Panera Bread

Omg! What a dump!!! Went today at 2:30 (not lunch time) initially interested in catering for a brunch but since it was after 10:30 am i could not sample their soufflés. Uhhhh no sale here… then we decide to have a late lunch. I was invited to use their new fast lane kiosk that was SO convoluted and difficult I walked away and ordered from a human. When we went for a table we were stunned! It was such a disaster — such a mess that it looked like a frat party the day after. No clean tables and debris and garbage and food everywhere! Just terrible. We cleared our own table so we could sit and watched as an elderly man (80s) cleared a table, bussed it and then had to fight with the garbage that was overflowing!!! Yet up front, in addition to the manager were perhaps 4 or more staff. Appalling. Never again!!!

While my broccoli cheddar soup was delicious as always, the chicken caesar salad I ordered was less than decent. It was drenched in reflectively bland dressing and the random chunks of cheese scattered throughout were definitely not parmesan. While this is a good place to come and do homework, I definitely would suggest not getting the chicken caesar.

Very impressed with the speed and service of this Panera. Came in looking for a dozen bagels to bring to my office and was out in just under 10 minutes. Next time I’ll have to come on a Tuesday, as they have their bagel Tuesday for just $ 5.99 for a Baker’s dozen.

My husband & I go here once a week for coffee & a bagel. Their coffee is wonderful, staff friendly, and I have always found it clean. So happy they are in Highland!

I was greeted by a person behind the delivery desk named Ryan, He shouted my name and was very polite and asked if he could help with anything else. when I sat down I noticed my baguette was a little dry. I went back up to the counter and Ryan apologized for the quality and gave me two fresh baguettes in compensation. I just wanted to make sure he gets recognition for polite attitude and being so helpful. I usually just pass this store, but I will now come in from the fantastic customer satisfaction.
–Ashley

Absolutely the worst tasting coffee in the Twin Cities. It consistently has a highly acidic, almost rank, aftertaste. I’ve been coming here for the past two years, every weekend. The only reason I keep showing up is that it’s the only place that opens at 6am on Saturdays.

This is your average Panera-​not bad, but not «out of this world» either; just your standard fast food American café. I had the Fuji Apple Chicken Salad and the Autumn Squash soup as part of the «You Pick Two» combo. The salad was alright & the soup was delicious!
The cashier staff are very patient, pleasant & friendly! However, there is a woman (I didn’t catch her name, but she seemed to have had some sort of British accent) who is in charge of placing the food on the counter for customers to pick up and take back to their tables etc. when their buzzer goes off, and she was very snippy and rude to me. I was confused as to which plate was mine because the cashier accidentally labeled my order «to go» when it was supposed to be «dining in,» so I was trying to pick up a plate that had the same order as mine instead of taking the «to go» bag. Instead of clearly explaining that there had been a mix up and that my soup, salad and baguette were all in the «to go» bag, the rude woman kept snapping at me saying «No! That’s not yours!» It’s a shame how one sour apple can leave such a bitter taste even though she’s part of a team of such sweet coworkers.

I’ve only ever gotten food to go here. It’s a standard Panera. Good food, friendly staff, quick service. The parking lot can be a bit tricky later in the day, but they do have spots for people who are just picking up to go orders.

Panera’s fine. Not awesome, not awful. Its sort of a throw away but not in a bad way? The cinnamon crunch bagels are really delish. Their asiago turkey is good, and their chicken noodle soup is crazy salty, just how I like it. But its really expensive for what you get. Meh.

Yes. Yes. Yes. Your Asiago Cheese bagel is a knockout. Don’t ever change.

Visit No. 2 and still very un-​impressed. This time around, the restaurant was cleaner, but I was there at 6 a.m., so maybe it had just actually been cleaned.
Met up with a friend, who followed my order with «I’ll have the same as her but with a blueberry bagel.» And somehow he wound up with the same bagel I ordered (definitely NOT blueberry) and blueberry cream cheese instead of plain.
Seriously — attention to detail at this store is ridiculously lacking, and it shows in everything they do.
I think this is going to have to be relegated to the «only when I have to» restaurant category. It’s just not worth it.

I’m so glad we have an bagel alternative to Bruggers.
I was so sick of the rude staff at Bruggers, every time I would call them in the morning and ask for a couple dozen cut bagels, they would tell me they didn’t have time and that I should have called the day prior.
When I call Panera and ask for cut bagels they tell me they’ll be ready in 10 minutes.
The staff is kind and helpful. Their bagels bundles are comparable in price to Bruggers.
Their bagels are more like bread than real NYC bagels, but their bagel and cream cheese varieties are vast and tasty.

Wonderful hazel nut coffee but the manager Stacy was very rude the first time. I came in here.

Since I moved into my area about two years ago, I had wished that my neighborhood had Panera so I wouldn’t have to venture out to Roseville for one. Thanks to speaking to a friend of mine, I found out a couple weeks ago that a Panera had opened in the old Blockbuster location. So on my day off, I decided to check it out as I really want this location to work.
This Panera is well decorated, clean and bright, all things that I like when eating out. The dining area is rather small with most of the seating options being for 1 – 2 people. A group of 6 would have a hard time find a place to sit here.
I opted for the «You Pick Two» choice and got the Chipotle Chicken sandwich and Thai Chicken Salad. The Chipotle Chicken sandwich wasn’t quite as spicy as I had at other locations, but it was still good. My favorite part of my lunch was the new Thai Chicken Salad. The salad dressing had this great combination of sweet, tangy and acidity that complimented lettuce, red pepper, edamame. Overall, this salad had a good flavor profile and nice crunch to it.
The staff and service at this location was good. While I was eating, I did see the manager come around to people to see how they were enjoying their meal. Although, the manager didn’t ask me about my meal, I appreciate that he was making the effort to talk to some people to confirm how things were.

I ended up going in the side entrance, Cleveland Ave. It’s a large corner location. That’s where the bathrooms are located, so note that. I needed some bread and though it’s no real competition for Cecils, it’s not a bad place if you want to mix it up a little. I got a miche rye@ $ 7.69, basically to go with ham and cheese sandwiches. The loaves are huge, and I bet it’s as good as it smells. I thought I saw a basil tomato bread, sounds interesting. I didn’t pick up a menu, mostly because I’m not interested in hanging out there for anything they offer. They have some generic pre-​wrapped cookies and brownies. It’s not bad for the neighborhood, and not mixed in with the strip mall across the street that is nothing but a pain in the ass. It’s a nice option for bread if you don’t want to go to a grocery store for just that also.

Not sure if this corner needed another coffee place (3 others within 1 mile). We like the Bfast quiches. Also good are the Toasted bagels with a smear of cream cheese.
It’s Panera. For this mall, parking is crazy in front. Go to the back. Better chance there to find a spot. Also, don’t try to go in off Ford Pkway & turn Right into parking.
IT IS ONE WAY!!! and no room to turn a car, let alone a suv.