I've never understood the appeal of Panera Bread. Their food is always bland and flavorless, the restaurants look like a cookie cutter place from any boring restaurant chain you've visited in the last 20 years, and the way their food is served is less inspiring than Starbucks or even McDonalds for that matter. I've gone here a few times because it was the only place to grab a bite when I'm in the area with my wife and each time we walk away from there laughing at how overrated the chain is. Their breads are OK, they make decent muffins (just like anyone else) but that's about it. This morning my wife and I ordered two different breakfast sandwiches and two smoothies (total was around 15 bucks). The smoothies were OK but the sandwiches were a joke. They looked like someone sat on them and they didn't come with anything else. Again, it was like the pre-fab stuff they sell at Starbucks. The taste, totally bland...both of them.
Maybe I'm missing something and the big deal behind this place is overpriced, boring, bland food? At least the service was good and everyone there was very friendly. They get a 3 star instead of 2 for that. Everything else...meh.