Panera Bread is an upscale deli/restaurant where you are able sit in a booth to eat and enjoy your lunch break. You walk up to the menu like in any other fast food restaurant, and order what you'd like. They have an array of deli like sandwich meats which you can have on all kinds of exotic breads. You can also get soup in a bread bowl, or different types of salads.
The food is very good, although I feel it's a bit pricey. You can easily drop 10-12 bucks for lunch, which is a bit more than my typical deli sandwich of 5.50.
What makes Panera worth it, is that you can go with a friend or two, order lunch, grab a booth or outdoor table and sit for an hour or so talking. There is no waiter to rush you out, so you can just sit and chill. This is an advantage over most deli's where you wait in line and then go to your car to eat.
Panera also has a open light airy feeling to it..which is nice to break up your work day of sitting in a cubicle. Overall, not a bad choice to take your lunch every once in awhile.
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