Panera Bread BAD

UPDATE:

SO SORRY PANERA......I gave a shameless plug for your free offer, and I was disappointed in what I got. Wanting to support my own recommendations, I visited the Panera Bread on Coleman Ave near Target and nicely asked about the free samples. I was given a piece of stale bagel and dixie-cup sized frozen lemonade. The rest of my lunch was $10, which included the new strawberry-poppyseed salad (okay, okay, the salad was very refreshing...a mix of sweet, sour, salty...and colorful!) and the chicken chipotle sandwich (also good, lots of melted cheese and a little spicy...a nice compliment to the salad). It was good, but still, should have been around $7.

To be fair, it was during a busy lunch hour, but hey, isn't that what where a sandwich place makes its $$? Good food, but your marketing ploy has backfired, at least on this prominent foosiast.

Check it out, y'all!! I always like to pass on offers for free promo food!

Panera Bread Bakery-Cafes Invite Customers to Enjoy the Warmth of Summer with Samples of its New Chopped Cobb Salad and Returning Summer Favorites

WHAT: On Thursday, June 11, 2009, San Jose-area Panera Bread bakery-cafes are inviting customers to celebrate the taste of summer with free samples of its new Chopped Cobb Salad, beloved Strawberry Poppyseed Salad and refreshing frozen drinks, all inspired by the season's freshest ingredients.

Panera's newest addition, the Chopped Cobb Salad, is a clear example of the bakery-cafe's approach to developing new menu items. This flavorful salad is a hybrid of a traditional Cobb and a Chopped salad. This salad features all-natural, antibiotic-free pepper-mustard chicken, Applewood-smoked bacon, crumbled Gorgonzola cheese, fresh tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs and crisp romaine lettuce tossed with an herb vinaigrette dressing.

Panera's beloved Strawberry Poppyseed Salad also returns to bakery-cafes this summer. Made with freshly-picked romaine lettuce, crunchy pecans, fat-free reduced sugar Poppyseed dressing and an assortment of fresh fruit, the Strawberry Poppyseed Salad is a refreshingly lighter choice for the warm weather months.Panera Bread has also developed several enticing frozen beverages for those looking to beat the summer heat. Samples of the Low-fat Strawberry Smoothie, Frozen Lemonade and Frozen Mocha will also be available.

WHO: Participating Panera Bread bakery-cafes

WHEN: Thursday, June 11, 2009 (6 a.m. to 9 p.m.).

WHERE: Panera Bread bakery-cafes in San Jose

-Tom W Tell