Panera Bread — Restaurant in Sacramento

I've been to enough "Panera Bread" locations to justify their sandwiches, soups, and salads. And considering they have been "good" but not "great" tells me they have been middle of the totem pole when it comes to their food, quality, and service. They are high above fast food but definitely not gourmet dining by any means. The location I am reviewing is their North Natomas restaurant.

Located at The Promenade at Sacramento Gateway outdoor shopping center, this particular Panera Bread has been in business dating back to the mid-2000's. Since then, a ton of businesses have opened in the surrounding areas as it is a very high volume retail and restaurant hub for patrons residing in the North Natomas neighborhood of Sacramento. The easiest way to find this Panera is that it shares the same parking lot as anchor stores Target, Barnes & Noble, and Old Navy. During my visit which was the afternoon of Sunday 5/8/2022, there was ample parking and very little customers since I arrived around 3:15pm.

Since I was fairly hungry, I ended up ordering the "You Pick Two". This consisted of 1/2 sandwich, 1/2 salad, and a side. I went with their "Smokehouse BBQ Chicken" sandwich, a "Strawberry Poppyseed" salad, and an apple as my side of choice. As many people know, the inside of Panera Bread is cozy, inviting, and spacious. This location has a fireplace, fast Wi-Fi, a wide selection of teas, a self-serve fountain drink station, and lots of seating including booths and tables.

After ordering, you are given a buzzer when your food is ready. My entire combo lunch only took about 6 minutes from the time I ordered until I got my food. Overall, my sandwich was delicious but they put more BBQ sauce, onions, and cheese than actual chicken inside. No biggie but it was still quite good. I definitely loved the salad as they gave me a very sizable amount. Fresh strawberries, mandarin oranges, blueberries, and toasted pecans really made this salad sweet, crunchy, and savory.

Again, having gone here enough lets you know what to expect. I haven't had a bad meal in my 3 dozen visits at their various locations. Their bread is a winner here as I love the freshness and quality. Prices are on the higher end of the spectrum as many delis charge less for more food. Of course with the rapid increase in food prices (as of 2022), this is something we are expecting much more, especially at chain restaurants. With that said and done, I am giving the Natomas "Panera Bread" a respectable...

This particular Panera Bread was at the top of my list for lunch when I worked in the Natomas area. This time, though, pretty disappointing. The woman who took my order seemed confused and kept asking me to repeat. She didn't appear to understand how to enter my loyalty phone number. She asked me if my order was for dine-in or to-go. I clearly said dine-in each of the at least 3 times she asked. It took about 30 minutes for my order to be called and it was packaged to-go. I was a bit surprised and said that the order was for dine-in. The response I got was that it was entered in as a to-go order. I shook my head and took the bag. As I turned away from the counter, the woman there asked if I wanted a plate. Her tone was on the condescending side and I declined. I'd ordered soup, but the portion in the to-go container sure seemed a lot less than what I'd gotten in the dine-in cup on previous visits. I also ordered two chocolate chip cookies for my grandkids for later. They were either not fresh or over-baked. Definitely not up to Panera standards as I've seen previously. I hope this was just a one-off experience because this location has always been pretty top notch. Disappointing all around...

I come to this location frequently as I work nearby. The food is great and the team is exceptional. I only have one concern. I ordered lunch for me and two of my co-workers. I ordered 3 large drinks. Upon pick up I requested a drink carrier. While entering my car, one of my lemonades fell out of the carrier spilling all over my drivers seat. I went back inside to refill the drink. I placed it back in the carrier and placed the carrier on my passenger seat and again all of my drinks fell out of the drink carrier. I returned into the store to request another drink carrier and was advised by an employee that 2 carriers is more ideal as they are flimsy and will still cause large drinks to fall over, regardless off having one or two carriers. I have waisted my lunch time trying to refill my coworkers beverage and clean my car so that I did not have to drive back to work sitting in lemonade which was the case anyways. I am confused as to why Panera offers drink carriers that does not hold the beverages. I am infuriated that my car is soaked with lemonade and that I had to return to work with my behind soaked. I hope that you guys correct the design of your...