When the writers walked

In the end, the deal was too good to reject. The economics just made sense. Why pay $6.99 for a Bacon Turkey Bravo sandwich, when only 50 cents more could get you half a Bacon Turkey Bravo, plus your choice of soup or salad? Of all the watershed moments during the strike, including Bring Your Dog to Picket Day, none was as significant as the day we discovered Panera Bread’s You Pick Two.

Because of its proximity to our picketing site and the siren-song lure of free Wi-Fi, Panera had become our office, where we met daily to work on our blog, https://https:/ www.millerandgreen.blogspot.com “> www.millerandgreen.blogspot.com . It wasn’t perfect. The electrical outlets were few, the menu carb-heavy, the music smooth jazz. Yet there we sat, as the specialty bagels turned from Thanksgiving’s cranberry walnut to Christmas’ cinnamon crunch, to a mocha-chip swirl whose connection to Groundhog Day is known only to CEO Ronald M. Shaich himself.

Over time we learned how early we had to arrive to snag a couch. We found out cashier Kristina was dating busboy Nathan. (Who saw that one coming?) We gained a grudging appreciation for the soprano sax.

And long after the harshness of strike life is a distant memory, we’ll fondly recall the proud voices of Panera employees, fresh loaves in hand. They’re shouting “Hot breaaad!” but what they’re really saying is, “You’re home, dear friends.”

Try the Orchard Harvest Salad. Oh, and we just found out: You can add chicken.