys do they have this week? Does Burger King still have ‘Superman Returns’ stuff? Which ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ thing does McDonald’s have? Is it the sword? He really wants the sword. Wendy’s has what? Six Flags toys? What the heck are they, action figures of the bald dancing guy?”

In a scant six months, Burger King’s television commercials have gone from the sublime to the ridiculous.

Carnivores like a good Web site just as much as the next herbivore. So, this month we decided to cut into a few of the numerous steakhouse pages on the Internet menu.

Gift giving is about to become a little more personal thanks to a new breed of gift cards and pre-paid cards that taps the appeal of celebrities.

Hilton Hotels and Discovery Kids Channel have partnered for a new promotion to satisfy the pickiest consumer—kids. The hotel chain and the cable TV network are giving its youngest guests special treatment with a promotion that doles out a summer vacation package filled with goodies.

Marshall Field’s shoppers may be losing their stores, but they won’t lose their frequent-shopper perks.

Disney characters are adding a little magic to grocery store shelves under a new deal to launch a line of branded products at Kroger stores.

Toyota Motor Sales USA is reaching consumers through events and video games as part of a new marketing effort to boost its latest subcompact vehicle, the 2007 Yaris.

Hotels.com is out with a host of incentives to entice travelers to book hotel rooms through its services.