I absolutely love Panera but after 3 epic fails at the Santa Maria store, sorry to say I won't give them my business again. My order of 1/2 sandwich and 1/2 salad took 28 minutes and my cinnamon crunch bagels tasted like onion bagels. Last week I ordered the cob salad only to be told they were out of products for the salad (?) I then attempted to order a few other options and I was told they were out of that as well. They even ran out of the bread they serve with the soup and salads, wait isn't this a bread store? The employee then tells me they run out of stuff all the time. Poor management? Yeah, the manager not only seems clueless but was fully aware that it took almost 1/2 hour for my food and failed to apologize...epic fail! I'll stick to the Arroyo Grande or SLO store. read more

Absolutely not! Will never go here again. Visited this location several times (I believe in bad days and second, third, even fourth chances). They have NEVER once gotten my order right. I don't make substitutions or modify the existing menu items. Pretty standard, straightforward orders. Order the kale and romaine Caesar... no kale. Not one piece. I paid extra for the Caesar with kale, did not get kale. Paid for a full sized salad, got a half. Ordered one sandwich, got a completely different sandwich... the list goes on. Customer service was horrible. Cashiers aren't friendly, don't know their jobs. Have overcharged me more than once. Don't know the menu items. Twice there was what I'm assuming was a manager or shift supervisor, just screaming at all the employees in front of guests. One of those times was just about soup. Very uncomfortable for myself and others. If I want overpriced salad and sandwiches, I'll go to Natural Cafe. At least they are friendly and get my order right. read more

Huge fan of Panera, but not this particular store. The crew always seem to be confused. Items that are excellent in other locations come out differently here. The French Onion Soup has 3-4 salad croutons instead of the big chunks of toasted bread. Bagels get sliced in disproportionate segments. Coffee pots are regularly empty. All that, and the place is too small. The strength of a chain is the promise of consistency. At this location, Panera breaks its promise. read more

I wish I had four hands so I could give this place 4 thumbs down. I love Panera bread, when they get my order correct, and that only happens about 25% of the time. My order is consistently being destroyed by staff, not sure how it happens but it definitely needs to be resolved. read more

Aside from the food, this Panera Bread location certainly has great service. Sure they get really busy and sometimes waiting for your order while smelling the delicious food can make you impatient, but I think it pays off at the end. Every time I go I receive great service from the cashier, waiters/waitresses and cooks when handing me my to-go order. The food is great, they have a wide selection of items to choose from to fit different tastes and nutritional requisites. My father has diabetes, and he really needed to change what he ate. I went to panera bread to get him something that would get him to like salads since he's not a very big fan. I asked the cashier what she would recommend for a diabetic and I was surprised as to how informative and helpful her suggestions were. I also really like their rewards card or whatever it's called. They're not like some other places where you need to make A LOT of purchases to just get one little reward. I'm not sure how much you have to spend to get a reward, but I feel like every 3rd or 4th time I go there's a new reward added to my card! read more

Awesome service! Great anytime I need an order prep'd 4 pick up!

Good Breakfast. Nice place to hang out in the morning. With coffee or teas. Love it!

07-04-16 Worst customer service. Had 10 plates on the counter that was sitting there forever. There was only one server and that's not even it. My grandma got a grilled sandwich and it sat on the counter for 10 min then finally got to us. Her sandwich was SOOO cold. I ordered a tuna sandwich and there was BARELY any tuna, all bread. We asked the server for another grilled cheese since it was cold. 10 more min go by and he gives it to us and it was hardly warm again! I love coming to Panera but I think I'll have to pass from now on. I would recommend going to the one in Arroyo Grande... read more

Really great location for out of town travelers. Also near by is Starbucks and Jamba Juice.

This place is something else! The wait on my food was long and on top of that my car got Keyed in the parking lot :/

Waiting close to twenty minutes for a to go order. How long does it take to make half a sandwich and a cup of soup? Two other people who came way after me only waited a few minutes got thier food. Super disorganized!! read more

I am addicted! The Mac and Cheese is to die for. The staff is friendly and very helpful to new customers. The atmosphere is relaxed and I saw many students come here to do homework as well. read more

This place needs some TLC or a better manager! Tables are dirty and broken, service is slow and grumpy, espresso machine is broken and the 'art' on the wall sucks! read more

Was served room temperature soup. When I ask if they could hear it up I was told they were unable to do so and that a microwave was available for my use near the soda machine. The employees were very nice but the fact that they aren't allowed to heat up soup is ridiculous. I won't be eating here again and I wouldn't advise getting soup unless you like cold. read more

Extremely nice service, great layout, friendly customers, and comfortable seating. Great place to study or read.

Really good service I went there on August 1st around 8 and the cashier was super nice and I couldn't be happier with my food it's was so delicious read more

The Paneras in LA make this one look like a Subway. I have always enjoyed Paneras food, but this one is bland. The sandwiches lack that certain Panera touch. But, the people working here are very friendly. Great staff. Maybe they just need to buy their ingredients elsewhere. read more

Orange Scone and frozen caramel drink very good, one complaint the A/C wasn't work and I was 80 plus

I've been here countless times. Love the menu and bakery items. Most of my visits have been pleasant but after my last visit, I felt compelled to write a review in hopes that the owner/management reads this. If you want to keep me and my family as customers, something needs to be done about the inconsistent attitudes of your service workers. The majority of the time, the workers are okay...just plugging along but never with a smile or mind to delivering outstanding service. One too many times, however, I've encountered workers who are either non-attentive (walking right by you at both the ordering and pick-up counters), or arguing with you when THEY make a mistake. I can completely forgive mistakes if everything is done to make it right, but service workers should never argue with or contradict a customer. Nothing could be worse for business! I will visit again, but if anything even remotely close to rudeness occurs again, I won't be back. Rude customer service is a deal-breaker in my book! read more

Yeah, yeah, I know it's a chain, but I can't stop eating here! I've been here five times this week already (Disclaimer: I'm in town on business; I don't live here). The staff here is the friendliest of any Panera I've been to. Maybe it's the small town vibe? I don't know what it is, but I'm going to be in Santa Maria for one more week, and let's just say I know where I'm going to be eating for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. There's plenty of seating in this Panera Bread, but man, does it get busy during lunch. It's totally dead during dinner though. Favorite Menu Item: Napa Almond Chicken Salad Sandwich. Sooooo good. ::drool:: Second Place: Mac and Cheese. I've been craving mac and cheese recently and this just hit the spot. Bottom Line: For a healthy-ish lunch/dinner stop by and drool at their pastry display. read more

Way Overpriced and no where near as good as I expected. first time and probably last time I go there.

I was really disappointed with my experience here. I ordered two small chai teas,one cookie,one bagel toasted with cream cheese. It all came out to $18 & some change. I was charged for the bagel being toasted,it was very hard by the way it was hard to eat. When my drinks were done they were rung up incorrectly & they had to make them again. The chai teas tasted horrible,I won't spend another dime here again. read more

On the menu under the salads heading was a "Fuji Apple chicken" salad. Normally this would feature chunks of fresh apple. What it had was a smattering of dried apple chips that were completely tasteless. The salad otherwise was good. But seriously, dried apples? This is not Alaska in January, but central California in August. Rethink, Panera read more

I enjoy going to Panera Bread because its cozy cafe-like atmosphere is a great place to study, there is decent and healthy food, fast free wifi is provided, and lastly it is spacious and there's a lot of seating. I have frequented this spot for study sessions in the past as you can talk and eat compared to the public library in town. There aren't very many cafés around and Starbucks is usually pretty small seating-wise. A couple of seats are near outlets if you are working on your laptop or need to charge your phone. It can get a little chilly after a couple of hours because they have the air conditioning sometimes so I always bring a light jacket in case. Although the food is a little bit on the pricey side, they have fairly healthy options which I like. The bread bowl soups are my favorite! The bread is always freshly made. I also like the pesto sacchettini and the bagels with cream cheese. Overall, Panera Bread is a nice spot to grab a bite, catch up with a friend, or study. read more

I have been frequenting this Panera for about four years. It must be a good place to work, because many of the employees and managers have worked here for that whole period. I think that helps with the consistency and the service. The employees are generally very friendly and service is fast. The food is good, and like any Panera, the ingredients tend to be fresh. The atmosphere is comfortable and you never feel rushed to leave; I have spent a lot of time working on my computer or studying here over the years. read more

I eat here more than I probably should, it's good for a semi-healthy, quick, and reasonably priced lunch. And the staff are super friendly. Even though it is a chain, it's probably the best panera I've been to. read more

The soup and sandwiches are pretty good when they have what i ordered in stock and don't mess up my order. The iced chai is yummy but small and over priced. They don't have any dijon mustard which is a shame. Ok atmosphere to dine in. read more

The sandwiches and soups are awesome! I always get the you pick two and have tried so many different combinations. The only problem is that at times, the dining room can get dirty and they are slow to clean the tables. read more

No complaints about food or service but cleanliness is a problem. Coffee area needs cleaning ROUTINELY!! Also, check to make sure all you offer for coffee is NOT EMPTY. Lastly, many tables are not clean requiring one to wonder around in search of a clean one. This is management's fault period. read more

I have been frequenting this Panera for about four years. It must be a good place to work, because many of the employees and managers have worked here for that whole period. I think that helps with the consistency and the service. The employees are generally very friendly and service is fast. The food is good, and like any Panera, the ingredients tend to be fresh. The atmosphere is comfortable and you never feel rushed to leave. read more

The Food was hot and the service was wonderful! The restaurant was clean and well kept up. We will be returning for sure.

I had never heard of this place and just was introduced to it today. When you walk in the display of naughty sweets is overwhelming. The prices are reasonable but when you get your food you see that it is more than you would have hoped for in a lesser restaurant. The people who work there were so friendly and patient, then something like five waitpersons paraded our order out to us. While we were there we were also blessed with fresh out of the oven cinnamon bagels free for the tasting. Like we were not already drooling from delight at what we had ordered. I was even happier when I found out that there was another one in San Luis Obispo which I might frequent moreso than the one in Santa Maria just because I have more things going on in SLO than Santa Maria. read more

Been going here since they opened. Management is good, staff is always friendly. I've been in other panera breads and as with all businesses the people that work there make the difference. Keep up the good work! read more

Do not come here if you are in a hurry for food or want good service. The food is excellent but the staff is always in a horrible mood & the called in "pick up orders" are not ever ready when you arrive. For Example: I placed a pick up order at 12:15pm today for 1 sandwich & drink. I was told 20 minutes for it to be ready. I showed up at 12:50pm & they had not even made it yet & they were not that busy! Maybe 3 people in line! Ridiculous...happens EVERY time I place an order which is almost 3-4 times a month. When I asked the man who rung me up how much longer very politely, he said he would ask, then ignored me until it was ready. That was it & I've given up on this place. read more

Awesome glad I made a stop here. I got my food and found a quiet spot to sit and read

First of all, the only reason why I'm giving a 5 star rating is because of the lovely employee that helped me, her name was Elisha and she was very helpful and guided me through my process of picking out the best meal for me! Recently I've noticed a change in staffing. Last time I went in was around 3-4 months ago and the staff back then made the cafe a very warm and welcoming environment, from the greetings I would first get coming in through the door from Jessica, Alondra, and Torrie, to Coral coming around making me feel at home, to the very loving Elisha, Carlos, Stephanie, Brenda, Malina, and the newly trained Jordan making the environment such lively that I didn't want to leave! Back then my sandwiches were made with love, but now it seems like they just rush everything and most of the managers are rude, I've had a couple of bad experiences with Daniele and the little short boy manager with the earrings. I had simply asked one question about a sandwich and after I had finished ordering I heard the boy manager calling me a "Karen". The other manager Daniele gives me attitude and is very uncalled for. May god bless Elisha for all the work that's she's done trying to keep Panera the same as it was before, and May god bless the other rude and toxic employees there. read more

6 flipping weeks in a row no light roast coffee. They keep running out, have an attitude when you ask for it and never have a back up ready. If it's so popular why can't you have a back up brewing ready to go because even if you wait your food will get cold and there will be 5 other people wanting the coffee so you have to stand there waiting for 15 minutes just so it doesn't run out on you again. This store rarely has more then 1 cashier even when the line is out the door. The weekend they don't have enough bread half the time I stand in line the last of something is sold and I turn around and leave. Very poor leadership by management the majority of employees do not make you feel welcome. Have bad snotty attitudes when you ask for something. Very poorly run franchise. The owners need to get better management in there. read more

Great customer service. Andrea the shift manager was great even when they were busy and my order was never placed she was able to make it right. Thank you read more

I have tried may of their salads and sandwiches and I'd rate them as good/ordinary--nothing outstanding since I have definitely had better. I think the ingredients they use are all organic, which may be why it is a bit expensive. Overall, I give them 3 stars because it is a nice atmosphere if you want to have lunch to catch up with friends but their food is not something I would crave. read more

As chains go, this is one is not too bad. No fake servers, but more comfortable than fast food. Decent quality food. Reliable.