Whoever opened this store really underestimated the market. People who like Panera, REALLY like Panera. The food is just okay, better than mall food though I way prefer La Madeline. The design and layout of this place is awful. This is a new building and somehow they've made it look like they've inserted a Panera into an old converted office building. Obviously they counted on people wanting to sit outside and enjoy the pleasant Louisiana weather and fabulous sights and sounds of Veteran's since that seems to be where a majority of the seating is. The seating indoors looks like you are eating in the aforementioned office break room and is not nearly enough for how popular the restaurant is. Also, whoever designed the building really messed up the A.C. it was very warm in there and the poor employees were dripping with sweat. The area where you wait for your food is also in the same hallway-sized area where guests fill up their drinks. Really bad idea. I've been to several Paneras in other cities and the buildings seem very welcoming and relaxing. I couldn't get out of this place fast enough. I've also been duped the last couple of times I've been to a Panera. I've ordered whatever special they are advertising on the sign by the register, which looks very appealing but doesn't list the price and have ended up paying around 14.00 for a (very large) salad and drink. My fault for not reading the small print but I think they could be clearer with their menus. I didn't even realize I could have gotten a smaller salad until after I'd gotten my food and my companion asked why I ordered such a big salad. read more

Came To Panera bread for dinner this evening and honestly I don't think it could have been a worse experience. There were almost no items in the bakery case to order. Asked for a menu to see ingredients due to allergies and the paper menu doesn't list allergies. Food sat on the counter for at least 10 minutes and never had our buzzer go off. We only got our food because we asked if the order was ours. Ordered a bacon tomato grilled cheese and they didn't bother to put bacon on it!! I'm required to give a star or there would be none. read more

Their new spinach power salad is delicious! Almonds, crunchy onion ring pieces, chopped egg, and bacon on a bed of fresh spinach (I hold the roasted mushrooms) with an onion flavored vinaigrette. I ordered the "pick 2" and also got a half Napa valley chicken salad sandwich. The pick 2 order comes with an apple, chips or a piece of bread so be sure to ask for your preference...otherwise, they'll just give you the bread without asking AND if you love bread like I do, it's a problem! Although they were very busy, my food was ready in less than 5 mins. It's a great under $10 bucks lunch option. read more

After eating at Panera today I knew I had to give my 2 cents worth on Yelp. Yes, I too have eaten at Panera Bread in other cities. Their food is average to good, but something different than the typical fast food restaurants and a step above. However with this Panera I won't be back. I went at lunch time and got in what I thought was a line. After waiting several minutes I found out that it wasn't a line at all. Some people were just standing around reading the menu, and others, like me, thought they were in line. Not until someone pointed out there were 4 cashiers and to just go to any of them did I realize there was no organization. I placed my order with a young woman who was void of personality or assistance. Once I received my buzzer I found a table and went to retrieve my drink. And that is when the frustration really kicked into gear. Within an area approximately five feet wide and five feet long was the soft dtink dispenser, all condiments from salt, pepper, utinsils, mustard, mayo and ketchup packets, lids, straws, lemons, etc. etc. On the opposite wall of this shoebox configuration was where the employees emptied the dirty dishes and disposed of the plates, bowls, etc. In order to get your food you had to walk through this area where no less than 5 people (customers, employees) were trying to do whatever they needed to do. I first went for my drink, and had to manipulate around others. My second visit was to pick up my order and once again I had to dodge several people to retrieve my food, and then I had to turn around and immediately fight back through this disorganized group with my food. My third and most dreaded visit was when I realized I had forgotten to get condiments. I dreaded the necessary visit! I left thinking that their food in no way warranted going through such chaos again. Whoever designed this paticular Panersa Bread should be fired! No, I will not return! read more

I consider myself a Panera Bread Pro! When I lived in Iowa they opened up a store in our town way back in 2004 and I have never had a bad experience there. Always good, always fresh and always nice employees. Since moving to New Orleans in 2008 I had been waiting and waiting for Panera to open here. I had cravings and I have even been know to make a trip to Alabama where the closest one was located for a Bacon Turkey Bravo. Also on road trips my husband and I would make a point to try and eat a Panera because we both really enjoy it and you just could not get it in Louisiana. We were so happy when this store opened up. Of course the first 2 months were a little rocky, as with all new places. We were willing to wait out the rough start because we both spent main years in the service industry. However, after many cups of coffee and lunches later ( I work 2 blocks away) today was the worst experience. First I was cut off in line by some rude woman with really loud unruly children, Panera had no control over rude customers so that is not on them. Second, as soon as I stepped up to the register not a single person was in site to take my order. I saw plenty of people walking back and forth, pretending to be busy, and even a woman in a pink shirt who looked like a manager made eye contact with and did something at the pastry case and walked away. I will say that when someone finally did take my order she was very pleasant and apologetic, she gets the one star, which was shocking because usually every morning the girls that work are just plan rude and seem like they have plenty of other places to be. Third, I ordered a You PIck Two with Tomato Soup and a Tuna Salad Sandwich. The soup did not have the croutons with it which when I asked for them I received them quite promptly. Upon returning to my office to eat my lunch I unwrapped my sandwich to find that it was so overload with tuna that it was way to sloppy to eat. It got everywhere, and the bread for the soup was a good 2 bites. I have never been in an establishment where the employees take no pride in what they do, nor care about customer satisfaction. Almost everyone in that place needs to be fired or retrained. I will probably still continue to go for coffee because it is so close my work, but you can forget about me ordering food from here ever again. read more

Horrible service. They forgot the yogurt in my son's to go meal. I called when I got home and was told "mistakes happen". Ridiculous. My daughter's chicken soup had a few tiny specs of chicken in it. Had to augment with a rotisserie chicken we had at home. read more

I've returned since the hype and long lines have gone down and it confirmed my belief that its the love child of Mcalisters and Lamadelines. I would come here for their baked goods, specifically their bagels and specialty cream cheeses, but its not enough for me to come out of my way for. The food is typical, I left satisfied but not excited to return. read more

I am a big Panera Bread fan. I was super excited when we got a location here in Metairie. Before that I was stuck having friends and family bring me goodies from out of town and sneaking a cinnamon crunch bagel on trips. This location lives up to my expectations. It is clean and always had exceptional service. The food is exactly what I expect from Panera, fresh, consistent and made to order. I'm partial to the French onion soup and steak and white cheddar sandwich. It's a great place for kids, my kids each have several options they enjoy. They also make a fantastic sweet tea and recently have added some new "craft drinks", like a blood orange lemonade that is delicious. If I could muster one complaint it would be the lack of larger tables at this particular location. I'm often left pulling tables together. On many occasions I've had to do that while one person takes up one of the few large tables camped out in front of a computer using their WiFi, seeming to have finished their meal long ago. I know management is in a tough spot on those situations, so maybe customers just need to be more aware. read more

Awful. Poorly designed layout. Dirty tables and carpet. French onion soup, nasty. No bread or real cheese in it, a few shreds of cheese and croutons. Nothing but onions and a poorly tasting gravy. Wasn't even very hot. I got a refund and an apology from the manager who was nice. One thing that I can say is that the prices were reasonable. I did notice that the manager may not have been on duty when we first got there because once we saw him the place got cleaned up quickly. Not my kind of dining, felt crowded and chaotic. read more

Thursday morning bought 4 things to take to work. They left one out of the bag. Check your order. Today just waited 10 minutes for a salad. 3:32 pm, they're not crowded. Staff playing and cutting up instead of working. Good food. A little high priced, but terrible unprofessional kids as staff. read more

Panera Bread you get 2 stars? I want to give you one. Why? I ordered a full sized steak and white cheddar Panini. You gave me a half and charged me for the full. Now I like your food. That's why I went to you for lunch today. But this really annoys me. I should not have to check my Togo food like you are a McDonald's. read more

The panani's are pretty good. My beef with this place is the confusing store layout. They have the only trash cans in store, the drink machines, and the counter you pick up your food at all in about 3 feet of each other. And they also have tables right where people need to walk. I went on a busy Saturday afternoon and unfortunately, the only available table was right in the middle of the walkway. I think if they opened another store in a larger location, it would be so much better. read more

Visited this place for the first time a few weeks ago and I'm impressed. I first thought it would be a typical mall food "Grab and go" type feel but I was wrong. Overall, I'm impressed, I'll be back to check out the other items on the menu. read more

I have been to several Panera's in different states. This one is the most filthy one I have been to. Bugs crawling all over the pastries. Sold me a stale bagel. Hard to find a clean table. I felt like I needed a tetanus shot when I left. Won't go back. read more

NEW PLACE IN COVINGTON!!!!! GRAB GAL PALS AND GO! One of my fav's from Texas living comes to the Northshore and couldn't be more welcome. Baked goods make your mouth water and the food is exquisite all for reasonable price. Healthy choices, discount cards and half portions make this the best restaurant for that deli lunch! Servers have attitude of servitude! Highly recommended!!!!! read more

(updated review--I managed to hose my original, albeit incomplete review) The height of mediocrity, on a good day. I've been to this place several times now over several months since its opening. My experiences have been quite consistent, so I've ruled out situational aberrations. Though it's clearly against my nature, I will try to be brief here, as there is just not much to write home (or yelp) about. Service: abysmal. obnoxious. amateurish. unprofessional. cluelessly condescending. I'm referring to the primary point of service, being the cash register where you order and pay. It's not like ambulating staff in the dining areas sneer or spit on you...but still. You can expect better service at any McDonald's or Taco Bell. No, that is *not* hyperbole...I'm really not kidding. I realize that is partially a reflection of their applicant pool, but it is also one hell of an indictment of their employee training. Food/drink: Average to terrible, and terribly small. I am 100% convinced all the baked goods are trucked in frozen. There is no way in hell you can convince me otherwise. I'm a fairly accomplished home baker...and a food snob...and I *KNOW* pastry. The pastry is dry as a bone and devoid of character. Think what happens to phyllo dough when you don't butter each sheet. Seriously, in appearance and taste this is industrial SYSCO-caliber pastry, half a step up from Sam's Warehouse bakery caliber. Not even in the same league as anything from Le Madeleine or Starbuck's (or PJ's or CC's). Muffins? Oh save yourself the trouble and buy a packaged Otis Spunkmeyer branded one. Didn't bother with the bagels, try a proper dedicated bagel shop where you know they are real. The breakfast "souffles" (what a freekin misnomer) are tasty. I tried two different ones: one with bacon, one spinach and artichoke(?) I forget... A bit of creamy scrambled eggs in an all-too-familiar dry boring pastry shell. And when I say "a bit" I mean about 4 big bites, or 6 average bites. For about $4 each. Hope you weren't hungry. The portions of all cooked items across the board, sandwiches, salads, breakfast, lunch, whatever... are laughably small. The coffee drinks are ok, don't hold a candle to Starbucks, and are smaller AND more expensive (chai, pumpkin spice latte specifically... so likely across the board) than Starbucks. More expensive than Starbucks....chew on that for a moment...how is that even possible?! Cafe du Monde is less than a block away. Go get a proper cafe au lait and a real (and real fresh) beignet, put the savings in your 401k and retire a year earlier. Price: Relative just to quantity for the price, we are somewhere in the WTF price range. This applies across the board, from all drinks to all food items. Not to mention the crap quality. Wi-Fi: Unusably slow. On my last visit I couldn't get my RSS reader to refresh headlines or get a single web page to load in the time it took me to graze on the generously portioned (cough cough) breakfast souffle. Don't even bother. Something good?: The turkey-artichoke panini and chopped chicken cobb salad didn't suck, just order more than one or take an appetite suppressant first. Great if you're on a diet and not on a budget, at the same time. The chocolate chip cookies are not bad, but again are just silly expensive. Overall: Where's the beef? Service reminds you that it is your privilege to be there. No frills, unless you count the sticker with your name on your drink. Hard to leave not feeling disappointed, insulted, or hungry. Ok fine. So much for brevity. I've moved into acceptance. read more

The temperature was hot in the place. For goodness sake, it's June in Metairie and you serve soup.... turn the air conditioner temp down.

Not impressed. Living in the Chicago area for many years, came to enjoy and rely on the service and quality of Panera. Not so with this Metairie store. The wife and I have eaten here twice now, both times very disappointing. First impressions walking in the front door, facing Veterans, feels like you walked in the back of the dining room. In fact the whole space layout is very disjointed and does not flow well at all. The architect should have been slapped. The attitudes of this high-end sandwich/bakery/coffee shop, were not ones of happy, motivated employees. This recent visit was late lunch on 1/25/15. We both ordered different flatbread sandwiches with soup. The flatbread itself was terribly disappointing, because if they bake it there, it tastes like terrible over-floury cheap store bought. The amount of toppings was pitiful, except for the BBQ sauce, which was enough for 3 sandwiches. The icing on the cake, was that they burned both of our sandwiches, one so bad I just ate the filling. The black bean soup was very watery and greasy tasting. The French onion soup was the one shining star of our visit. This will be our last visit to this location. There are too many better choices in the area. read more

Panera Bread - Low quality flat bread sandwich burnt to disappointing crisp. Sadly, this was one of two. - Soup Near Me - Metairie, Louisiana

I went a few week's ago and let me tell ya the pasta bowel's are now worth it .and ya better have more angel hair pasta at home because you hardly get much for your money wise and my friend said the soup didn't have much spice in it Only thing about the pasta bowel's you can choose 3 meat's that's about it read more

While the staff was polite, the food was terrible. Everything was too sweet. EVERYTHING. There was sugar in the soup, my hot Chai was similar in taste to pop rocks and the autumn squash tastes like they dumped a bag of sugar in it. Where did the savory Panera go? read more

Horrible. Save the money and time and make yourself a sandwich at home... I promise it will be better than what the kitchen staff here whips up. The caesar salad was awful. Lettuce was wilted and dressing seemed to be 90% water. I don't understand why they have a Food Expeditor... What is his purpose? Is he there to simply breathe all over your food before calling your name to pick it up? That, and to flirt with the kitchen staff distracting them from putting any effort in the crap they make... And who designed the interior of this building? It's a train wreck... This place just opened and it reminded me of a Picadilly on the verge of closing down, in dire need of a makeover... Do yourself a favor, stay away so a better restaurant can take their spot. read more

recommend the croissant souffle thing. so good. and the sugar cookie. the rest is ok. including bagels. read more

Panetta is ideal for lunch, and sometimes a light dinner. The food is pre fabricated in one way or another but is good and consistent. The baked goods are delicious and the coffee drinks equally delectable. I live the black bean soup and the mac and cheese is one of the best I've had. If you order a meal and a drink, you can add any pastry for 99¢.... I'm a sucker for a sweet. read more

usually i love panera , but this location does nothing good for there name. my bowl was completely cold and my mac and cheese literally looked like soup and the piece of bread they gave me was hard as rock. i wasted 20$ on food that was so disappointing and i'll never be back to this location. read more

I really, really wanted to like Panera... but the experience was akin to a cafeteria, the food was bland, bland, bland, and the smoothie I ordered left a lot to be desired. The tables are not set up in a way that people can get to and from the counter - you have to weave through the tables, so there are constantly people walking around you even if you have a corner table! I've experienced Panera in other states and really enjoyed it, but this one just didn't do it for me. I'm not even sure I want to give it another try! read more

I love this place for breakfast. It's clean and the staff is very nice. It's also kid friendly. During lunch, it can get really crowded. Best iced vanilla latte! read more

They give a buzzer pager so you can sit down while they prepare your meal. I am so impressed with this place, even though its a chain. Place decorated nicely. Presentation of food fantastic and fresh, quality ingredients. Staff were eager and friendly to take my order and answer my questions. read more

Good food. Helpful staff. Didn't give 5 stars because I always feel like the staff is annoyed that they have to make my food. Every now and then I'll get a friendly crew person but the majority should learn to smile. I've done this type of work so I know it's possible. read more

It was hot in there.too many people...but I know it's bc the spot just opened..food was ok..I'll get a salad n a pecan cinnamon roll next time.. read more

Good when your in a hurry and want a cup of soup or a hot sandwich! Its a big step above fast food but not somewhere I would go for "dinner out". Bagels are amazing and the soup in the bread bowls is also quite tasty! read more

The food is ok but I find it pricy for simple sandwiches. The atmosphere is good BUT it is extremely crowded and seating is limited. I truly don't see what everyone sees in the place. To each his own but there are a dozen other hole in the wall local sandwich shops I would recommend over this place and all are considerably cheaper. 3 sandwiches, 3 fountain drinks, 2 soups and a cookie came to $45 read more

I have read the reviews on here I was worried about coming but at 8 am staff is great and food is good I had steak and egg sandwich steak is nice and med rare bread is fresh I like it I will be back read more

If you are a sandwich fan you will probably like this place. I don't eat sandwiches often and struggle to find something I like here. Caesar salad is pretty good and so is potato soup. I think it is a bit pricy and only visit when it's for a lunch date with friends. Haven't gotten to try any pastries yet but my dad likes their bagels. read more

I must say that the staff was friendly, the food was good, the place was clean. The Autumn Squash soup was delightful, as was the turkey cranberry flatbread sandwich and acai berry iced tea. So what's the problem? Well, to save you time, if you're only concerned about the qualities listed above, then by all means give them a visit. My problem is this: when a place's front door proudly proclaims that they accept Apple Pay, it's a bit annoying when they tell you they can't do it because the one register they have open is not one equipped with a contactless payment device. And offering to void the order and ring it up again on the right terminal completely defeats the purpose of a potentially faster way to pay. No. It's not a huge deal to pay with traditional means. But as someone who has been a victim of credit card fraud, I am all for things moving in the direction of a faster, more secure method of payment (Apple Pay seems to have both of those traits down pat; no, they're not the first, but they've made it a lot less clunky). Using Apple Pay when it's available is sort of my way to cast a vote in favor of this potential revolution. Further, Panera is one of the official partners of this tech. They have no excuse to not have the equipment ready to go. Once this issue is addressed I will gladly give a higher star rating. read more

Delicious food with fast and great service. Nice peaceful atmosphere and friendly staff. Very clean! Try the Mediterranean Chicken and Quinoa Salad and the broccoli and cheese soup. Also, my mother had the Strawberry Poppyseed and Chicken Salad with a sandwich for the pick two. Huge portions and good value. read more

I've been to Panera including this one before. Food is good coffee is good setting is good and generally employees are helpful. The point system is also nice. This morning I was appalled and I will probably never return to this location. The staff was noisy, bantering with each other in loud voices, filthy looking hair sticking out of their caps flinging around over the tables and the food, apparently no manager on site. This is 9 a.m. on Tuesday morning. read more

My home away from home. I'm a vegetarian and like the different options. Recently I ordered the Big Kid Grilled Cheese Sandwich but forgot it came with bacon. I brought it back to the counter and they replaced it with a bacon-free one at no charge. read more

AWESOME! The staff is very friendly and love the atmosphere, especially outside. The tomato basil soup is tooo dieeee....delicious

This is my favorite place to eat i call my order in and pick it up in a timely manner. The food has always been fresh and don't get me started on the cookies. :) read more

There were only two people in line (not busy). It took 17 minutes for me to get two bacon, egg and cheese bagels. One of the bagels was incorrect. This is not atypical. read more