Panera Bread: A Real Treat!
I was recently asked to write a review of a restaurant, and since Panera Bread is one of my favorites, that's the restaurant I chose!
Panera Bread is a bakery and cafe rolled into one. They make their own bread every night so it will be fresh for their customers every day! They also have a varied cafe menu featuring fresh salads, sandwiches, soups, and fruit.
Breads
Loaf bread, baguettes, bagels, pastries, muffins, desserts....
I counted 16 different types of bread on the Panera Bread menu, not counting their bagels, pastries, and desserts! These include Whole Grain, Ciabatta, Sesame Semolina, Focaccia, Sourdough, Asiago Cheese, and quite a few more choices!
My favorite? Tomato basil! It's a sourdough bread with a sweet crust. It's really good!
I also enjoy their whole grain baguettes. Sometime I'll have to try their Asiago Cheese bread too, as I've had their Asiago Cheese croutons before and they're fabulous!
But their bakery doesn't stop with just loaf bread and baguettes! They have freshly baked muffins, bagels, scones, sweet rolls, bear claws, French Croissants, mini bundt cakes, cookies, brownies, and pastries. All of these are on a large display. Tempting? You bet!
To find out more about Panera Bread's various types of breads, check out the following links:
Artisan and Speciality Breads
Bagels and Spreads
Pastries and Sweets
Sandwiches and Panini
Panera Bread has a variety of sandwiches and hot panini. Examples of the sandwiches include: Asiago Roast Beef, Chipotle Chicken, and Chicken Caesar.
My favorite sandwich is the Mediterranean Veggie. It's made with that Tomato Basil bread I was telling you about earlier. Inside the Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich are peppers, feta cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, cucumbers and cilantro hummus.
Selection of salads and panini
Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich
My favorite sandwich is the Mediterranean Veggie. It's made with that Tomato Basil bread I was telling you about earlier. Inside the Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich are peppers, feta cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, cucumbers and cilantro hummus.
Selection of salads and panini
Salads and Soups
Strawberry Poppyseed Salad
Panera Bread also has several types of salads and soups. Their soup and salad menu has some year-round staples, as well as some seasonal items. Their salads include: Chopped Chicken Cobb, Grilled Chicken Caesar, Greek, fresh fruit cups and more.
In the summer, my favorite salad is their Strawberry Poppyseed Salad! In addition to romaine lettuce, the salad has a variety of types of fruits, pecans, and low fat poppyseed dressing. My favorite salad in the winter is their Greek Salad.
Several types of soups are also on the menu. These include Vegetarian Black Bean, Vegetarian Garden Vegetable, Vegetarian Summer Corn Chowder, Broccoli Cheddar, New England Clam Chowder, and several others. In the winter, my favorite soup is their Tomato Basil with Asiago Cheese Croutons. I don't have a favorite summer time soup, because in the summer I'm too busy eating their Strawberry Poppyseed salad!
Selection of soups
Selection of sandwiches.
You Pick Two
One of my favorite meals at Panera Bread is called, "You Pick Two." With this meal, you get to select any two of the following: a cup of soup, half a sandwich, or half of a salad. All meals also come with a side, which can be either a baguette, apple, or potato chips.
Other menu items?
I've mentioned most of the things that I have tried and particularly enjoyed, but I don't want to leave you with the impression that I've mentioned everything they have! Panera has many other menu items too.
For example, to the right you can see a Frozen Lemonade that my children and I had the delightful experience of devouring yesterday! So cold and sweet, with a delightful lemon flavor! Yum!!
Offical Panera Bread Website
A Common Meeting Place For Groups
Free Wi-Fi too!
Panera Bread is also a popular meeting place for small groups, from high school or college kids gathering for a study session, to adults meeting for business or fun. There is a meeting room available, but groups also often just push several tables together.
They have free wi-fi there as well, and when I go, I often see people sitting at a table with a cup of coffee and a bagel or two, typing away on their computers.
They have free wi-fi there as well, and when I go, I often see people sitting at a table with a cup of coffee and a bagel or two, typing away on their computers.
My Overall Impression
I do have two tiny complaints. One is that, at least in my area, they close at 8 in the evening. So many times we've wanted to go there after that, and had to go somewhere else instead.
My second tiny complaint is that because they bake all their own bread the night before, when they run out of a particular type, they won't be getting any more until the next day. Sometimes they run out of some of the more popular soups too. Okay, this isn't that big of a deal, as there are so many other things on the menu I enjoy too. Having freshly made breads, delicious homemade soups, and fresh, tasty salads is surely worth a little flexibility on my part!
My overall impression of Panera Bread? FANTASTIC! I love Panera Bread!!
My second tiny complaint is that because they bake all their own bread the night before, when they run out of a particular type, they won't be getting any more until the next day. Sometimes they run out of some of the more popular soups too. Okay, this isn't that big of a deal, as there are so many other things on the menu I enjoy too. Having freshly made breads, delicious homemade soups, and fresh, tasty salads is surely worth a little flexibility on my part!
My overall impression of Panera Bread? FANTASTIC! I love Panera Bread!!
Panera Bread Cookbook
The Panera Bread Cookbook: Breadmaking Essentials and Recipes from America's Favorite Bakery-Cafe
Amazon Price: $12.89 (as of 12/17/2009)
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Thanks for visiting!
Have you ever been to Panera Bread?
If so, what's your favorite menu item?
You do NOT have to be a member of Squidoo to leave a message here.
I'd love to here from you!
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- louiswery louiswery Dec 5, 2009 @ 2:53 pm
- I love Panera Bread. I've tried several locations in Florida. Your photos make me want to stop by Panera soon!
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- kiwisoutback kiwisoutback Nov 6, 2009 @ 12:11 pm
- Panera Bread has grown pretty quickly in New England, they're everywhere. They're also consistently good - but also have pretty long lines. Their paninis always make for a good lunch. Nice work!
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- Tiddledeewinks Tiddledeewinks Aug 6, 2009 @ 6:16 am
- Don't know if they have one in my area. I'd love to take my kids. I'll look it up. Thanks for the review (now I'm hungry).
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- OhMe OhMe Jul 24, 2009 @ 9:21 am
- I haven't eaten at a Panera Bread in awhile and actually had forgotten about how good it is so thank you for the heads up.
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- mbgphoto mbgphoto Jul 3, 2009 @ 4:09 pm
- I love Panera bread...only here in St. Louis it's called St. Louis Bread Company. The Strawberry Poppyseed Salad is my favorite. They have great chicken salad too and there soup bread bowls are fantastic! Great review...I'm featuring it on my Wine Country Gardens restaurant review lens.
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- bdkz bdkz Jul 3, 2009 @ 10:26 am
- I LOVE Panera!
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- LakeMom LakeMom Jul 2, 2009 @ 7:23 pm
- I love Panera also! I love their Asiago Bread/Bagels! I also love that they give back to the community! Great restaurant!
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- rms rms Jul 2, 2009 @ 7:40 am
- sounds delicious!
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- CreativeArtist CreativeArtist Jul 2, 2009 @ 7:13 am
- We have a Panera Bread near us and enjoy it too. : )
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- BevsPaper BevsPaper Jul 2, 2009 @ 6:06 am
- Nicely done!
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- ajgodinho ajgodinho Jul 2, 2009 @ 1:27 am
- Hi, this is a nice and honest review of Panera Bread. I've visited the place in Mississauga, ON and I liked the sandwich and soup I had (can't remember which one though). I think north of the border they stay opened a little later ; )
Oh yeah and I like their free wi-fi hot spots too!
Great review!
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