As a bleeding heart liberal (at least on most social topics), I love ideas like Panera's new pay what you can model store in an affulent St Louis suburb (link via the New York Times). I'm always hopeful about things like this because I'm hoping for the general goodness in humankind to win out, for people to not try and game the system for a free meal, and for people in general to subscribe to the golden rule and realize that life is a zero sum game. When you get something unfairly, that means somebody else has been wronged, even if it is a gigantic corporation.
So, I'm very happy to see, after one month of operation, the pay what you can store has been successful enough that they're opening up two more locations "within months", and the store is expected to start breaking even soon (link via Google News and the AP).
I love it. Hopefully, as I drive out to Boston, I can spare one meal to stop at this location and grab a quick lunch and check my email. I'm a big fan of Panera in general, though I do find that their sandwiches are a bit lacking, but their soups and salads are great. And the fact they're trying a relatively historically unsuccessful model for the greater good makes me want to eat there more often.
Plus they have free wireless internet, and I'll always be a big fan of any place where I can get online for free.
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