I have never been a Panera fan, but the wife is. I reluctantly said yes, because we had a gift card that needed using. The woman taking our order was semi-abrasive in the beginning, but chilled out somewhat by the end of placing our order. I ordered the Ciabatta Cheesesteak sandwich and she ordered the Frontega Chicken sandwich. I wasn't impressed, as over the years past, with my sandwich. There was not enough meat and the flavors just did not provide me with a, "yum, that's pretty good, I think we will have to come back one day" feeling. The wife's sandwich was "too peppery" for her so we swapped halves. Meh, I wasn't impressed with that sandwich either. The wife ordered just water. The "free" water, from the soda dispenser, was terrible and undrinkable, with a foul odor and heavy (nasty) hard metallic taste. We realize the water in Florida is "hard" and the reason we obtained a purifier for our home, but this needs to be rectified in a restaurant. My ice tea tasted fine. I'm giving this place a 2 star (could've been better) rating, while the wife would probably give them a 4 star (good) rating even with the nasty tap water. My Yelp account, thus my rating. The fresh breads they sell looked good, though I was reluctant to buy any. read more

Panera Bread - Ciabatta Cheesesteak sandwich - Sandwiches Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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I've been to Panera's in N.J, P.A & R.I. Now i reside in Lakeland F.L, I had to leave this review on the exceptional professionalism of Destiny , I'm a Security Manager with many employees and the grace and respect she gave me as a long time customer was beyond what words can express, she should immediately get praise & promoted. John read more

As of late it's been ehhh.. curbside pick up was no longer an option and the delivery option wouldn't work on the app so I had to opt into going into the establishment and pick up as rapid. While I understand that we all have hard days and food service workers have ghetto hardest days because people.. I had to try to get the attention of the staff behind the cooking counter because they had 10 bags back there instead of on the designated shelf to pick up and when I asked for my order I was given the rudest response... Other than that, the soups were good per usual read more

We live in north Lakeland and have to go all the way to south Lakeland Panera like 15 miles away because this one is so nasty. Enough said.

Been going there for years. Rarely ever mess up my orders like other Paneras I been to. Plus love the little fire near the winter time. And the food always tastes great. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Wow! The asiago chicken sandwich is really good! Maybe not as much chickem as shown in the picture, but the flavor and textures are excellent. It took a few minutes to prepare, and it's a Thursday at 4:00. Could it be that busy? read more

This was our 1st time making a rapid pick up order. My bf got to the cafe at 1:10pm to pick up our online order and we did not receive our food and leave the store until 1:50pm! He literally sat and watched a table get cleared off 3 times before he was serviced. We are NOT happy with our experience one bit. So much for RAPID. We probably had a better chance ordering in. If I were picking up during a work day I probably would not even be back to work on time. Very unprofessional and not happy. We will not be back. read more

Food was just eh. I always have high expectations for Panera but I was let down. I paid extra to have chicken on my sandwich and I didn't receive it. The service was fine nothing special. The restaurant vibes are always chill though. Great study place... read more

Dinning in is usually fine, if you can get over the grumpy college kid at the register. Decided to do take out today and literally.never.again. They decided to put my flat bread pizza at the bottom of my whole 7 item order bag and now I'm trying to pick cardboard out of my cheese. The cooked bread with pepperoni is good I guess. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

We had a catered work luncheon for 10. They included plenty of sandwiches and cookies and chips, with seven sets of silverware and 10 plates. For a price of over 125, I found it disappointing. I had the steak and arugula sandwich. The bread is good but it is drowning in sauce and difficult to eat much at a time. The cookies are overcooked and dried out. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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Was expecting a good fresh breakfast but our server Tory came to work in a BAD MOOD giving us a cold egg sandwich and a slam of the coffee cups and plates on counter, when asked to speak to the manager all he did was remake the sandwich and refund the sandwich amount, coffee was cold and tasted old. We asked them to make fresh coffee and so he did, however never was there an apology or consequences for the employees attitude. He dismissed that all together. The restaurant was empty so there was no big rush for he to be in that mood nor for the food to be cold. read more

Probably one of the worst Panera I've seen there's times where it smells like spoiled food Order takes longer than it should and you just see managers smoking most of the time when they should be working at least dining room is fine but you look into the line and is just a dirty read more

Late Saturday night: ordered 1/2 a sandwhich and a soup. Food was supposed to be ready by 8:04, but didn't get done until after 8:30. The customers were all slumped over in a corner by the pickup window and looked varying degrees of upset, hungry, and resigned. The (very few) staffers looked miserable and exhausted. To the franchisee / manager of this location: QUIT BEING CHEAP AND HIRE MORE STAFF!!! This was disgraceful! read more

The store is great, very clean. Operates flawles from a customer s point. From the store manager Shelby to the Assistant manager, the lady at the register weekday, the girl who Just had a baby and i see her the weekend, all is satisfactory Kudos to great customer service, great food, and great accommodation. I am a regular and travel for work and stay at that location 2/3/4 times a week. From the lady who cleans the tables to using the facilities, the location is welcoming. rating 1-10 I give them a 12. Keep up the great work! read more

Panera has come a long way since it first opened; this is pre covid, so it is just an honest opinion; take it as you will. The food is hit or miss the quality is definitely different on all days. I personally wouldn't go there, but my wife likes mac and cheese and a variety of salads. If you're looking for quick, this can be a hit or miss as well!! read more

You automate ordering and claim it's due to staff shortage? Makes no sense! It's an assembly line is what this place is creating. We are not in Japan. . Did not even order after attempting to use the kiosk and getting frustrated with using it, even the person before me was frustrated and walked out. Getting peoples information should be optional not mandatory. read more

After waiting 15 minutes for a coffee the Large cappuccino was not even filled to the top. Paid for a large and received a medium. I asked to fill to the top but got just a random cup full of foamed milk instead of coffee. Cinnamon roll I had to heat myself in the microwave. read more

Panera Bread - "Large" cappuccino not filled to the top - Sandwiches Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Ordered the French onion soup. When I got home and started to eat it, there was not one lick of cheese in it.

I am currently in a Panera bread chokehold! I get Panera bread every day before work... I go to different locations and this is by far the worst experience I have ever had not only at Panera bread, but at any fast food restaurant. I ordered my food ahead of time because I was on my way to work ,go inside, pick up my order, get in my car, open the bag and it was as if the mac & cheese exploded. When I lifted the mac & cheese, one side of the container was broken and all the cheese spilled out and seeped into my chicken sandwich, so when I pull the mac & cheese container out of the bag, it also spilled all over my lap. So I took my bag inside and showed them everything that happened. The girl I spoke to was letting the young man making the food know that my sandwich was customized, and as she was telling him, I noticed she stopped mid-sentence. I didn't think anything of it went back to my car opened The bag, took out my sandwich and it was made completely wrong, so as she was trying to tell him how I wanted my sandwich he must've told her to be quiet and he was going to make it how it came and send me on my way. So I got back in the car and noticed that it had all the sauces that I did not want Parmesan crisps and no tomatoes and before I got there they also let me know that they had no lemon drop cookies so they had to substitute it with chocolate chip, but when they gave me my replacement sandwich. There was a lemon drop cookie in the bag. So I went back inside to get the correct sandwich and was met with the rude manager working. She was on the phone the entire time. All of this was happening didn't care not one time to acknowledge what was happening, to apologize for the service, to get anything fixed and when she actually had to do her job, it was like she was so upset. so instead of getting a whole new sandwich remade I just asked her to replace the bottom bun since it had all the sauce and just let me go on about my way and she had an attitude about that as well so yeah, zero out of 10 do not recommend!! Long story short I'm drenched in mac & cheese and I'm now late for work. Thank you. read more

I would give them a zero star but I did eventually get my food. The most unfriendly check out girl and worst customer service from manager.

I'm doing this review based on ordering from Uber Eats end the conversations I had with the employees there at that location. Never got my food and called the store. They said it had been delivered but I kept telling them it wasn't. I even walked outside while on the phone & told them it wasn't there. They said it could have been delivered to my front office since they are doing that because of COVID (I knew this wasn't true because I ordered from them not too long ago). I called my front office and confirmed. I then called Panera again and waited on hold for a supervisor. I was then told that the driver delivered the food to where they thought the apartment was because they couldn't find it. She said there wasn't a building number. If the driver would have look at the front of the building it says first 4 digits of my address on the front. The supervisor said the food would be resent out. It then took them over an hour to get the food sent out. I wasn't happy with the customer service. They made me feel like I was being an inconvenience to them but in reality I was stuck on the phone with them and missed most of my work meeting since I'm working from home. Needless to say I won't be ordering from them anytime soon. read more

First Rapid Pickup order I asked for half a dozen mixed bagels, sliced. I got half a dozen unsliced everything bagels. Today, I order a bakers dozen mixed, sliced bagels for pickup at 11AM. Order was placed a 9AM. When we got there, they couldn't find the order. 15 minutes of searching the puter finally found the order. They filled the order, threw the food into a torn bag after slicing it unevenly. Com'on Panera, you can do better than this!! Your service has gone down to the basement. read more

Food is fine, always a decent Panera, but what is the point of having a phone number if nobody answers? I always do curbside pickup and once I saw my order was ready for nearly 10 minutes, but nobody came so I called and watched the worker hang up on me through the large window at the front of the store. Called twice today regarding another curbside and again no answer... just delete the phone off of google. Food is fine again, so 2 stars. read more

There isn't much to write about Panera because it is such a massive chain, but I can comment on the food quality at least for this location. The customer service is always great and the food is out in a matter of minutes. I loved the Tampa location because the food was always hot coming out. This location lacks temperature consistency with their hot foods. The Mac and cheese was cold for the 2nd straight visit and the broccoli cheddar soup was cold the visit before that. I am not one to complain, so I just ate it without truly enjoying it. I only go back because the Turkey Bacon Bravo is a tasty little sandwich that I enjoy. Maybe I should stop ordering hot foods and stick to the cold ones. Hmmmm, I shall consider this. I sadly have lost my love for Panera with this inconsistency, but that is life and I will probably get over it because it has been good on more occasions than bad :). read more

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Current practices of opening at 7 has lost me as a customer. I'll go down the block to Starbucks.

The food and staff were quite good at this location. The thing that really bugged me is they have a time limit on their wifi...it kicks a user off if they've been logged in for a few hours. My coworker and I decided to get our notes together but had to leave before we were finished because we could not keep using their wifi, even when we were making purchases at the location. read more

Panera Bread - Strawberry smoothie - Sandwiches Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Waited over 20 minutes for my food (3 meals to go), when there was one couple ahead of me in line when I got there. The couple in front of me already went back to counter complaining about their order being messed up. The staff were all talking about some drama that occurred and how Mariah was having to watch the cameras to see it and all sorts of stuff, and apparently their focus was on that instead of fulfilling orders prompt and accurate. There was a lady behind the counter talking in regular clothes along with her purse telling them how she wanted her sandwich, so I'm assuming someone who works there but not working at the time I was there. Anyways, I arrived home just to realize I was missing a sandwich. Went back (after calling twice without getting an answer), and the guy said "We were trying to call you as soon as you left"... lies! I asked how he was trying to call me because I literally ordered my food at the restaurant not online so they wouldn't even have my number. Poor customer service all around. read more

Food is alway great here. The only hang up is the wait to order. Sometimes you get through at a decent pace and then again you wait 10 minutes to get through. Over all good. read more

Panera Bread - Yum!!!!! - Sandwiches Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

I like coming here when I have finals. Free WiFi. Outlets for my computer. Just enough noise for me to concentrate (I don't like complete silence). Free refill on drinks. Downside, pricey for my college budget when it comes to food. Lol. read more

I walked in, not busy at all, and got no greeting, and waited in line for several minutes before my order was taken. She was the only one at the register, but still, I know she saw me. After she took my order, she asked if I had a Panera rewards account and I said yes. I gave her my cell and she said she didn't see it, so I repeated with my cell again, couldn't find it so she asked if I had an email and I told her I couldn't remember the email. I knew at other Panera locations, I've never had any issues using my cell so finally she asked for my phone number and she was like oh, it worked this time. She kinda had an attitude, and wasn't memorable in a good way, didn't tip her or the the company because this is probably one of the worst experiences I've had at Panera. An apology would have been nice. read more

Ordered turkey sandwich Pros: Price in line with other places Lots and lots of fresh greens and tomatoes Bread was fresh Sandwich was made on the spot Preparer followed directions Usual sandwich staples such as cheese and bacon were available at extra price One ounce bag of chips included at no extra price. Very friendly service Cons: Not much turkey, but this could be a good thing because the meat was about the same as from a supermarket deli, and it was offset by lots and lots of greens. read more

Nothing GF or vegan on the breakfast menu, not even Nutmilk for my coffee. I should've gotten coffee next door at Starbucks, at least they have coconut milk etc. Get with the program before you become a statistic read more

called for curb side was placed on hold for 15 min before finally arriving at location to have to go in and place order. All for no one to care VERY POOR Customer service. read more

As a relatively new customer, I've ordered online for cafe pickup14 times and 3 of those orders were incorrect in some way. First was a missing side item; next was a sandwich not customized as ordered; next was a sandwich which was customized but the wrong menu sandwich item was packaged, as well as missing the customary pickle spear inside the (missing) double wrapping. That's a 20% failure rate. I have to say, though, the food has always been great. Looks great and tastes great - except that last sandwich I had to throw out because I don't consume the main ingredient which was mistakenly substituted. read more

I ordered off of the app this morning and then notified them that I was in the parking lot, still had to wait, food was still was not brought. I had to walk in to find it on the cart. read more

Underwhelming... that's the best description I can give. I used to go to Panera all the time - it was one of my favorite restaurants. I barely visit it once per year anymore and now I remember why. (Sorry, no pics!) went with my mom to the Lakeland store today and ordered from the kiosk. Little to no employee interaction... and the one time I did have some was when I asked for a water cup and the young lady wasn't particularly friendly when approached. We ordered "you pick two" and the Asian sesame salad w/chic. The "you pick two" items were the chic noodle soup and Asian sesame salad w/chic. Salads were over dressed and one salad the lettuce was limp/warm... also the large salad appeared to be the same size as the smaller salad even though it was in a larger bowl. It didn't fill the larger bowl. The soup was mainly broth - it's like they forgot to put the veggies and meat and noodles in?? Panera truly used to a favorite restaurant of mine -- what happened? You're charging more money for less product, crappy service and poor quality food. read more

I recently went here and the food is pretty good. The service is nice too. I got the pick 2 which was the Italian sandwich and chicken Caesar salad. The Italian sandwich had too much bread to me. I also got the frozen strawberry watermelon lemonade, it was extremely good. Also had the pecan cinnamon roll it was so good but I think it might have been a little burnt on the side. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

I had a pretty big order...Delivery took longer than expected but my food was still warm baguette was hard other than that I wouldn't mind ordering again ‍ read more

I used to live at Panera in my college days, and I can tell you that their portion sizes are going down and their prices are going up. This place is staffed pretty well, and the employees have a mildly courteous but strictly sterile and down-to-business approach. Don't look for service with a smile, but at the same time, don't expect bad service. If you go during the high traffic hours (11:30a-1:30p or 5:30-7:30p), expect a line & a wait. Maybe I'm just getting old, or am getting more miserly in my willingness to spend money, but when I order a salad and a drink and my bill comes to $13, I expect a decent amount of salad. I recently had to go back up to the counter to ask why their "large" salad looked hardly bigger than their half salad on the "you pick two" deal. I was told that the salad I received was indeed their large salad, and I told them that wasn't good enough. To their credit, they made me another half-order to add to my salad, but I shouldn't have had to ask for it. I think these salad places like Crispers, Panera, etc. know that their profit margins on salads are immense, and they continue to skimp on the volume you receive, hoping that you will not notice. This place is really no different in feel or quality than any other Panera Bread; pretty standard. They are priced right at the edge of acceptability. read more

I'm going to go ahead and give this location 4 stars because I feel like it got some really unfair reviews. This location is at least 3.5 stars, not 2.5. I think the portion size complaints are mostly unwarranted, at least as far as a You Pick 2 is concerned. I've been eating at Panera for over 10 years now (+ have been to locations in at least 6 states), and I feel the portions have stayed roughly the same size. (Maybe there was a specific employee who was serving up oversized portions before?) My sandwich had a good amount of filling - greens, tomato slices, red onion - and the usual 2 slices of turkey. My soup was standard issue Panera soup, regular size. I stopped here while traveling south to Tampa from Orlando. A solid choice if you are into soups & sammies. My one complaint is that the bread did not really taste fresh. read more