Panera Bread

Even as an exhausted grad student at Mason, I do my best to avoid buying coffee here; however, out of necessity, I usually have to settle for Panera when the Starbucks line is too long. The coffee tastes like burnt cardboard and no amount of sugar/​milk/​cinnamon can make it better. It’s a solid step above chugging Red Bull, so I’ll give it that.

3 strikes, you’re out Panera. This location is convenient when on campus but I’ve had my order messed up too many times to continue coming back. The final straw is being given a greek salad with only lettuce. They fixed it when I asked, but I wasted my time getting it to go and then returning to get it fixed. $ 6 box of lettuce, no thanks.

I was incredibly excited when Panera opened on GMU’s campus. While several reviews mentioned that orders can take awhile, this is not unusual on a college campus. In fact, the easy online ordering/​rapid pick-​up feature lets customers bypass the wait completely. Every time I’ve done rapid pick-​up, my order is ready on time.
Unfortunately, this Panera almost never gets my order correct. I waited a few months to say anything because I know it can take awhile to get into the swing of things at a new location. That said, this location has:
–given me a rotten apple
–failed to include a cookie I paid for
–failed to include a cookie I paid for a second time
–failed to include the salad on my Pick Two order
–failed to include a baguette with my salad
–put avocados that are more brown than green on my sandwich (the image I posted is not the best example of this; those avocados only had brown spots)
–prepared a sandwich with a top slice of bread so small I had to use a fork, and
–put dressing on all but one salad I’ve ordered even though I asked for it on the side every time.
On one of the aforementioned occasions, I did go back to Panera, showed the cashier my receipt, and was given the salad that was missing from my order. However, making an unnecessary trip back to the establishment sort of defeats the purpose of rapid pick-​up: an option many customers select when they’re already in a hurry. Furthermore, there are many days when students (myself included) are trying to grab a meal between classes, jobs, extracurricular activities, etc., and are unable to make a trip back to the center of campus to have an order fixed. This is particularly difficult on a campus with a large number of commuter students where parking is often an issue.
To be clear, I like Panera. As a graduate student who spends long hours on campus, it’s nice to have a healthy dining option that offers good food with fresh ingredients. Additionally, it’s the best place to go for fresh coffee – especially if you’re in a hurry. Regardless, it’s frustrating to not get what you pay for; this is particularly true for college students, many of whom have little disposable income. At the bottom of Panera receipts, there’s a line that reads «Order Checked By _​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​»; this indicates to me that as a company, Panera cares about accuracy. That section was left blank on my most recent receipt from the Johnson Center location. Make of that what you will.

This is the ONLY panera in the area that you actually get what your order. If you ask for no onions you don’t get any. If you change your order slightly they accommodate you. The sandwiches are always made to order perfectly! If only all the other panera places around would be so consistent,

Although the service isn’t too bad, the wait can take forever. I ordered 30mins ahead of time so that I could just pick it up after class and they ended up making me wait 30 minutes once I got there. I was almost late to my next class class which makes me think that the to go option isn’t really worth the hassle here. The other time I went there, they had run out of the sides I had ordered. A few weeks after that, i went there and they forgot about my drink. Eventually I did make a complaint after they gave me the completely wrong order. The manager apologized and quickly corrected my order. So that made a difference!
The thing I do like about this place are the cashiers. They’re usually very friendly and always suggest things to try which to me, is great. Or else I would have just stuck to my regular order.

Excellent service from this Panera a LOT faster rhan my neighborhood Panera. The bagels are great and I love the Strawberry salad!
Managers and staff always greet me with a smile and most know my name by now :)

It’s truly impressive how efficient and quick the service is here. I’ve seen GMU’s dining options change over the past 7 – 8 years, and the addition of this Panera’s at the Johnson Center is truly a game changer. It does get pretty loud and crowded during meal hours. Limited seating but there’s an outdoor patio area, and limited wifi use during peak lunch/​dinner hours but you can always connect to GMU wifi.

Typically I enjoy the majority of my meals from Panera at GMU. Today however there was dirty on my lettuce. There is nothing like the experience of biting into a sandwich or salad and experiencing that gritty texture and mineral flavor. It is just a displeasing sensation. Tried pulling the lettuce out, but the dirt is in the sandwich and has killed any desire to consume it. At least it was not a bug, that would have merited one star. On the plus side, I know the lettuce is fresh.

They get every order wrong! So irritating because the food is great but every time I order here, there’s always a mistake.

This is my favorite Panera to visit! The location is new, but the employees were quickly trained and have the best customer service attitudes on campus. I love that they accept the rewards too, unlike campus Starbucks. Keep up the great work! Gotta love the bread bowl