Panera Bread — Restaurant in Douglasville

I was skeptical about trying this location since soooo many people have given it a bad review. However, on one of my remote days from the office, I decided to stop in for lunch while I finish some work. I will say the customer service that I received was wonderful. The staff greeted me and checked on me while I sat. The only down fall was my food and my latte. I ordered the new Margherita Flatbread, and noticed there was no Basil on it as I began to eat. So basically, I was eating pizza and tomatoes. When I brought it to the manager’s attention, he apologized and checked with the other staff members who in turned confirmed they did not see any Basil on the truck therefore there was none to use to make the flatbreads. I was shocked the manager was not aware as this is something the team should have brought to his attention so he was able to either credit customers or remove the item from the menu for that day, because there were MANY more people ordering the same flatbread or were already in the process of eating. I even overheard another customer stating something was missing from the flatbread and she no longer wanted to finish her meal. The manager offered me cilantro instead, which gave my flatbread a different taste, but hey, no Basil. Then, I ordered the Caramel Latte later on, and it tasted very watered down compared to the ones I have ordered at other locations. Disappointed...yes. But, I’m going to give them another try because I LOVE Panera Bread and would like to be able to enjoy the location in my neighborhood. So hopefully they utilize reviews to improve and try training at other locations in order to make Douglasville’s establishment one...

They're new and are having 'Opening pains' (unusually long lines, running out of breads & sides, etc.). I've been twice in the three days (so far) they've been open, and what is unacceptable is waiting 40 minutes for a to go order, only to find out that it's wrong. As much as I would like to patronize this local location, unfortunately I'm going to have to allow it to work out it's logistical flaws and improve customer service before I go back. Even though I live in Douglas county, the Newnan location is only an additional 10 minute drive. I will go back there until this location matures

Update 11-15-2017:

So Pantera Bread of Douglasville is about a month old, and I've been a few times since my initial review. Eat in experiences are pretty much the same as my initial visit and everyone else's - hit-or-miss customer service (mostly miss), long wait times to order, and absolutely outrageous wait times for your food. The food has at least been anywhere from decently good to very good.

I believe the problem with this location is they give priority to drive thru orders, at the expense of eat in. Iverson ordered at the drive thru three times and eat time our order was ready out the window - no matter how long or short the backup. They have not figured out that they need to adjust their logistics so they can prep and dish up both eat in and drive thru at the same rate. Doing so will improve throughput, probably improve the employees' attitudes, and improve the overall customer experience.

My advice if you visit here is to go through...

I didn't read all the bad reviews until my two bad experiences with this Panera Bread. Actually, I had never used Panera Bread before but was looking forward to getting some fresh baked bread. Silly me, I was about to go to Panera Bread for the first time. First time was a Saturday at 5:20 pm and I ordered online a day in advance. Silly me, I actually believed them when they asked, online, what time did I want to pick up the order. When I got there, after looking in vain for my order on the pickup shelf, the girl behind the counter told me they didn't have what I had ordered 36 hours in advance. She shrugged and asked me did I want to see a manager. The "manager" came out from the back and gave me the excuse that he was off the day my order came in. I settled on a loaf of bread he finally produced from the back without a label. Within a week, I thought I'd give Panera Bread another try and the second time I ordered my bread a few hours before on the same day since ordering the day before, on someones day off, is a problem at Panera. I had the same results. My order wasn't ready at the pre determined time and after waiting in line for five minutes to inquire about my order I was informed with a shrug that my order was, again, not available. I had to, again, settle on what they had. The kids working there all look unhappy and like they don't care. They need to close this store and retrain everyone including the managers. Never eat at a restaurant where they aren't...