So two weekends ago we had dinner at Panera Bread. Panera was not my first choice. I was really hungry and wanting something more. Unfortunately, we were running errands/shopping before dinner, and by the time we went to eat, it was 8:00pm. We opted for Panera because it would be fast. I have nothing against Panera, but it’s just nothing mind blowing.

I ordered my usual, Greek Salad and a cup of Black Bean Soup. I requested the full Greek Salad and full Black Bean Soup…not the Choose 2 bologna. For my side, I got the French baguette for each as they were out of whole grain bread. And, I also got the 99 cent Chocolate Chip Cookie. The last time I was at Panera, the baguette’s were killer so I was hoping for the same. Mommy ordered the Choose 2, Black Bean Soup and Cobb Salad with the baguette.

We sat down and our food came out a few minutes later. First thing I noticed was that my salad bowl was the same size as Mommy’s. I ordered the full salad and received the half. Also, they forgot Mommy’s baguette. I went up and got her baguette but, didn’t want to wait for another salad to be made. Luckily, when they gave me the baguette, they gave me a huge one.

Panera’s Greek Salad is your basic Greek Salad with tomatoes, olives and Feta cheese. This salad was way overly dressed which made the lettuce mushy. Overall, I am usually not super impressed with the Greek Salad at Panera. It is just your basic Greek Salad at a price that is far too high. In the past, I have had some decent salad’s at Panera but this time, it was too small and way too dressed. Overall rating, 6/10.

Panera’s Black Bean Soup reminds me of Skyline Chili which then makes me think of Cincinnati. The soup of course, is vegetarian, however, it reminds me of Skyline’s black beans. So yummy. This particular cup of soup certainly came from the bottom of the container and did not contain enough beans. In the past when I have had this soup, it is thick and very filling. I understand that we were eating late but, I don’t think this should result is sub-par food. Overall rating, 7/10.
Panera’s French Baguette is normally really good. The key is getting big pieces that are warm. When you get that combination, they are killer. On this trip, the two pieces I got with my meal were small and only semi-warm. However, when I went up to get Mommy’s piece, I got a huge piece that was nice and warm. This piece was perfect. Warm and tasty. The baguette’s don’t require any butter at all and the flavor is consistently good. Overall rating, 9/10.

Panera’s Chocolate Chip Cookie is almost always really yummy. Whether you get one from behind the counter or in the bag, they are always good. The cookie I got on this visit was def. not good. It looked good however, it tasted old and stale. Gone were the good flavors of sugar and chocolate chips and in were the flavors of old and stale. This cookie was in the bag due to the fact that they had no cookies left behind the counter. I was really upset because I normally really enjoy their cookies. Overall rating, 5/10.

As you can tell, my visit to Panera this time around was nothing to write home about. Unfortunately, the fact that I went at 8pm equated into sub-par food. My ratings for the entire meal are a few points below where they would normally be however, I do not feel as if I can give them any higher ratings. Hopefully the next time I am at Panera, it will be back to normal no matter what time it may be.

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