If you’re trying to cut back on your carbohydrate intake, a quick-serve restaurant with the word “Bread” in its name probably isn’t one of your top choices for lunch. What if you knew that the chain Panera has a whole special menu for people like you, full of chicken, steak, hummus, and avocados, without a crumb of bread in sight? Only you probably don’t know, because the dishes are on a not-very-secret secret menu that Panera introduced last year. [More]
Why Panera's Pay-What-You-Can Restaurant Didn't Work As Well In Portland
By September 29, 2011
Panera Bread’s noble experiment in pay-what-you-want retail has been successful at its first two restaurants in St. Louis and Detroit, taking in about 80% of the retail price of the food they serve. They serve as shining reminders of the fundamental goodness of people. In the Midwest, anyway. Until recently, the third free-will restaurant in Portland, Oregon was faltering, not attracting enough paying customers and losing money. not taking in as much as Panera’s similar eateries. [More]
Surprisingly, Panera Bread's "Pay What You Can" Model Is Working
By May 18, 2011
Panera Bread has been trying out a donation-only “pay what you can” model at three locations for the past year, and says that it’s working. The chain says that 60% of people put in the full retail amount in the box, 20% put more in, and 20% put in less. Panera’s founder says it all works because “people are fundamentally good” but I’d like to see how well one of these stores located in an area where greed, theft, and self-interest above all is glamorized — like Wall Street. [More]
Ex-Panera Bread CEO Opens Commie Not-For-Profit Eatery
By May 20, 2010
What is a meal at Panera Bread worth to you? A former Panera location in a prosperous St. Louis suburb has reopened as “St. Louis Bread Company Cares,” a restaurant where customers can select a meal, then pay what they think the meal is worth–or as much as they can afford. If customers can’t afford to pay anything, they can volunteer to work there. A not-for-profit foundation runs the restaurant, which opened this week. [More]
Customer "Damn," Your Order Is Ready
By April 1, 2010
Dan’s name is Dan, but Panera seems to have heard differently, as evidenced by this receipt. “We all had a good laugh,” Damn, oh damn, I mean, Dan, writes. [More]
Panera Bread Customer Service Rises To The Occasion
By September 2, 2008
On 8/26/08 I stopped by my local Panera Bread [in Waterloo Iowa] after work to pick up dinner for my wife and I. We’ve always been very pleased with the level of service and quality of food we’ve received from Panera in the past. Last night however was a slightly different experience…
Panera Bread Burns Kansas City
By May 5, 2007
A deluge of baseball fans trying to collect free bagels has led Panera Bread to cancel a promotion with the Kansas City Royals. Under the promotion, ticket stubs from a home game in which the Royals won with thirteen or more hits could be redeemed for thirteen free Panera bagels.
