Panera Bread — Restaurant in Knoxville

This location definitely misses the mark on several fronts. There was no one at the order counter- unfortunately including staff. They were standing together near the kitchen entry chatting, but we waited for just shy of 5 minutes and none of them attempted to even greet us until I said- Perhaps we have to order on the self service screens? Then one of the girls turned to face us and take our order. We ordered a couple of breakfast sandwiches and the scrambled egg was so burned it was brown and crunchy. Also- on the sandwich was 1 slice of thin bacon? One slice? As far as atmosphere- that missed too. The napkin holder near the coffee station was filthy- it sits next the garbage hole in the counter so every type of food scrap and dried liquids was all over the side of it. Most furniture was cracked and finishes were missing pieces… even the counter top next to the register was held together with Duct Tape. The booth seats were sloppily finished during re-upholstery, and the seat portion pulls away from the back area- one would think for cleaning purposes, but the excessive food debris in each booth seat was evidence that cleaning was not why the b seats...

Edit: 6/18/2022 Manager, Blonde hair, female, glasses; rude, angry, unhelpfull. Her demeanor with customers and staff is awful.

This location has declined in the past year (6/14/2022). The management has changed and the staff has turned over several times. Sadly, this used to be the cleanest and fastest location in the area. No longer. The staff doesn't care about speed or courtesy. The tables are always dirty. They have staffing issues and will close without notice. Prices have increased and quality has gone down. Equipment is outdated or does not work. Self ordering kiosk doesn't always work. Ordering ahead isn't recommended either. They text that your order is ready but when you show up it is not available. Management needs to be improved or replaced. The frozen chocolate cold brew is hot or miss. They either have the ingredients but don't blend the ice enough, or it's is not available at all. BUT, the orange cranberry muffin is great (that is when the staff can tell the difference between that one and the blueberry muffin. 10 out of 10 will...

This Panera used to be a really nice place to have lunch. It was clean, well organized, staffed with neatly dressed employees, and the food was delicious. I’m not sure if this Panera has a new owner/management but it has gone down hill, unfortunately.

The atmosphere is dingy and dirty which makes paying $15+ on lunch not desirable.

The accumulated dust on the walls, ceiling tiles, lights, and vents is very noticeable. The vents blowing into the food prep area has noticeable dust and I assume dust is also being blown onto the food prep area as well. The tables, chairs, windows, windowsills, and floors are also dirty with crumbs, dirt, food, and etc. The freestanding tables and chairs are in disarray. The walls in the larger dining area look like they have sanded spackle on them as well.

This Panara no longer has employees that bring you your order or come around and take your empty dishes away. I did not see anyone actively cleaning either.

It feels like this Panara has given up which is unfortunate because it was a thriving restaurant...