Took my elderly mom for late lunch today before I moved her into memory care. It was a tough meal for me. Mom had her regular broccoli cheddar soup and wanted an extra piece of baguette. The staff promptly provided it and offered an extra pumpkin muffin, they were so kind even with her dementia. I am grateful for the kindness of strangers during one of my toughest days. Thank you to he compassionate Panera kitchen staff for providing love to us today. read more

I love Panera, LOVE IT! So I was pleased to find this Panera on our road trip, and semi-close to being on the way, so we had to stop. I was sick with the flu, and only wanted some niiice warm soup to-go. I walked up the counter and was greeted by a young Lindsay. When I asked if I could combine the Chicken Wild Rice soup and the Cheesy Broccoli (hey, I like to customize, and it's usually no problem!) she gave me sass and looked at me like I was crazily ordering a bowl of turducken soup mixed with ice cream... She said she didn't think that was possible.. then just stared at me for awhile until finally asking, "well do you want me to check?"... Of course I want you to "check" because I'm sick, I want my soup, and I know it is no problem. I've never worked at Panera but I think I can put two-and-two together and figure out you can just charge me for one type of bread bowl soup, and then put in a note on the ticket/tell the soup pourer to just do 1/2 & 1/2. It sounds really complicated... I know... but it's not, and tons of Panera employees around the midwest have done it for me no problem, no issue, and completely taken care of me. So after she figured it out, placed my order, I paid, and went to go get my water to stay hydrated, my soup to-go was up lickity split. I didn't open up the bag until back in the truck, my bad, I thought I paid for and ordered a "bowl" size, but it had to be the "cup" size... ...What is this a 'bowl" of soup for ANTS?!... Bah, already on the road and back in the flow of traffic, there was no turning back, so I ate my sad amount of soup, with a generous amount of bread in the bread bowl, which was boring and bland and EXACTLY what my nauseas tummy needed! Who knows, maybe their "bowl" size is just... child sized... and I am used to small portions, but I have had their bread bowl inside the restaurant and it is much more adequate. *sigh* Well at least my combination soup was absolutely delicious and just what I needed! Omnomnom, I do looove me some Panera... this was just an odd experience perhaps... read more

Panera Bread - Bread Bowl To-Go - Sandwiches Near Me - Gurnee, Illinois

Zero urgency in the staff. I sat and waited for 40 minutes past the estimated time it would be ready for an order that was submitted more than an hour in advance. 4 people sat in the back and congregated about whether the order was assembled correctly and did not say a word to me. If an order is incorrectly made, someone should try to fix it as soon as possible. read more

Really nice remodeled/updated location! That caught my attention and was a nice change up from the usual Panera decor and ambiance. For some reason it took longer than normal to get our food and it didn't seem that busy so I'm not sure what the deal was with that. But as usual the food was great. My salad seemed small and I feel like for the price you pay you should get more food, especially compared to other similar type restaurants. We didn't sit outside but it was nice they have an outdoor seating area - that's always a win in my book! read more

I generally like Panera. I maybe ODed on it when living in a small Indiana town where it was the best restaurant choice for someone living on little money but who still wanted to hole up in a booth and soak up free wifi and coffee refills. This location leaves a little to be desired. Seating areas are weird and crowded. The staff never seems pleased to do their job. On one hand, I expect that -- it's likely minimum wage fast food type work. But on the other hand, if they could at least smile or not carry on conversations with their co-workers while taking my order, that would be great. The food is standard Panera fare -- nothing more, nothing less. read more

I love a Panera franchise, but holy moly this location is slow. 1) our order didn't even show up on the "preparing section" and 2) it took ~35 min for a squash soup, salad, and warm bowl. At other locations that takes less than 15. When we approached some staff to ask them the status they said "well you ordered two meals"...pretty displeased with the service. I respect service workers, but it must be management or something because this place is a no for me. read more

They are terrible at getting an order correct. Especially with the cost of their food now. I ordered a salad with chicken and I had to pay an extra $3 for that chicken. When I got home, no chicken on my salad. Reached out to customer service and have heard nothing. Always open and make sure your order is correct before you leave the panera or you will pay extra and get nothing! Terrible customer service. read more

This is the 3rd time I have been to this location and ordered a kids grilled cheese. Every single time I have had to send it back. This time I went through the drive through and just plain don't feel like driving back through. I don't understand why the people at this location can't seem to get a kids grilled cheese right. It's probably literally the easiest thing on the menu to make. This is the picture of what we were given tonight. It's like they just took a piece of bread, put a piece of cheese on that bread and stuck it under the broiler to burn. Then saw it was burnt and stuck a second piece on top. This is unacceptable and really has only happened to us at the Gurnee location. We've always received wonderful food and service at every other location we've been too. I think your staff needs some additional training on the basics. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Gurnee, Illinois

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Just went to the new location. The new location Lacks the charm of the old place. Also there is not enough room to display all of the bakery items and there is no longer a quiet conference room. Step in the wrong direction. read more

Awful service. Complete idiots who work there. I order a tea and after I pay, they tell me they don't have that tea in stock. I settle on a different tea and they give me a smaller tea than what I ordered. They wouldn't give me the bigger tea after I indicated to them they had screwed up my order. read more

This review is for the new Gurnee Panera location. They recently moved and have a drive thru now where they did not previously. I have been there about 10 times (all in the early mornings) since the new spot opened and they are super slow. When you think drive thru you expect to be quick but this place is so slow I am not sure how anyone can go in the mornings. If you are in a hurry, on your way to work dont stop here because they are probably one of the slowest drive thru windows I've ever been to. I always get a bagel and several times it was not sliced very good. I was hoping it would improve but it seems to be the same and not getting better. I will not be able to go there in the mornings at that pace it just takes to long to get 1 bagel. read more

15 minutes for a latte only. Not even food. And there wasn't even a big line to order. Joke.

We did a delivery order. The food arrived in time and fresh. It was very good. We did have to eat with our hands due to no forks. My soup was only 3/4 full and there were only 2 blueberries in my salad. It was OK. Next time I will check the order before the delivery guy leaves read more

Had the soup and salad combo- found a fly in the soup and strand of hair in the salad. GROSS! Called the store manager and Liz said, "what do you want done about it?" Seriously? At the very least a sincere and genuine apology is a must. A full refund is a must. A gift card for next purchase is a must at the very least... I am going to have to call the health department in them! read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Gurnee, Illinois

I hate to leave such a negative review but I feel like this is necessary for everyone to know. I have been coming to this Panera since it opened and It seems like there is always some sort of issue. Either someone made my order in correctly or they were missing some part of my order or the dining area is atrocious. The first couple times I let it slide but after I noticed it was a continual thing I started to speak up about the issue. I didn't wanna just stop coming there because I knew they also had short staff so I wanted to give them a chance but not only did I have issues with my order but the staff here can be extremely rude at times. Today I came in and of course the usually something is missing from my order so I go back up with my receipt and let them know what was missing, The girl laughed then turned around and grabbed what it was that I was missing and literally threw it on the counter and said I hope you enjoy that... I was amazed by how rude she was. I didn't say anything back but I went to go sit back down and then out of the corner of my eye I noticed there was something crawling and I looked closer and I realize that it was a cockroach. This was definitely the last straw for me. I don't think I'll ever return to this location again. read more

Panera Bread - Dining room - Sandwiches Near Me - Gurnee, Illinois

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Normally I love Panera, and I under they are short staffed, but this should be stated before you place a "rapid pickup" order. Waiting 30 minutes and no food yet. I highly advise people to go elsewhere. read more

This is the worst Panera I have been to in my life. I ordered my food and got it 25 minutes later. I had to send it back twice because they made it wrong, then when I got it for the third time it was missing ingredients and I didn't get a side like I ordered. In addition, my friend is very allergic to tree nuts, and they put them on her salad. When she sent it back there were still nuts on the salad!! I am disgusted by the service at this establishment. read more

The manager Sandra is very rude and unpleasant. The staff is not helpful or friendly. This place is not the same. I will not be returning.

the food is good but service is really bad i sat in the drive through waiting an hour for my order and still nothing and i had to go inside and get it and it was just sitting out on somewhere so i say 1/5 read more

If you're going to order take out from this location, order from door dash because the delivery drivers are always lost, and they have zero communication skills. read more

First off this place is a huge upgrade from the old Panera. It's so welcoming & easy to order you can do it thru the app, online, at kiosks if the line is too long for you, or with a person. This new one is open till 10 pm during the week & open Sundays. I have been every Monday for the past month or so because of their new hours I'm able to come after work. They have a drive thru & outdoor seating. & they bring food to you regardless of where you're seated in the restaurant. I have no complaints & the food is always great. I look forward to changes to the menu when the seasons change. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Gurnee, Illinois

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Worst service ever. Ordered 5 meals at the speaker. It took 40 minutes to get to the window. Then they don't have any of the meals we ordered Asked for the manager. She was completely useless. I'll never get that 40 minutes of wasted life back. I'll eat dog shit before I ever eat at a Panera Bread again. My can of spaghetti O's at home will taste better then their overpriced garbage that you can't even get. TOTAL lack of any intelligence going on in there. read more

Slow employees and no leadership from a Management. Clearly understaffed and no one to help the people actually doing work. read more

Panera Bread - 1:30pm on Saturday during Christmas shopping time. The dishes were pilled up like this for our entire visit. - Sandwiches Near Me - Gurnee, Illinois

I wish you would not have moved from your previous location. I never had an order messed up there. Now, almost every time I go through the drive thru or go in the store, the order is messed up. I recognize some of the same employees. It seems crazy that I can't get a bagel order correct with you. I am not asking for special orders. Pretty tired of it. read more

so, i came in thinking i would have a normal dining experience as per usual... i did not. what i got is the best panera experience ive ever had. a gentleman that works there, Michael, made that experience happen. he was friendly, kind, and absolutely hilarious. this man has the best attitude in a worker i have ever seen! as long as he works there, i will keep going there. Mr. Michael deserves a raise. i dont know what he makes, but he sure as hell deserves the best pay for such a great attitude and work ethic. if he ever sees this, thank you for making my night!! i'll be coming back to your panera very soon. :) read more

The Gurnee location of the Panera bread restaurant used to be pretty good. Today I got a Fuji apple chicken salad and I'm sure that the chicken was bad. It tasted funny and then I smelt it and it smelled bad. I tried calling the restaurant to complain but there was no answer. This isn't the first time they've messed up my order but it's the first time the food's been actually spoiled. I feel bad because I really liked coming here. I will not do it again read more

The other day I was out and just wanted soup and I didn't feel like going home and slow cooking onions to make my own french Onion. So I stopped at the Panera in Gurnee. I like Panera's soup, especially since it's so hard to find soup up here in Lake county. I also have to say that of the chains, I find Panera makes the best lattes. (And I really do dig those breakfast souffles.) Love Biagia!!! No that's not a new kind of baguette, it's the name of the woman who helped us ;). She was so genuinely concerned that we enjoyed our meal and was recommending sides and sizes and, dude, she was just so awesome. When the manager stepped up and noticed a danish had fallen sideways and got a little smeared she said, "I can't sell this." and handed it to my partner. They were charming and fun and we had a great meal. Good job guys! read more

I love the new look, but it is lacking in efficiency. I work nearby and I know the place has been open for a while. But it's as if the employees are still in training mode. Trying to find a parking spot can be very difficult as well since it's tucked on the side next to another restaurant. At the end of the day it's just another Panera. This location really depends what kind of vibe you're looking for. (Not for meetings) (more of teen hang out spot) read more

Stopped by here the other day with a friend... wasn't really hungry. Y'know, sort of in that... food ennui that one gets from time to time. Hmmmm, what's this? Panera does mac n' cheese? Interest piqued, I figured I'd give it a try. I was kinda zoned out while my dining companion warmed up the cashier. Actually, the highlight of the experience was the staff. Not to say the food wasn't good -- but the staff was just so much better. Biagia, our order-taker (cashier is too robotic a term for someone this lively) managed to upsell me into a nice 1/2 ham n' swiss on rye with my mac n' cheese and by the time I'd happily forked over the cash, I even had dessert. I do love it when servers really engage me. The mac n' cheese was respectable stuff; the pasta was a little softer than I prefer but very comforting. I'd order it again if I found myself in that mood. Mac n' cheese OUT is always a little tricky; so much homely expectation can get piled on. The sandwich was fresh and tasty; I enjoy red onion but I forgot about the, um... tic tac-requiring after effects! $15 bucks for the two of us; mine ended up being the expensive order! Food ennui abated, we headed back out into the holday traffic on Grand... read more

I ordered a you-pick-two and noticed that my order was light. I went back to the front line staff and the lady took my cup of soup and poured it into another cup- literally. When you do that you: A) make the soup colder B) lose soup When I asked if the front line lady was serious, she laughed at me. Which really puts you in the mood to eat some soup. I asked for a refund and the manager, Liz, didn't seem to really care. Which might make sense why this Panera was pretty much empty on a Friday. This was some really poor customer service. I would rather drive 15-40 miles to a different Panera then ever come back here. read more

Panera bread has Gurnee under its spell. It is very popular for lunch. The food is fresh and tasty. I enjoy some nice bread with a creamy tomato soup. Salads are good too. I tried the new Thai peanut flatbread and when I bit into parts of the sandwich with filling, I was pleased. There's nothing not to like about this place, but I remain unenchanted. read more

SO there are some things about Panera that are good. However, come on folks. Panera reminds of Starbucks and other "hoity toity" coffee houses. Close your eyes and taste the food. Nothing special at all. Good ingredients but average execution. Maybe I am just a chain restaurant hater! read more

Nice place, great selection of baked goods, Pecan roll is really impressive looking, tastes almost as good as it looks! A bit on the expensive side for me. 2 "pick two" will run you $20 and you may not be full after. Had a gift card, not sure "high end" bakery sandwiches are for me though .... read more

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Panera is excellent for breakfast and lunch! The egg & cheese on ciabatta is easily one of the best breakfast sandwiches i've had. I love that they have so many good coffee drinks as well to go along with the breakfast meals. Their lunch menu is pretty good too, can't go wrong with a half sandwich and some soup for lunch. Haven't really sampled much of their bakery items, but one thing caught my eye and its what I always get.... the chocolate chip muffie! It tastes great and why wouldn't it, its part cookie and part muffin! Get a rewards card as well! You'll easily rack up useful discount right on the card - i.e. free bakery item, free drinks, money off entrees, etc. read more

This location consistently falls short--from missing ingredients necessary to make items on their menu to not Even bothering to remove the stems from the blueberries before putting them in the blueberry muffin. It's so bad that when we do go, the first question my kids ask is, "what's missing this time?" read more

I love the food but, the service is terrible and it has been for about a year now. I think it is time for new staff. They take forever, I am usually waiting 20 minutes for food which is long for me idk if that's how for others. The staff won't yell out your name when it's ready. The staff is rude. I'm hoping they change out the staff with better people. read more

This is my favorite Panera, this is the first location where the coffee actually tastes like coffee and isn't weak brown water, the quality of their food is great and and is one of the best. However their staff can be very rude and condescending, and slow. One day I forgot my mask so I tried to do the curbside order so I wouldn't have to go in. The parking lot is a little odd and shares with a Starbucks so I just tried to park closest to the building that I could. I had to wait 20 minutes (even after calling them) to get my coffee. When the lady finally came over she gave me the stink eye and no straw, and ran away practically before I could point it out. When you go in it's not better either, they will flat out ignore you waiting there and act like your mare existence is bothersome. So bottom line I wish they had a drive through and good luck getting at bare minimum mediocre service, beware for some serious attitude. But if you really care about food quality it just may be worth it. read more

Without a doubt, the best Panera in Lake County I have experienced. GREAT staff and excellent food. Service team really bends over backwards to make sure your experience is a good one. They have a small meeting room in the back that I've used for small group meetings and can be reserved other than lunch time. Try it - you'll like it. read more

Normally I love Panera because the food seems more wholesome and healthy. Today my breakfast sandwich was burned and stale. That's the reason for 3 stars today. However it is one of my favorite places. read more

Panera Bread - Panera Bread in Gurnee. - Sandwiches Near Me - Gurnee, Illinois

Went there today, very underwhelming. First their app was working kept changing my credit card expiration date from 2020 to 2002. After waiting over 20 minutes I went to look for my order. I met the manager who told me they had been looking for me because their board said I was at Table 23 which is where I was. I pointed that out and she mumbled something and took my receipt. I told her that the app didn't work and she told me that it was a corporate problem. After all of that I think my order was wrong but she had my receipt and I was tired of being there. read more