Panera: The Better Starbucks

I spent the morning tracking down a Fed-Ex/Kinkos. Amazingly, but not surprisingly, there isn't one in Beaver County. This isn't anything new when you consider we just got our first Blockbuster and Starbucks about six months ago. Needless to say, I found the Kinkos (you can breathe now) and dropped off a PDF for the Trib. Afterwards, being the cheap bastard that I am, I went to Sheetz and used my gift card on an MTO... and then took that MTO over to Panera and ate it with a dollar cup of coffee (I don't particularly care for their sandwiches, but the chicken soup is good). It was while there that I realized that the Panera Bread Company is way better than Starbucks.

That is not to say that I hate Starbucks, because I don't. I admit they are a tad overpriced, but their coffee is great and their frappucinos are even greater! But when compared to this markedly quieter competitor, it just can't hold a candle.

First of all, the atmosphere is better. Starbucks has an okay setting, with the standard browns and muted oranges filling the room. They have some couches along with tables and chairs, and some jazz or something playing in the air. But every Starbucks I've been in (this doesn't count Barnes & Nobles cafe's, which aren't actually official Starbucks, they just serve Starbucks brand coffee) seems a little cramped. I think that's how they are able to get away with being everywhere. They're like little ants, crawling into the cracks of shopping plazas and downtown developments. If they were as large as a mattress showroom, people might start to notice.

Panera, however, are pretty large cafes. You could probably fit at least two Starbucks inside of one Panera. They are slightly brighter inside, but still have that warm earthy feeling that every coffee shop must have. I would even go as far to argue that Panera has more comfortable furniture, with booths, couches, tables and chairs, etc. A few times I have wandered into a the Panera in Oakland, before my screen writing class, and sat there for quite some time just reading and sipping a tasty beverage. They have enough room to have business meetings or small gatherings and no one is disturbing anyone. And did I mention that Panera has a huge counter for ordering stuff? And they usually stuff it with enough bread to kill Mussolini.

Panera has better coffee. I know what you are thinking: "But Panera is a bread shop... how can they have better coffee than a coffee shop?" Easy. It's cheaper and they give you free refills. And they have like five flavors sitting out, so you can try em all... over and over again. Really, to succeed as a coffee shop it is essential that you offer customers free refills. I don't even hang out in coffee shops that don't offer free refills. The lack of a free refill makes one want to throw coffee in the face of the cashier and say, "Can I have another?" Or is that just me?

But I digress... people don't hate Panera with a bitter passion, unlike Starbucks. Maybe it's because Panera doesn't represent "corporate America" (whatever that's all about), or perhaps because Panera isn't invading every last square block of available commercial space.

Finally, the kicker: Panera has free wireless internet. That's right, Panera does not try to make a dime off of what should be free to everyone. I read something once that talked about Panera's efforts to offer free internet to all of its customers. That's just great of them.. and of course it goes great with their free refills and good soup. I hate it when I go in to a fine establishment (like Starbucks or B&N) and find that you have to pay outlandish amounts of money to hop on the internet. It's a cheap trick and nothing but an open door of false hopes. Well not with Panera, someone who cares about the people that bring MTOs in from off the street.

And so I salute Panera for being awesome. Luckily for students in Greensburg colleges, a Panera just opened up nearby. It will be a nice alternative hang out to Barnes & Noble, even though it has less books.