I haven't had Panera in a while, but the moment I learned about their new broth bowls, I wanted to give one a try. We stepped into the restaurant last Friday night, took a quick glance at the menu, and decided what we were going to order in less than a minute. We noticed a few kitchen staff walk by, but we waited a good five minutes before someone greeted us at the cash to take our orders. Understaffed, perhaps? Then we proceeded to look for a table. There were a lot of empty tables, but quite a few of them were dirty and left uncleaned, and the whole dining area looked like it hadn't been vacuumed in a week. Again, we thought maybe they were really understaffed on that particular day... I decided to try the Lentil Quinoa Bowl with Chicken. Chicken, quinoa, brown rice, lentils, tomato, kale, and spinach, all mixed in a miso soup. It sounded healthy and it looked healthy, but...it did not taste healthy at all. Not until I poured an entire cup of hot water into the extremely salty broth! The saltiness was so overpowering that I did not realize there was a bit of a spicy kick to the soup, which was nice. Considering it cost me about $10, the portion was also smaller than expected (it's just mostly soup). Overall though, I think it is a great recipe, but it was poorly executed. If and when I visit Panera again, whether at this location or another, I'll definitely stick to their panini, sandwiches, and soup that I know taste good... read more

Quick service. Great menu. Healthy options. Lots of fresh breads and baked goods. I took my daughter and her friend for lunch. We had the Mac & cheese, grilled cheese & a combo with half a tuna sandwich with a half order of Mac & cheese. We were offered side of fresh fruit, fresh bread or chips. Once we place our order we were given a pager type thing and our order was brought to our table. Everything was very good. Service was amazing. For 3 of us to eat was $38. As we all know healthy choices are expensive but this was worth it read more

See all

Came in for a little me time and wanted to use my free birthday pastry. I came in pretty late in the day so most of the pastries were gone so I opted for the Carrot Cake cupcake and also got my favourite Chai Tea Latte. In terms of the cupcake, I couldn't handle the sweetness of icing on top so I took it off and just ate the 'meaty' part of the cake until I found that the middle was stuffed with more of the icing and I just couldn't. It was pretty mediocre. My latte didn't come for a while and one of the employees came around to ask if I ordered a chai tea latte and if I've received it yet and when I said that I hadn't he said said he'll go prepare it and bring it now. Fast forward another 15 minutes, I still didn't have my latte so I asked another employee who had to put in the order to begin with and brought it by. It was also extremely cold in there lol. I thought it was just me but I kept overhearing customers complaining about. It was almost a relief to walk outside in the heat. So far, I've only had good experiences with Panera in the morning :( read more

I find the food is overpriced for what you get- my son and i went in he got the grilled cheese and a coffee and i got half a sandwich and soup, and a coffee and the upsold the fresh baked cookies and the bill was almost 30 dollars. The staff is friendly, and the food is consistent, not that this is a good thing. I did not like my sandwich at all, it was a Mediterranean chicken- just bland and not good at all, but there are others that are good- not great, but good. The Broccoli soup tastes processed, like they just heat it up out of a vat or it's powdered and they reconstitute it. It's thin and runny, not rich and thick as it should be. The mac and cheese is delicious but the serving is very small. The grilled cheese is always really good, it is greasy and all but it's good. I always tend to end up here when I am looking for something not fast food, and I always regret it after because it is so expensive. The coffee is good, and the baked goods always look and smell good, but the only thing I have tried is the brownie and the chocolate chip cookie, and neither were AMAZING, just ok. It's not that I don't recommend it, but as i mentioned I always tend to regret going there after I leave- it's just not a good return on investment I find. read more

As another Yelp reviewer stated, the 'Pick 2' option is basically pick a quarter & a half. Their "half sandwich" (emphasis on the quotation marks) was more like a two bite sandwich and it was $7.09??? Huge pass!! Outrageous expensive for something that is just mediocre in taste & horrible in size. Let's keep this place as a bakery than an actual restaurant or cafe. I do like their bread & bagels! Speaking of bagels, I went early morning one time to pick up a bagel, around 7:30am. The cashier wasn't very welcoming & she had to yell to the back of kitchen to see if they had bagels ready. And someone yelling isn't something I want to hear that early in the mornings. But honestly, why would they open at 7 if nothing was ready prior to opening? Big pass on this place for food, only good for their baked goods. read more

My family and I were searching for somewhere to eat near by the airport, and saw Panera's Bread. Upon entering they have an extremely confusing menu, to which even the cashiers don't understand. The so called "pick 2" offer a 1$ discount if you buy double the food while making it look like you got a deal. After receiving the food, three separate coffees were cold and looking at the timers on the coffee pots, had been sitting there for two hours. All sandwiches were tiny, and way overpriced, with sassy answers upon requesting food to be reheated. Grilled cheeses were not only cold, they were cooked little enough that the cheese hadn't even melted I would not recommend this restaurant for the life of me; overpriced, bad customer service, and confusing menus. read more

Note: Was 4 starts until my experience on Sunday, read about it below. On Sunday May 2nd I was at the Panera Cafe at Heartland Town centre in Mississauga Ontario I was there at about 3PM. and I had a horrid experience. There was sign on the door saying that the store would be closing at 7PM. First thing after walking in I noticed the customer in front of me was have a disagreement with the cashier. Working retail I brushed this off since it happens all the time. Then the store was out of a bunch of menu items including iced green tea. I walk up to the counter and order the pick two. A large Mac and Cheese and the Creamy tomato soup. While waiting for my takeout order there was one angry looking employee making the food for dine in and take out. There were 2 cashiers and only one person making food from my experience the cashiers should not out number the servers but thats none of my business. What is my business is the women making the food was absolutely the most horrid person I have ever had the misfortune of dealing with. She obviously hated what she was doing. One person in dine let her know she forgot blue-cheese on her blue cheese and steak salad and she angrily replied that "I know I didn't miss the blue-cheese obviously I didn't put enough for you.I can only put what I'm allowed" She snapped the the girl. No customer deserves to be spoken to that way.Me and another customer waiting for our takeout orders heard and looked at each other baffled as to how anyone working in the service industry can be so rude to a customer who was not rude at all. Then I was waiting for 10 minutes for my takeout order. The place wasn't overly busy and the women making the food kept slamming what I think is the panini machine shut. I'm shocked it didn't break. She was absolutely a horror to deal with. When paying $18 for a meal I dont expect to be treated as a chore let alone listen to the worker abuse customers. I regret to say I probably won't be going back to Panera after my experience. read more

For such poor haphazard service with even worse quality food, I am surprised the place had a line up at the cashier. I was tasked to go get a few items for a client that liked their baked goods because it was 'All American'. If All American means bland, spongey textured, and over priced, they need Tim Hortons more than I thought. The restaurant itself is large and spacious as it took over a very large retail space at the corner area of the Heartland centre. The service team barely acknowledges you and looks you in the eye. My 4 attempts at 'excuse me' when I was at the front was finally acknowledge by someone who just came off break. I asked for my client's favourite item and asked if it was just baked recently. The answer of 'I don't know' was a common theme to all of the inquiries about when it was baked and how does it taste. With 5 pastries boxed up, the total rang up close to $15! I wasn't expecting downtown Toronto pricing for such lacklustre looking baked items. So how was the quality of the 5 items... miserable. I would rather eat a stale donut from a 7-11. At least it would have enough sugar in it to register a flavour. The chocolate doughy soggy pastry was masquerading as a 'croissant'. There were zero layers and no texture other than mush. The chocolate was clearly not real chocolate but a mockchocolate because it had a closer texture towards a gritty peanut butter. Compared to Brick St Bakery which I just had last week, this was dismal especially they are similarly priced. The bear claw used the same dough so the texture and taste was bad but even the client remarked how little almonds was on top of the pastry. When I went online to look at the corporate marketing picture, sure enough the one online was drenched in slices of almonds. I think there was about 5 slices... just enough for each finger. The pumpkin muffin was dense and spongey (see a theme?) and I couldn't taste any pumpkin. It was just sugary. The scone was under cooked as the dough was still wet in the middle. The only have decent item was the pecan roll and I think it's only because of the 2 cm coating of icing on top of it. Even though the pastries were a disaster, the meeting was not. These pastries were sent quickly off to the staff kitchen where it just hanged out for the entire afternoon unfinished. That is a super rarity and just another confirmation that even our office 'vacuums' won't subject their taste buds to awful pastries. read more

Worst panera location and I've been to quite a few. They're always out of bread (mainly ciabatta). We went twice because I wanted something fresh and I love their broccoli cheese soup, but they never have bread for my sandwich. The last time I went, they were out of soup too. The first time I thought ok it's a weekday, they probably don't make that much. Then I was in the area on a weekend for lunch and the same thing, they didn't have the ciabatta bread. The staff was unpleasant to deal with and they got the order wrong twice the last time I was there at which point I gave up and said forget it. I would not recommend this location to anyone and would rather drive up to the one near Erin mills town center. read more

My first time visiting Panera and I was seriously underwhelmed. In such a competitive market, I'm shocked that this place hasn't tanked! I was there last week for a meeting. Walked in, was pleased at the atmosphere and the displays, ordered easily and uneventfully. The cashier thst took my order was really helpful and friendly. That's where my pleasure ended. Got to the table, my pecan roll (looked like a cinnamon roll with pecans all over) made it there fairly promptly. At least 20 mins later, after the people meeting me showed up and had their orders delivered, I went up to enquire with the cashier about my latte. I had expected a slightly longer wait than had I ordered a drip coffee, but this was ridiculous. The cashier remembered me, was shocked that I hadnt received my beverage yet, and went to enquire. The manager (?) And other staff were arguing about who they were making their current beverage for (19ish beverage, 30h staff...) and she was getting totally railroaded. I had to forcefully state what my order was (as I honestly didnt care who they were making their current beverage for), and the cashier assured me she would take care of it. 5+ mins later, I got my overpriced coffee that was honestly, not quite up to the quality of I'm used to. The pecan roll was so dry that I couldn't even bring myself to finish half of it and when I asked my group to try it (wondering if I was just being hyper picky), they all agreed. This group I meet with has typically met at Panera but we've already picked a different venue for next month's meeting. A cluster for service and inferior product (when even McDonald's is making better lattes. ...) means epic fail for this location! read more

This is my favorite place to grab lunch with friends who I haven't seen in a while. I love love love their broccoli cheddar soup along with a baguette and their hazelnut coffee. read more

casual, cozy place to catch up (when it's not too busy) over a cup of coffee or some food. been here a few times, with no complaints. wifi is a nice bonus too lol read more

Bigger than the one at Square One and nicer, but too noisy. Ample parking. Good coffee break place in you are in the area.

Food is good as at any other location, but service is horrible. Three of us were ordering together, and the order was taken by a manager, who was just out of it. The staff seem like they dont know what they are doing, very slow and annoyed. 10 minutes after we ordered, somebody came to our table and told us they actually ran out of bread bowls. Maybe the manager should have mentioned it earlier? Anyways, got free pastry for that. read more

Today was my first time visiting this spot. Definitely not for me! Service is crap and food is bland. No thanks!

Ordered a You Pick Two special,and got a half-serving of both their Caesar salad and steak and cheese panini. In addition, I had a watermelon lenkbade, all of which totalled $18.91. The Caesar salad was alrigjt, just the right amount of dressing. The sandwich was inedible for me because of the horseradish which really burned. They kindly offered me another sans horseradish, and a lot less steak. The watermelon lemonade was good and refreshing. The food is average at best, certainly not worth the price tag. read more

Always too slow. Food is decent but nothing spectacular but I know what to expect here.

I have ordered takeout from this location several times over the past year. I have to say that despite great food, this was my last visit. It is ridiculously poorly run, which I have to assume comes from top down. Call ahead over service is useless, rude on the phone and when you pickup you must wait in the line with everyone else. After being asked both on the phone twice and in person once what I'd like for a side, I found none in the bag when I got home. As I said the food is always great but the terrible service isn't worth it. read more

This location is bigger than the one at Square One, but I cannot review much of my experience at the Square One location since I only got myself a coffee there and left. However, today I went to dine in at the Heartland one and didn't leave me with a good experience. First the line up was just long, it actually took almost 15 minutes until it was my turn to order. Once I ordered, the lady asked me if it's to-go or for here and I said it was for here. However, she never gave me one of those number tags, while seeing many people who have found seats had one. I just waited and waited until another 20 minutes have gone and I knew something was wrong since I have not even received my order. So I asked one of staff and they were like "Oh I am sorry we forgot to give you a number tag. Please take a seat and your order will be ready asap" .. Another 15 minutes have gone by and I still haven't got my order yet. I wasn't pleased that I had to wait over 30 minutes just for 2 sandwiches. I was ready to leave and go to another place to eat. While for the food, I don't find anything special about it, as it just a another sandwich after all, nothing special, nothing fantastic about it and paying for approximately over 20 bucks for lunch here, I could have probably just went to Tim Hortons or Subway. Save your money and time!! This will be the final time where I will ever come back to Panera Bread. read more

I like it, I have been in Square One, Dundas and Heartland, and always had a good experience, sometimes is busy but for a not fancy lunch or supper, it is ok. Every time we go shopping, mi mother and I enjoy a nice sandwich and soup, the coffee is not bad, they have all kind of teas, the sweets are good. I can't complain. The chipotle chicken panini is better than the one at Artisano. The one in Heartland is a little noise, but the fact that is busy said something about the place. read more

Customer service from the counter staff is not good at all. Young girl working at the front counter on Sunday morning on dec 22 had worst attitude. Need to get Better people behind the counters. read more

Visited last Friday morning for breakfast with my wife. Loved their Avocado egg white sandwich. Nice place to spent some quality time with loved ones!!! read more

Very dissapointed. I purchased a tiny sandwich and soup for $15. It was bland and the soup was clearly not homemade. The bread is not bakery quality as they would lead you to beleive. The internet does not work and the coffee is not fresh but in steel thermos containers. I emailed the customer service center to express my concerns and they said that it is a family restaurant and that they basically do not want people in there for long time like Starbucks and Second Cup. It is too bad - if there food was really good and their Internet worked I would go there all the time. read more

I first tried Panera Bread in Vegas (my second home) and I enjoyed it very much. So just out of curiosity I decided to swing by and see how different Panera is from America vs. Canada. I find that customer service at this location isn't too fast and I happened to wait in line for awhile and I had only couple people ahead of me. When I finally reached cash, I ordered the broccoli cheddar soup with a turkey avacado BLT sandwhich with a side asian sesame salad. I found seating and while I waited for my food I filled up my drink, freshly brewed Acai berry Iced tea which I love. In Vegas, they normally bring your order over to the table but here, you have to pick it up (kind of like a cafeteria). They happened to forget my salad and then apologized and brought it over in no time. Honestly, the food quality was great and not so different from Vegas but only thing that this location lacks is customer service. read more

Very overrated, nothing special about the food, snacks or coffee. They seem to always make a mistake on my order. In my opinion, it's an overpriced Tim Hortons. read more

It was my first time at Panera, I heard some good reviews about it at different locations. When I first took a look at the menu, I thought every thing was definitely over priced, especially for the small portion sizes. When ordering the cashier was pleasantly patient with me starring at the menu for quite some time, when I finally finished ordering she politely directed me to the pick up counter where I stood probably less than five minutes. The guy that made my meal was very rude, he said my name like he's never heard of it before .. it was Maria. His tone was awful and his facial expression was even worst. He sure made an impression on me. Probably not going to this location again for a while. This location needs some better quality staff immediately. read more

I went to Panera today around 5pm and it was practically empty but it still took over 30 minutes to order and receive my food. I ordered two sandwiches and one cup of soup. The girl who took my order forgot to add the soup and I left without it. There were three managers working. 2 women and a man. The man was very loud, constantly breathing heavy as if he was overworked, and he kept interrupting his co-workers who were helping customers. One of the female managers walked by me twice and coughed on me....she did not cover her mouth. I was repulsed! The dirty broom and dust pan were next to the food pick-up counter. The cream at the coffee station was empty. I could continue because I left so unhappy! The food is descent but the service is terrible and I don't appreciate people coughing on me. My son is 2 and he covers his mouth. What does that say about a grown woman? read more

wanted to try them out as they had opened to much fanfare, but i was disappointed. 1. the prices are way too high for the size of their servings. 2. they were quite disorganised, missing out on items ordered. 3. the staff are all new and inexperienced, it all seems quite chaotic. 4, space is very cramped, management has tried to fit in as many tables as they can, with people literally breathing down each other's necks its difficult to move around. 5. the steak and cheese sandwich i had ordered was too over seasoned with horseradish sauce and cost like 11 $ with a tiny bag of chips! i think tim hortons or subway are a better bargain any day. i wont be going back, its all a big hype. read more

I'm a regular at this Panera location, sometimes I go for dinner and sometimes for lunch. During lunch the café can get quite busy, so usually I steer clear of lunch. But today I really felt like I wanted a tomato soup and a turkey bacon bravo. But upon arrival, the line was out the door. I figured since i'd come this far I might as well stay. So after 5 or 6 minutes or so I finally reached the front of the line to only find out they were out of my beloved creamy tomato soup! The cashiers apologized and obviously it wasn't their fault but I was still upset by it. After ordering I found a table and waited for about 8 minutes, which was what I had expected because of how busy it was my food came. The server Dalton apologized for the long wait, and upon realizing my food was not up to scratch due to the soup being cold and the sandwich falling apart he took it back and brought me fresh soup and a new sandwich, along with an apology and a free pastry. I did not expect that at all, he was so kind throughout the whole process and I thank him for that. Other than the service I'd give that experience a 1.5/5. read more

I always love going to panera bread. My family does not eat meat so we order mostly vegetarian options. I ordered a vegetarian Mediterranean salad and a quarter of the way through the salad, I found pieces of chicken. When I told the manager, Carlos, he only referred me to fine print on the board written in small letters that there can be traces of meat. Instead of understanding my situation, he continued to point at the fine print. This was very insulting and I do not intend to go back to this restaurant. read more