Panera Bread Planning To Open Licking County Location

The Newark Advocate:

Panera Bread is coming to Licking County, but a spokesman couldn’t confirm exactly where Friday.

“We’re looking at so many locations down there. I don’t know the exact physical presence or space,” said Allen Ryan, with Warren-based Panera franchisee Covelli Enterprises. “I don’t even think there’s been a lease executed yet.”

The company, which owns more than 200 Panera restaurants, is planning to open a number of new restaurants in and around Columbus.

“Our belief is that there’s room for another 20 or 25 locations in central Ohio,” Ryan said. More.