Panes Bread Cafe. Sigh.  How I love Panes Bread Cafe.

First of all, it’s a cafe for BREAD.  Who doesn’t love a whole cafe dedicated to carbolicious delights?  Second, it’s literally a 2 minute walk from my apartment.  Third, they decorate for every holiday and Lord knows I love me some holiday spirit.

Panes makes all their bread on the premise and in addition to the best sandwiches on the planet, their salads are great and their carrot cake is to die for.  As is the white chocolate rice pudding and the monster cookies (see sign in photo).  And the cream puffs.  My favorite is the “Turkey, Turkey” –turkey, roasted red pepper, avocado and spicy mayonaise on a tomato bun that is just unbelievably fresh.  Once, I had to wait for the tomato bread to get out of the oven to make my sandwich.  I didn’t mind.

Ryan and I got lunch at Panes today for the second time in the last week and have been going there since July so I thought it was time for a mention.  It’s so homey inside, truly the go-to lunch spot in the neighborhood so it’s kinda like a Lakeview watering hole.  I listened to a fascinating convo between 2 30-something women about Facebook (“why do the 20-something girls at work disguise their names and untag pictures on facebook?!  I don’t care about my privacy, it’s just facebook!”) and another duo discussing a bad date from the night before, which really did sound awful.  Did I mention this little place doesn’t take credit cards?  Although kind of inconvenient when I don’t have cash on me, it proves that between the quality sandwiches and bread and reasonable prices ($5.50!) this place has serious staying power.  There’s no website either but if you want a dose of fresh, delicious, carb-loving heaven, the address is 3002 N. Sheffield.

High Five of the Day: We get home from Panes and Ryan immediately starts calling for Luna Bell, per usual.  Is she rolling on the corner of the living room rug like usual when she hears the key in the door?  Is she snuggled up on my new super soft, super cozy blanket?  Is she under the covers?  No.  Luna is laying on Ryan’s sweater, bypassing the blanket, pillows and all the other things she usually lays on.  What can I say?  LB is a luxury kitty and she likes cashmere.  I raised her right.