Slow service, high prices for less than okay tasting food and under trained staff. Managers aren't fulfilling their duties at this location.

Wow.. first of all, the cashier does not know the menu... I asked for a Cuban sandwich. I paid for it and grabbed a seat... 10 minutes after, I got a buzz... I went inside and I was told, " we discontinued the cuban sandwich"... the I got reimbursed and asked for a pasta.. see picture.. the pasta was just to throw away... half cooked, salty, and the chicken was tossed on it like a fast food place... no warmed and not missed with dressing. I asked for bread to accompany the pasta and I was told " we do not warm the bread".. this was a joke... I throw it away... it was just a mess read more

Panera Bread - Semi cooked pasta.. no mixed with cheese and chicken.. food was cool - Salad Near Me - Novato, California

Food was fine, cashiers were great. The reason for my two stars was for the rude lady named Laurie at the food pickup station. I asked if the drink on the counter was a strawberry Lemonade. ( I have never had one before, also it was a light pink, unlike the bright pink photo ) she responded coldly " Sure looks like one to me.", I responded saying " I would not know, my first time. No need to be rude. " she just proceeded to do her thing and not care for what I had to say. I will go to the Northgate location for now on. read more

Wi-fi reeeaaaaally slow today. 0.5mb/s down, 0.5mb/s up. Looks like a cap on the speed. I don't see anyone else with a laptop here. 10AM.

We really like this restaurant, food is good and great price. Very consistent as well! Very friendly staff!

It wasn't a complex delivery order. Wasn't huge. Sandwich, soup, drink, Mac n cheese. Soup didn't come with delivery. Mac n cheese cold. Call location. Explain no soup situation. Snarky girl says oh sorry, you can come pick it up. Hmmmm, no. I ordered delivery. Paid the delivery fee in full. Tipped the driver. Paid the bill in full. Not insane for me To expect my delivered order to also be full. Snarky - oh, I'll have to check that with my manager. Manager doesn't pick up phone, apologize or anything, Snarly just Returns to phone, explains manager said it was ok for them to deliver. Mistakes happen - I get that. But In a covid world where SO much of ur business is takeout/delivery - then make sure ur packing it right. And never suggest to a delivered order recipient that THEY come and pick up what YOUR TEAM failed to do correctly. When my soup does finally get here - it damn well better be hot and there should be a courtesy pastry or cookie or some shit. 20 minutes later soup arrives. Hot and they added scones and cookies. So - THANK YOU for that. That was appreciated read more

This might have been my worst Panera experience yet. I walked in m, no one was there, and I was not greeted for several minutes. They were out of non fat milk so no latte for me. I asked for a water cup and got some attitude. The ice machine had no ice, so my water was warm. Then to top it all off there was hair in my sandwich. Last time I go to this Panera ever again. I hope it's just this store and they have not lowered there standards read more

Literally EVERY time we order from this place they make a mistake: missing items, wrong items, you name it. They will look you in the eye, tell you your order is complete and wish you a joyous and happy day, but this is a RUSE. It's to distract you from the fact that they left out your soup or potato chips. CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE YOU LEAVE. The people are very nice, and the food is good, so this rating is an average of the food (4 stars) & order accuracy (1 star). read more

Extremely overpriced for what you get. $10 for a basic sandwich? No thank Panera. I'll grab an authentic sandwich from a local deli in town next time. read more

The food here is delicious. I come here quite often. However today I received the worst customer service ever. The manager on duty at the time was so incredibly rude and allowed another customer to touch my food. I was so disappointed as this is not their normal customer service. It will take awhile for me to come back. read more

So my mom and I came here and found out they changed their menu..... Portions are lame and not consistent. Employees are standing around when all of the tables are dirty and there are crumbs all over the floor. The manager couldn't figure out how use the register so we had to wait 10 minutes for her to figure it out. Don't come here they're over priced and all their food is frozen & just heated up once you order it DO NOT COME HERE. read more

Panera Bread - Gross tables and no one cleans anything even though i am the only person here. - Salad Near Me - Novato, California

I've been here a number of times since Panera Novato opened and all those experiences have been largely positive. To be fair, I guess I should have written a review about one of those experiences but since I'm like a lot of folks out there and am really only compelled to write about the bad experiences, here goes: I got there this morning at around 10:55 and proceeded to order a couple breakfast sandwiches -- only to be informed they have no more eggs and furthermore, are no longer serving breakfast. The girl seemed new and completely lacked empathy. I turned around to leave and once outside, consulted briefly with my 8-yr-old daughter. "Doesn't it seem a little jacked up that it's like 10:58 and they aren't serving breakfast anymore?". "Totally," she said. I decided to return and when I walked back in, was greeted by a different young woman, possibly a manager. When she asked if I wanted to order breakfast, I then inquired about the egg situation. They had 3, but no egg whites. "Still serving breakfast?" -- check. We had 2 minutes. Satisfied with her answers, I proceeded to place my order. As I was paying, the skinny little one in the back yelled, "NO MORE BREAKFAST." She seemed agitated. Unhappy. I'm all for the kitchen communicating with the front of the house, but I don't need to hear that! Especially when it's coming from the scowling face of the girl who's making my Sausage, Egg & Cheese on Ciabatta. Shortly afterward, they called some guy's name, a large brown bag was placed on the counter and half a beat later, a different voice called my wife's name (Panara card is in her name). Confused, I made my way to the pick-up counter. As I was looking around, trying to figure out which bag was mine, the unhappy girl rudely asked, "CAN I HELP YOU, SIR?" After explaining that I heard our name called and being told by another customer that the food I had just pointed at was his, the unhappy girl dismissively informed me that the other bag must be mine. I fully realize this review might come across as nit-picky, but I don't think there's anything wrong with not wanting feel as though I'm an inconvenience to the the folks who work there. I know what they do is hard. Seriously. And they probably aren't paid particularly well. But smile a little from time to time. Don't go out of your way to make me feel like a jerk. That's not too much to ask, is it? I'll still go there. They have good salads and it's fast and convenient. Just hope everybody's a tad more friendly the next time... read more

I previously ate at the Northgate mall one and hate it because of the poor, cheap quality of food. This one is no different. If you like to be served by people who pitch you to pay more than what you asked for on the menu, then this is the place. They will try to coax you into getting that extra bagel, or upgrading to another part of a menu, or opening a Panera Bread discount card with them. I don't know about you, but I don't like being harrassed after making up my mind on an order especially one that has just too many confusing menu items up on the menu board. Once you ordered, they almost will always hand you a buzzer to tell you the dish they prepared is done. YOU have to go get it from the kitchen. Seating is average. They have a variety of booths, seated chairs, and outdoor patio. It was better than the Fresh Choice that was once in this location. And far better look to it than the Pastapomodoro or iHop. Still it's not a Hopmonk with live band, and more adult setting. Definitely visit for lunch, but not for dinner. Don't expect to get wine/beer or socialize. It is for families or cheap dates(like I unfortunately I had to do once). read more

We order the "rapid pick up" here quite a bit when we don't feel like cooking and want something simple, fresh and tasty. Good selection of salads, sandwiches, soups and bakery items. When you order using the app it is literally ready and waiting for you in 10 minutes. So convenient. read more

Prices have increased and portion size has gotten smaller. The two for two is definitely not a great deal. The 1/2 sandwich is more like a 1/4 of a normal sandwich and the 1/2 salad was thrown together with what looked like what ever was left . Half a sandwich was $7.09 & half a salad was $6.79. Add that together and you have your 2 for 2. It was 30 min prior to closing and the ice-tea and other drinks were already drained. Staff are too busy closing then giving good customer service. read more

So , if I could give the staff a rating it would be 5 stars. Customer service is good. Food is ok. The size is bull for the price. Almost 11 dollars for Mac and cheese. It was ridiculous the little to go container. A 5.50 smoothie that was gone in like 5 sips and a wrap that was ridiculously small. Seriously gone in 4 bites. I expected a full wrap or have it look a little bit like the image but in comparison maybe half. Also they don't do eggs after 1030, but it doesn't state that anywhere on the menu. Spent $25 and feel like I was given a snack. They do it according to the corporation s standards. So I can't blame the staff . They are kind and hard working. You can see that. Super disappointed though in portions. read more

Came in this location on a Sunday afternoon at about 3pm, well after lunch rush. Only one person was in line. Most of the tables were empty. My husband and I tried to select a table to sit at but every table in the place was filthy. No one was cleaning the dining area. Pretty gross. read more

I'm happy to say that my last few times my mom and I have eaten here have been great! The service has gotten SO SO SO SO SO much better. I wouldn't eat here before because the service was pretty shitty. The food is always great but the service has been a HUGE improvement! Great job! Keep up the awesome customer service! read more

Panera Bread - Pick 2! My mom and I have lunch dates here all the time now! - Salad Near Me - Novato, California

I have been here a few times and it's good. Yesterday I ordered the bbq chicken salad ( I get that ALMOST every time). I think they have discontinued that salad because he told me they changed the dressing. It's like a chili lime dressing. I liked it, but it was pretty spicy. If you're into spice, you'll like it. If you're not, try it on the side first. I love the baguettes here too. That helped with the spice. They also have a good selection of drinks and smoothies. I've had the mango smoothie and it was pretty good. A little too sugary and I'm not sure that it was actual fruit in it, so I stick with the iced tea. I tried the black bean soup once and it was good too, but a little bland. The service here is fast and good but not that friendly. It's ok. I'm not here to make friends. I like the food. read more

I eat at Panera regularly and the staff all call me by my first name. I have never had a bad experience here. The staff is all SUPER friendly and helpful and they always go above and beyond to make sure you're taken care of. My favorite lunch spot! Oh and don't forget to sign up for your Panera rewards card! You get free goodies! read more

The most socially responsible bakery/soup chain out there: they donate all their bread to homeless shelters at end of day, rather than keep it (unfresh) for next day or worse, wasting it like most bakeries do. Food and service are both good at this location. Free wifi works well. Gluten-free options include the "cream of" soups and some of the salads. Just ask. read more

I'm super glad that this place opened up in Novato! It's much closer than the Northgate one and it's bigger. There's lots of booths and they have great internet (I can work from my laptop, so its nice being able to get out of the house for awhile). The food is a little on the pricey side, depending on what you order, but it always tastes delicious. The staff have been friendly to me, though, they did seem to struggle the first week or two, with keeping up on orders and knowing how to use their POS system on the register. That seems to have cleared up for the most part already and I usually feel like there are extra staff on shift in case something happens. I haven't had to wait too long for my food and this place has a good atmosphere. The outdoor patio area is also cute and I'm looking forward to eating out there sometime. read more

We decided to have dinner here after wandering around Vintage Oaks trying to choose somewhere to eat. The baked goods are great and the place has a nice ambiance. However, I found it really weird that the restrooms were so close to the area that you get drinks and pick up your food. The night we came here, the bathrooms were just cleaned and they left both bathroom doors open. The smell was repulsive and you could smell it in part of the dining area. The food was just mediocre (definitely over salted). Probably won't come back. read more

Price is out of line for the type of food. 30.00 for 2 people ordering a half sandwich each with a small bowl of soup and two drinks. The sandwich was sloppy and fell apart. It was dry and tasteless. Boudin which is a similar type of eatery has much better quality with a third less in price and better taste and ingredients. If they would drop their price and improve their quality, I may consider returning. read more

I know this place is basically just a fast-food version of... well... a fast food version of lots of things. But.... it's still GOOD. The breads and pastries are all fresh (breads more than anything else), and the basic things they have -- soup and salad -- are good. And it's inexpensive, especially for the quality, and they have free wifi -- I have no complaints! This is quickly (along with the one in SR, at the Northgate Mall) becoming my go-to place on the road. read more

It's a chain so don't expect much. Tuna is bland with lettuce pale tomatoes and obligatory onions on soft bread. Half sandwich is $5 with a sample bag of potato chips. Would not recommend. read more

Panera Bread - This what $5 gets you better off at Taco Bell - Salad Near Me - Novato, California

I AM A FAN. I can always count on Panera for a salad and a bag of chips (no bread for me-I'm gluten free). There is something for me at Panera even though I"m gluten free. This restaurant stays open till 10 p.m. and has free internet. The tea is good and I hear the coffee is made fresh at the request. The staff is nice and the food is consistent. Although I think they put too much dressing on the salads, it is a generous portion for those who like it. The pastries look great and the people eating them look as if they're enjoying it. The morning four cheese quiche is tasty and I enjoy it with a fresh tea. read more

After doing some shopping at Costco we decided to have a quick bite to eat here. I ordered the half Asian Chicken salad with a bowl of creamy tomato soup. The food looked and tasted average at best. Aside from my huge disappointment over the salad portion (a half size bowl almost filled to half capacity), it took a few seconds of digging in my salad before I found some pieces of chicken hiding in the greens. The apple, offered as a side dish was severely bruised, mealy and completely lacking in flavor. Overall I felt like I got the short end of the stick in terms of value. I'd be a fool to eat here again. read more

Panera Bread - Half sald with soup - Salad Near Me - Novato, California

Come here. Always clean, nice and. consistent. The food seems fresh and good quality. Little bit salty although. Bread is good too as always. read more

Panera Bread - Eating table. - Salad Near Me - Novato, California

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Good food and service. I love how I can just pick up my whatever to go ...or eat there!

This Panera location is very clean and had an amazing previous manager. I'm not sure if there is a new manager, but the woman in charge here is very rude to her employees from what I've seen. Not only this, but the service is SLOW SLOW SLOW!! Even if you Rapid Pickup order online, your order is NEVER at the pick up shelf on time. I always have to sit down and wait- even at the least busy hour of day! I am always disappointed when I come here, but I keep returning because the food is so good and it is at a convenient location. Update: they NEVER GET MY ORDER RIGHT!!! and food is always cold. It's sad. read more

The food is ok and it's a nice location. The downside? There is a 50/50 chance they get a to go order right. Most of the time they forget part of my order. read more

I ordered the chicken tortellini Alfredo and There was very little chicken placed on top of the very little amount served. The tortellini was great and very well cooked but the portion www very small. The bread that came with my pasta was also dry and tough to eat. Sadly I also ordered a lemonade and that too was too sweet and sugary so it was also unenjoyable. It was my first time eating at any Panera bread location and it was very disappointing read more

Okay usually I really enjoy Panera Bread but tonight was just a horrible experience. I ordered pasta which came in a bread bowl when I could have sworn they come in regular bowls. I didn't really like it but had it any way. Also I had a VERY odd encounter with another customer that was also there when I went to go throw my stuff out... Overall just really bad experience that leaves me not wanting to go back for a long time. read more

I ordered catering from this Panera for breakfast for a large wedding group in a nearby hotel, and was so impressed with the courtesy and service of the staff! They were efficient, on point, helpful, and flexible with our last minute changes to our order. They were on time, quick and helpful. Also very knowledgeable over the phone. Thanks particularly to Brandi and Johnny. If I lived in the area, I'd definitely recommend them for catering! read more

I was excited to see that they were opening Panera in Novato. The place is clean and the staff is friendly and the food is good. Can't really complain. I also like that they have outdoor seating. What I thought was different is that you get one of those little devices that goes off when your food is ready and you have to wait at the counter for it. I just thought it was a little inconvenient because everyone stands around that counter and waits for their food. At other Panera restaurants they bring the food to your table. read more

Panera Bread - Chocolate chip bagel with hazelnut cream cheese - Salad Near Me - Novato, California

NEVER order to-go. This is the third, and likely last, time I've ordered take out here. Each time my order has been messed up. I've had items missing from my order or not getting the customization on the order correct. It's really not worth going all the way back to the restaurant to have them fix it. Tonight, I ordered a steak and white cheddar panini no onions, no horse radish, and a steak and white cheddar panini with everything on it. By the time I got home to hand out food for everyone, my family realized that both the sandwiches were without the onions and horse radish. I give up. Panera has no option for leaving feedback about your visit. They don't have a survey on their receipts. You can't navigate to a feedback section on their website. There is no way that I am aware of being able to contact the company via internet to share with them my experience. read more

I have been a Panera customer for a long time, I've always enjoyed going for a salad during lunch time in San Rafael. Did a rapid pick up for dinner at the Novato Panera and noticed I didn't have any dressing for my salad, when I told the young man behind the counter that there was no dressing he snatched the bag out of my hand and was extremely rude! Another lady working there told me it was on the salad already so I asked for a side of it just in case. The young man proceeded to throw the dressing in my bag and throw the bag at me. I could not believe how rude he was. Worst customer service. read more

We have been customers for years but today I had a very embarrass moment we spend $48.00 dollars And they couldn't accept my $100 dollar bill I did not have any other way to pay the cashier told me they can't do anything, I request to speak to the manager and she refused to take the bill, I end up asking the other costumers for help luckily a lady help me, but I think it is ridiculous they don't do anything to help costumers read more

Next time ur in, check out the cleanliness of their silverware and the tray they serve it on.....