Panera Bread

I would like to give a shout out that staff were friendly and happy to be helpful, first. We used a self serve order placement kiosk. It was weird at the end, after paying because we didn’t receive a receipt. There were the little reservation beeper things that light up when your order is ready but none of them were offered or used for our order for some reason. We didn’t see anyone else but one person using one of them. We had to ask if our order actually went through. It did. The wait was not long. The seating area was a little messy. Things had not been cleaned up. Don’t know if someone must’ve left right before we sat down but it was a little unorganized. Not terrible. Not disgusting or too off putting. We had indicated on our order that we would like utensils but they did not come in our bag and I had to go ask for some. They were quick to grab them. The food was great! I had a spicy chicken sandwich and my partner had something with avocado in it. We both enjoyed them. We are just very healthy eaters and found the bread to be excessive. Ordered a vanilla latte. We are not used to too much sweetness and use milk alternatives mostly. We added almond milk. We didn’t think to ask for less sweetness in our drink and were not pleased with how sweet it was but the caffeine was welcomed. I guess the majority of people prefer things to be on the sweeter side anyways so our more developed palettes would be set up to be sorely disappointed by the majority of most food options in mainstream food service businesses. We had a gift card for Panera that needed to be used. Probably wouldn’t have thought to eat anywhere with less than organic fair trade options and less sugar, salt, fat, calories, msg, food coloring… etc. however, if we had a gift card and were in the area again I would return. I just wouldn’t spend my own money and go out of my way to eat there necessarily. If it was a choice between some other options, we would highly consider this place again.

This has nothing to do with the food at Panera, which I do enjoy. I come here frequently to get a coffee and pound away at my computer. Lately I can't help but notice the management of this particular location. She has a tough job. I know, because I own a business with 3 locations. This manager (I don't know her name), handles staff, customers, and the general operation of her location with efficiency and a smile. The employees seem happy, and she clearly has instilled in them that she is willing to dive in and work right along side them to keep the Panera Machine running smoothly.....And she seems to enjoy the challenge. She is excellent.

Laptop users BEWARE! There are only 3 plugs and they are strategically placed in more difficult to access areas, one of them not even at a table you can comfortably eat at as well. Other than that, this is the first location I've found that has new "Charged" teas which are loaded up on sugar and caffeine instead of the traditional ones (they seem to have gotten rid of both the Hibiscus and Prickly Pear as well). I'm hoping this is not the new movement of Panera - lots of sugar (even if it's a natural ingredient) is definitely not a good move in my opinion. They however do have soda water, which is a plus.

This is a good place with a good menu for a hearty meal. They have something that would be able to satisfy everyone from adults to kids. The sandwiches and salads would be my top option, but the soups play nice to make a hearty meal. They have a lot of items that are vegetable friendly. It can get a little pricey for a quick bite.