Most of those who watch television news programs have probably seen a “kicker,” even if they aren’t entirely familiar with the term. A kicker is a story generally shown at the end of a broadcast that has a cute or quirky angle to it: the Girl Scouts raising money for a good cause, a neighborhood dog that saved its owner by somehow managing to dial 911, a woman who gave birth to triplets while riding a bicycle. The idea behind a kicker is to remind viewers that not all news is bad – and that some of it, in fact, can actually bring a smile to one’s face.

Banker & Tradesman decided to try its hand at an editorial “kicker” after learning last week that the city of Boston now has a place called Au Bon Pain Way. Formerly known as Bollard Way, the street in the Boston Marine Industrial Park has been renamed after the chain of cafes known around the world for its coffee, sandwiches and baked goods.

Initially we thought, what’s next? McDonald’s Street? Burger King Boulevard? But there is a bit of local history to this story. Au Bon Pain opened its very first cafe at Boston’s Faneuil Hall in 1978, one of the first businesses to settle into the newly revitalized marketplace. And today, the business – which has 3,500 employees nationwide and 225 locations in the United States and abroad – maintains its international headquarters in the Hub. For more than a quarter-century, it has employed hundreds of Bostonians in a wide range of positions.

Among those on hand for the unveiling of Au Bon Pain Way were Boston Redevelopment Authority Director Mark Maloney, Mayor Thomas Menino and, of course, Au Bon Pain President and Chief Executive Officer Frank Guidara. If solid, local corporate good citizenship doesn’t merit that kind of attention, we don’t know what does. Congratulations, Au Bon Pain. We really got a kick writing about this.