WPEC:
The clock said 6:29 am. The temperature hovered around a Florida-chilly 50 degrees, but already the line at the door was about 12 people deep.
“We love the food here and, you know, we’re local. We’ve been waiting for this place to open for months,” said Colleen Campbell, who was one of the first customers at the new Panera Bread in Royal Palm Beach.
Campbell was among the many who sampled the store’s “recipe” for success on Tuesday. Panera continues to expand throughout Palm Beach County, despite a struggling economy that has forced other restaurants to close and some customers to cut back on spending.
“The economy is what it is. I’m not going to take away from son,” Campbell added, as her son sipped hot cocoa and munched on a bagel.
The bakery-café said it was doing a special three-day promotion to not only help customers survive the economic squeeze but to also celebrate the store’s opening. Read more.