Meet my 2nd fav Panera, Westerville South

In an attempt to knock out another Panera review, I visited the Westerville Panera on S. State St. This was not my first visit to this one, but it was my first "official" visit. If you haven't been to this Panera, I recommend that you put it on your list. This is a great place to go and relax. The minute you walk into this Panera, you feel relaxed. The layout is very small, but they use the space quite well. Despite the lack of a community room, I rank this Panera as my #2 favorite of all Paneras I have been...so far. The Lakewood Panera is my #1...so far.

Stats on the visit:
Date: 1.16.2011
Time of day: 10 AM
Items ordered: Whole wheat bagel w/cream cheese and an unsweet tea of course.

The evidence of the $2.87 bill.

So I cashed in on the My Panera freebie of a bagel. So that means the only thing I paid for this visit was a drink and cream cheese. Well, you can imagine the shock in my eyes when the associate told me the total due was $2.87. That just seems like a lot...maybe I am cheap. But I guess the atmosphere made up for the cost.

Random notes:

• I brought an issue of Bloomberg's Business Week and sat in a nice corner area by the windows.
• Sitting a couple of tables behind me in front of the fireplace was an older lady, probably in her 70s. She was wearing a white beret style toboggan.  A couple of tables from her were 2 older gentlemen, one was wearing an OSU sweatshirt the other a Steelers.
• It seemed like the two tables were regulars and they knew eachother. The 2 men were joking with the lady about her hat. In another conversation, she talked about how she was moving to Findlay to be closer to her son.
• They also had the patio tables out...maybe it's a storage issue.

The big "REVEAL"...

In a previous post, "My Panera Card" I mentioned the fact that Panera sent me an email on my birthday with news that I had earned a special reward on "My Panera" card...just because I turned another year older!

Anxious to see what the big surprise could be, I asked the cashier at the Bethel Road Panera what rewards I had earned. To my surprise, I had earned 1 free bagel, and 1 free pastry! Not bad for doing nothing.

I decided not to cash in on my rewards that day, and instead saved it for another day. Turns out I have until February 17 to use the rewards. Based on my obsessive visits to Panera, that shouldn't be too difficult.

What bagel will I choose? Asiago cheese? Jalepeno cheese? Everything? Or will I be in a healthy mood and go for the whole wheat? It will be a game time decision.

As far as the pastry goes, I will probably donate that one to whomever is willing to go on my next Panera outing with me. So for all my friends and family out there: In addition to my vast conversational skills and overall friendly demeanor, a trip to Panera with me could land you a free danish!