Very popular Canadian coffee & doughnut chain blocks glbt news sites

[Gee Whillickers]

Some of you may know how ridiculously popular Tim Hortons is in Canada. Known everywhere as simply "Timmys" and the go to spot for a reasonable lunch, stale dougnuts and mediocre coffee, the chain appears to be blocking certain GLBT news sites on its free public Wi-Fi.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2013/07/19/bc-tim-hortons-wifi-dailyxtra-blocked.html

I have little doubt that the public backlash will have this problem rectified within the week. Timmys hates bad press.

[FreeThinker]

I've just checked and Panera Bread, a delightful chain of bakeries with wonderful pastries, breads, sandwiches and coffee, has locations not only across the US, but in Canada as well. And, Panera has free Wi-Fi which I use quite frequently as I enjoy a chocolate pastry and the relaxing jazz or classical music. Plus, they don't block Awesome Dude and are VERY liberal! They donate all their left over baked goods to local food banks. So, screw Timmy! Go to Panera!

And, of course, there is the ubiquitous Starbucks. Harrumph.

This is an unpaid endorsement for Panera Bread. I get nothing from this but the joy of spreading the word. For the location nearest you,.. click HERE!

(posted using Internet Explorer 10 because Chrome sucks and my Firefox doesn't like AD)

[Cole Parker]

Don't neglect Panera's Bearclaws.

C

[Merkin]

Panera, for the asking, will give you a little key-chain thingy that, once you register it online, they can scan and it will reward you with all sorts of nice benefits like free drinks and pastries. The bear claws are indeed the best, but their lemon-iced shortbread daisy cookies are nothing to turn your nose up at. On a more nutritious note, Panara always has a few undisclosed menu items that you have to know about to ask for, including a wonderful salad with hummus and nuts and berries, and another "mediterranean" salad (ask for it by name) that features olives, orange sections, chicken, and a nice olive oil dressing. One of my favorite lunch stops.
"

[Guest Dabeagle]

Those salads sound wonderful, James. I'm leaving meat behind me and those sound like appetizing temptations!

[Camy]

I'm rather miffed we don't have Panera - or drool bear claws - in the UK. Subway sucks.

[Guest Dabeagle]

Tim Horton's did an about face.

[Chris James]

Panera is a little expensive, but then they are not on the fast food trail. They bake onsite rather than drag their goodies in from some central bakery. I tend to go for the soups with a half sandwich, enjoy the quiet music and read a book when I am there. Now why did you have to mention the bear claws?

[dude]

Oh whoopee... Google tells me we have a Panera Bread in Palm Springs! I'll have to see if it's near a bus stop. Since my 'son' took my car away last night... I'm now dependent on the bus system, but it sounds like a worthwhile quest.

Mike

[Cole Parker]

Yes, it is a little expensive, but saying that can mislead. It is a little expensive for what you get, but not enough to discourage you unless you're on very tight budget, in which case you would be eating at home anyway. And do try the bear claws.

C

[Lugnutz]

I live in the sticks. Nothing is close. Coffee is the devil but little donuts are a before work breakfast.

[Camy]

I live in the sticks. Nothing is close. Coffee is the devil but little donuts are a before work breakfast.

Can't you send your Jeep to get coffee and donuts for you?

[Lugnutz]

Nah. It don't listen to me unless I throw parts at it.

[colinian]

I like Panera's bakery items, but their sandwiches and especially their soups have way too much salt. I don't like how salt tastes, so I'm sensitive to over-salted food. Then I took a look at the Panera nutrition list and there's enough sodium in their soups to take care of a full day's worth. Bad Panera!

Colin

[Chris James]

Then I took a look at the Panera nutrition list and there's enough sodium in their soups to take care of a full day's worth. Bad Panera!

Colin

I agree, and so now you know why I don't go there very often even though I like the food. Salt is added to everything these days and makes food unhealthy. I don't add salt to anything I eat at home. A few hundred years ago it was added as a preservative but why do they still use it? They have so many other chemical additives in food now, it boggles the mind and perhaps we don't want to know about all of it.

Perhaps I should just go to Panera for the bear claws...they don't put salt in those do they? They also make pretty good coffee so I could at least drown out the salty taste. Arrgh!

[FreeThinker]

I'm afraid I pushed this discussion away from the original topic, which was how Tim Horton's was blocking certain gay web sites on their free wi-fi. it seems they have now backtracked and the spokesperson for the company says the gay news site should never have been blocked and that it was a mistake. One has to ask, did they do so because they genuinely feel they made a mistake or because of the bad publicity? Having seen far too many cases of corporate backtracking, I have become quite cynical of professed reasons for corporations changing course. I spent too many years in the corporate world, lying to customers on orders of managers who were concerned only with quarterly results to get their personal performance bonuses. I have no faith in the honesty and integrity of almost any corporation. Adam Smith's invisible hand of the free market is more an up-raised middle finger to consumers. Tim Horton's responded to the pressure of the market, which was good and that is what is supposed to happen. Its their professed reason for doing so that makes me ask why they instituted the policy in the first place and simply adds to my cynicism.

[Cole Parker]

Except, I don't really care why Timmy's opened the windows to let in the light. They did, we all benefit from their doing so, and if their reasons were practical rather than political it doesn't much matter. Voices were heard in protest, and they responded.

And as to Chris's question, salt is added as a flavor enhancer. And since most of the population uses it at home, food would taste flat to too many if restaurants and fast food stores didn't add it as well. I agree with you and Colin in that they use too much. However, I can't do what you do, Chris, and add no salt at home. That means no salt on either eggs or potatoes or even pasta. I can't imagine that! They'd be near inedible.

C

[Chris James]

Why, Cole, I have a billion other spices in the cabinet to use on my eggs. Mrs. Dash's is a good salt substitute or even a sprinkling of curry powder or ginger. Spice up your life and leave the salt behind, it's so overrated. Everyone has a salt shaker as well, they don't need to add gross amounts of what we can do for ourselves. Do we really know what food tastes like, or is it just the salt?

Sorry, FT, we don't have a Horton's anywhere near us so my concerns on that level are baseless. However I am glad they changed the policy to keep their customers happy.

[Cole Parker]

I do use other spices. It's amazing how, by adding a little black pepper, you can reduce the salt significantly and not miss it.

But I still claim some foods need a little salt. You can spice up scrambled eggs however you want, but they still need salt, unless you so spice them up that they no longer taste like eggs. And a little salt in the water you boil your pasta in makes all the difference.

I don't use it to excess. But I do use a little.

C

[dude]

I don't use it to excess. But I do use a little.

C

But you don't inhale, right?

[Cole Parker]

Salt, Dude. Salt. We were talking about salt!

Jeez!

C

[Guest Dabeagle]

Have a friend in Canada that swears by Tim Horton's coffee. I tried it once while we were there and was unimpressed. I saw one in Buffalo, and it was in the same building with a drug testing center. I took a pic and sent it to my friend, now understanding the flavor.

Piss in a cup in one building, ....

[Cole Parker]

I think it's a niche sort of thing. I agree, the food and drinks are terribly unspectacular. Yet they certainly are popular. I guess there's a coziness built in with an unpretentious fast food joint begun by a washed up hockey player.

Only in Canada.

Oh, wait, Joe Namath started a bar in NYC, didn't he?

C