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| - I eat at Panera pretty often as I work nearby (and sometimes I'm too lazy to walk the extra block to the other restaurants). (the first step is to admit your laziness)
For a long time I thought Panera was overpriced, but have come to like it enough that the price points don't bother me so much. The portions are always sizable but not ridiculously big. I think the quality of the food is decent. Nothing is fried here and there's ton of good tasting, healthy, fast menu items.
Menu winners (for me): sausage, egg and cheese ciabatta breakfast sandwich, turkey and avocado BLT, mac and cheese, tomato and fresh mozzarella panini, and chicken cobb salad.
Menu losers (for me): classic grilled cheese, pasta with basil pesto (arrived in an enormous pool of olive oil/grease that unsuccessfully tried to mop up with napkins - was really gross)
They added a fontina grilled cheese to the menu recently that is incredibly rich but delicious. I'd have a hard time eating a full sandwich without having to call my therapist because of the guilt over the amount of fat I ingested and feeling gross from the amount of cheese. A half with a small salad is perfect.
I recently had the chicken sorrentino pasta which consists of ravioli, light amount of tomato sauce, fresh spinach, and smoked chicken and some parmesan, I think. It was really, really fantastic. One of the best items I've had there. Not too heavy and had LOTS of flavor.
My problem with Panera is consistency with food preparation. With the exception of soup or mac and cheese, each time I get something it's different than the time before. For example: I've ordered the tomato mozz panini most often. I've seen basil on the sandwich about 25% of the time I've ordered it. The pesto will either be slathered on super heavy or almost non-existent. Sometimes there's a TON of sun-dried tomatoes and one or two sad tiny slices of regular tomatoes, and same with the fresh mozz. They need to get that shit together, man.
At this location, there's tons of seating. You have the option of metered street parking or using a garage behind the building. I believe that they'll waive the fee for 1 hour of parking when you present your Panera receipt. They also have tables outside near the Detroit Ave. entrance. Lots of large windows in this space and lots of good people watching. Many interesting folks creepin around this area at any given time.
The place is always clean. The staff at the registers are friendly and polite. Out of fifty orders, I'd estimate there's been one mistake on an order.
The coffee is kept fresh and tastes good. The other coffee drinks (chai, latte, etc.) are not good.
Most importantly: They keep the chocolate chip cookies on a warming tray so they're always warm as if they're fresh out of the oven. "Thanks a lot, Panera! I curse thee" I yell when I get off my scale each morning. Your damn cookies are too good and I can't stop with the cookies. I wish your oven/cookie warmer would break for a few months so I can have a reprieve. (or maybe you can put me on cookie probation or something? Let me know, thanks.)
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