Panera Bread

I know Panera is a chain… Etc etc but I think it’s great.
Panera has healthy options and seasonal favorites and seasonal items and so many great things… Such as:
* Free wifi.
* Reasonable pricing.
* Plethora of seats.
* Endless refills of soft drinks, tea, and coffee for customers to utilize with a purchase of the drink.
* Rewards for Panera card members
I mean who… Find me a college/​graduate student who wouldn’t appreciate this!
Currently I’m loving:
+ THAI CHICKEN NOODLE SALAD: I can always pack it togo and eat it later and it still tastes delicious. I love the sauce and the white chicken meat. The spinach also adds a nice crunch to this dish. I’m pretty sure this is seasonal so hurry and try it before they take it away!!!
+ ACAI BERRY TEA: has always been my favorite and will always be. It is so refreshing and not sweet! Try it out!
***also during the summer, it’s nice to sit outside OR sit inside where it’s nicely air conditioned.
Don’t judge a book by its cover, try Panera out. You’ll appreciate the hours as well (they are open late)!

Very convenient to where I live and fair prices for healthier food. Service isn’t always spectacular. Sometimes the people ringing you up are unprofessional or rude in a way. But overall I’m happy because the food is very consistent and they always give you a lot of bread if you ask for a baguette instead of an apple!
Furthermore, it’s a great place to stay for a while and study – they provide free wifi but are clear when you log on that it might be restricted to 30mins at peak times. They always have plenty of seating when I go.
It’s surrounded by other quick-​eat options like chipotle but provides a lot of variety so it suits people who might not know what they want to eat until they see options or groups of people who have varying tastes.

This is the worst Panera. I ordered and paid for my food. I waited a few minutes before I was told what I ordered was out of stock at 6 p.m. (4 hours before close). So I got a full size Greek salad and it was just awful. Barely came with feta cheese, and it was like scraps of lettuce. I will not be returning to this Panera ever again.

The worst I have ever been to. The cashier was obviously sick. She coughed all over the place. Was complaining the whole time (all of them were). No customer service at all. The soda machine gave me 90% foam and flat soda. Only getting 2 stars because the food was good. Probably because it’s regulated. The whole place was messy. They obviously couldn’t handle it.

Noooooo Panera WHYYYYY.
The service was so bad I’m so upset!!!
My friend and I both ordered the same avocado BLT and they both came out SOGGY and stuck to the napkin it they were on. We didn’t know how to eat them because they were just so soggy and disgusting.
But before that…
They blamed ME for the missing order. I was waiting for over 20 mins and they saw me STANDING THERE waiting for my sandwich and asked me if I came to the wrong Panera to pick up my sandwich.
No, I did not order a pickup. And why would I go to the wrong Panera? O_​o
And when I asked them to please make me mine after waiting all this time, one of the guys blamed it on ME that my friend and I ordered the same sandwich. What?!?
I feel like one of the number one rules in food establishments is to never BLAME your customers.
Cmon Panera– get it together.
Please :(

Service was terrible, person at the register order wrong food item, no decaf, poor customer service, be warned

Wow-that’s about all I can say about this visit to Panera. But since you’re pressing me, I will expand…
First, upon entering the restaurant, my order was taken by the most friendly cashier ever, Josh. Honestly, this guy should be CEO of Panera he was so excited to be working there. After that great experience, I went to the pick-​up counter and I witnessed an overworked team member busting out soups and sandwiches like there was no tomorrow.
In an exemplary display of servant leadership, the General Manager of the store, Josh Brown jumped into the production line. By rolling up his sleeves he demonstrated the immense value line service employees offer to the customer’s experience. This is one committed team. My only complaint is that my friend’s Quinoa bowl was definitely lacking in substance. Don’t jip us on the pour Josh!

My friends and I stopped by for a quick meal before an event at Agganis. This was convenient as it was right across the street.
I ordered a Frontega Chicken Panini (smoked pulled chicken, mozzarella, tomatoes, red onions, basil, chipotle mayo) as I had heard good things. Blegh – I was misinformed. There wasn’t any basil on the sandwich that I could tell, and the whole thing was a bland beige color (even the tomatoes seemed dull). The flavor of the mayo, onions, and chicken together was pretty unpleasant, and I ended up taking most things out and just eating the bread, tomatoes, and melted cheese. The bread was fine.
For the price, it’s a small sandwich and isn’t a particularly good value. I’d definitely never order the Frontega again.
Service was fine, and on the bright side, I bought a double fudge brownie (chocolate chunks and chocolate icing) which was delicious (but overpriced).

I have a love-​hate relationship with this Panera location. I eat here at least three times a week (I know, I know) so I have a lot of feelings.
Pros: The dine-​in experience. The staff are usually great during the week, especially the people who work early morning and whoever the manager is during the workday lunch rush (it’s more of a hit or miss situation during the weekend) and when you order to eat in the restaurant, the food is well-​presented and accurate. They renovated relatively recently, and the seating is ample and comfortable. A fake fireplace on the wall (it might actually be a tv screen that plays a video of a fire? Not clear) completes the look.
Cons: The take-​out experience. I usually do rapid pick-​up, which is super convenient. I feel irrationally important when I walk past the long line to the pick-​up counter. However, most of the time there is something wrong with my order. A small sampling of recent bummers:
— Twice, my rapid pickup order just never went through even though I received an email saying my credit card was charged, so I waited far longer than if I had waited in store. Inevitably, my order is then rushed together and the bread forgotten
— Ordered an apple; it came with a wiry black hair tangled around the stem
— Ordered a Cesar salad; when I opened the box, it was literally just box of romaine lettuce. Yum.
— Ordered fuji apple chicken salad; the cheese was left off and I got the wrong dressing.
— Ordered a soup for rapid pickup — waited for 15 minutes before asking about my order. Turns out they were out of the soup I ordered, so they just didn’t fulfill my order?
— My review today is precipitated by my rapid pickup order never showing up and, you guessed it … no bread.
Despite these disappointments I’ll keep coming back because I like carbs. I’m just kind of bummed I didn’t get any today.

(((ZERO STARS)))Ok I ordered my food with the young lady at the cash wrap, nothing exciting but then the most DISTURBING DISGUSTING thing happened, as I’m putting my vibrating thing away with the others the lady hands me a sandwich with a long noticeable black hair on the bread it’s is just laying on the top, I can see it she can see it… Then I said excuse me but there is a hair on this… The manager comes over and takes the plate off the counter (mind you I didn’t move the plate take the plate the hair was that noticeable) the manger doesn’t say anything to me no apologies NO NOTHING. But she continues the conversation that she was originally having with her employees. with that I politely ask for refund because there was no type of customer service. The manager did not do her job by apologizing or anything this is your establishment and you’re supposed to manage this establishment. Even on the receipt it says accuracy matters if your order is not right please let the manager know I did that and nothing came from it. Once we get back to the cash wrap she does not look me in my eyes still does not apologize to me hand me the money ($ 8.34 only for the sandwich when my original total was $ 12.54 here is another place where she could of said I’m so sorry I well give you a full refund of everything sorry for the inconvenience… But still no words came out her mouth) and then the originally employee that took my order asked the manager what happened I could hear all of this she asked what happened and the manager goes over to her and said there was a piece of hair on the bread and left it at that. but she couldn’t talk to me couldn’t apologize to me and couldn’t see if there’s anything that she can do for me there was nothing that she says she didn’t even look me in my eyes I will never be returning to that Panera Bread ever again matter of fact I’m not going to any Panera Bread and I hope that others don’t either because if the company allows their managers to do things like this what else are you eating what else are you ingest into your body it’s not good. They just don’t care. And damn I really like them but I don’t like hair as a topping.

Panera is always good in my opinion and this one is no different. Great menu, selections, friendly staff, large seating area, outdoor seating area and soothing music always.
I’m never disappointed here and the food comes out really quickly considering it’s usually just a sandwich or salad they have to throw together. It’s good to go for a quick pit stop or to catch up with your friends or even to study!
I see a lot of BU students come by during lunch time to grab a quickie and the line can get a bit long sometimes. It moves fast though so don’t be discouraged!

Great black bean soup. More staff needed to bus tables, maintain cleanliness, and uphold standards. ‘Chef’ gave me sliced apples with a long hair on them.

What is it with this place. I thought one or two bad instances was an anomaly. This is not the case. The Manager On Duty berated his employees for giving me a cup. Customer service at it’s worst. I have had up and down experiences with Panera but this location takes the cake when it comes to best place to loose customers.
There are several establishments near this place that are better and have a better understanding that the customer keeps you employed.

Worst panera I’ve been too. The customer service is horrible. I myself deal with customers on the daily basis and to be faced with very rude cashiers who makes me feel like I’m wasting their time is really insulting.

This is about the Coolidge Corner Branch as an exemplar in a trend in a Company where the owner, most likely a parvenu wants to become filthy rich and is worried about the pound of flesh he extracts from his customers. Afraid that a student using their spacious Coolidge Corner location for too long a time, the restrict wireless access to ½ hour during the daytime during the week. It would be better if they provided none.
Even worse, they are so cheap and so afraid that somebody off the street might need a bathroom that they code the toilets with numbers which you have to key into from your receipt. The idea of offering free services in Coolidge Corner where is most needed is anathema to the greedy owner. Interestingly enough outside Brookline where their branch has the highest demand they do not enforce such rules because like myself people would likely boycott the place. Its only in Brookline where the demand is so high that they can afford to show their greedy heartless nature.
The food is mediocre nothing special, the staff are polite and Professional. If you want to support a merchant that would make skinflint merchants like Shylock proud then Panera is your place.

IN BRIEF: Worst Panera I’ve ever been to, which says a lot considering I used to work at one of the worst Paneras out there. Food takes way too long and they screw up orders regularly, good luck getting your drink order correct, there are always grounds in the hot coffee, BUT it’s generally very clean. Go somewhere else if you want a good sandwich. if you really want to know my gripes, read on.
The cashiers are fine. Pam, the older woman there in the mornings, is great. The older pudgier manager with the glasses is cool with me, but i have heard some other folks gripe about him. In general, my cashiering experiences have always been a-​ok.
Drink prep: HORRIBLE. I’m sorry, why does it take 12 minutes to get a smoothie? What’s worse, my coworker often orders double espresso (that’s two shots of espresso) and has to wait the same ridiculous 5 – 15 minutes to get her order. Yesterday, she stood by watching a single line prep dude do nothing and then tell her he didn’t know how to use the espresso machine. Then, when someone did know how to, they gave her a single shot. I have never seen her get her double shot on the first try, they ALWAYS screw it up. And apparently no one is trained on the difference between a latte and a mocha.
Food prep: ABYSMAL. I know the paninis are prepped way ahead of time so you’ve got no excuse for it to be messed up even if it’s busy. Why do you guys make the salad portions so inconsistent? How do you always give me the wrong cream cheese with my bagel? Why the ‘tude when I ask you dudes for lemons and butter? I know you’re busy but that’s what I do my darnedest to be polite. I know the job sucks but don’t take it out on me.
Atmosphere: Generally surprisingly clean. The bathroom is often a mess but whatever.
In the even that any management reads these, clean up your act. I pass by this Panera on a daily basis to get a crappier bagel farther away (Dunkin Donuts) or stand in a waaaay longer line down the street (Starbucks).

Convenience is key. While I was hoping to get into Otto it was packed and I needed to get across the street for a show. We jumped into Panera and were able to get our food quickly and find a table. Food was fresh, tasty, and affordable. A lot of healthy options for fast food is always a bonus. I would definitely come back if in the area and in need of a quick bite (and can’t get in to Otto.).

Intensely crowded at lunch time with lots of traffic from BU students and office workers in the area. I will confess that I am a bit addicted to their creamy tomato soup with those delightfully large croutons, but every time I visit this location I am super disappointed with the long wait time. Not sure if they need to hire more staff or just speed up the efficiency of their food prep, but I would not recommend stopping in here for «a quick bite». On the plus side, they do have a nice outdoor patio conducive to Comm Ave people watching.

What is it about people who can’t stand still in line or while waiting, or while filling up their coffee cups? Students apparently under caffeinated or shitfaced at 3pm (?!) have made my stops here like an awkward obstacle course.
I’m a huge sucker for anything in a bread bowl, so I will probably come in here a few more times, and be better prepared.
The prices are decent, the place is clean. You can get in and get out fairly quickly.

Well hello ridiculously overwhelming mustard sauce on my hot turkey and bacon panini! I knew you were coming but I didn’t expect to taste only you and nothing else!
Still, you did the job of satisfying my growling stomach for a couple of hours while I did some serious studying for the LSAT. A few hours later I indulged in a hot coffee and a side of your French baguette, which I remember cost me $ 2.85. The panini rang in at $ 8(ish) and came with a baguette side (kinda silly with a sandwich, but okay).
Kudos to letting us study (unharassed) in the corner for many, many hours though it would have been nice if your WiFi didn’t try to fizzle out every couple of hours…