Panera Enlists Summer’s Hottest TV Star—And Most Controversial Love Triangle—for Ad Fans Call ‘Genius Marketing’ originally appeared on Parade.
The summer we all went to Panera.
The fast casual restaurant chain’s latest ad is garnering plenty of buzz for casting The Summer I Turned Pretty actor Christopher Briney, essentially revealing that they’re “Team Conrad.”
Briney plays Conrad Fischer on the Prime Video series, which finds his character and his brother, Jeremiah (played by Gavin Casalegno), in a love triangle with protagonist Belly (Lola Tung).
The ad plays into the love triangle, as the actor broodingly states, “I don’t know what to do, I’m torn between two things.”
“I can listen to my gut and do what I know is right, or I could follow my heart and let the chips fall where they may,” he continues, adding, “but it’s hard, you know, knowing what you should do and what you want to do, very different things.”
He then stares into the camera and emotionally declares, “I just wish it didn’t have to be like this.”
The camera then pans out to reveal Briney at a Panera, with the worker awkwardly asking, “So, are you ready to order?”
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A post shared by Panera Bread (@panerabread)
That, however, doesn’t break Briney out of his melancholic pondering, as he declares, “I know the right thing to do is just get a salad, but I will always love sandwiches.”
“I grew up eating them,” he explains—a line that tickled many fans as it called back to Conrad’s childhood with Belly, with one fan noting, “The “I grew up eating them” was so perfect.”
The worker then assures, “You know you can have both, Chris,” which stuns the actor as he questions, “I can?”
Briney’s informed that it’s part of the brand’s “You Pick 2” deal, with the worker adding, “It’s kind of our thing,” as Briney clarifies, “So you’re saying no one has to make an agonizing decision between two things they really care about?”
“It’s not that deep… It’s just a salad and a sandwich,” the worker states, as Briney exclaims, “I’ll take it, the You Pick Two.”
With The Summer I Turned Pretty, the young adult romance novel trilogy written by Jenny Han, currently airing its final season with weekly episode drops, fans immediately made it known that Panera was brilliant for capitalizing on the viral moment.
“And this is the kind of commercial we will watch 👏” one wrote, as another stated, “That’s the best commercial” and a third echoed, “BEST AD ON EARTH💁🏻♀️👏👏”
“GENIUS MARKETING, GIVE WHOEVER THOUGHT OF THIS A RAISE!!!!” another commented noted, with someone else underscoring, “marketing team needs a raise asap.”
“See Conrad KNOWS his sandwiches 😏” someone else mused, with others stating, “PANERA I KNEW I LOVED YOU FOR A REASON” and “Poor Connie still torturing himself between decisions.”
“Sir this is a Panera 😂” someone else joked.
Panera isn’t the only brand to choose a side in the heated love triangle, as Dunkin previously launched two new Refreshers as part of a special campaign starring Casalegno, both of which serve “peak summer vibes,” according to the brand.
Delta also tapped in with an Instagram post revealing the “seats they’d assign the boys,” with Conrad in first class and Jeremiah in the lavatory, as the airline captioned, “but we aren’t taking sides… 👀”
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A post shared by Delta Air Lines (@delta)
The Buffalo Bills’ NFL team even commented, “So we agree….,” revealing their stance on the issue.
Related: Dunkin’ Taps Hollywood’s Biggest Heartthrobs for Launch of Craveable New Meal Deal
Panera Enlists Summer’s Hottest TV Star—And Most Controversial Love Triangle—for Ad Fans Call ‘Genius Marketing’ first appeared on Parade on Aug 8, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 8, 2025, where it first appeared.
