I recently started being a nomad living in my car and following the social media trend of "living life on 'one's' own speed" and decided to put all my belongings in a storage unit and travel. Yes, I am only traveling in the DC area but it is still traveling and learning all that DC has to offer (including the best places to eat). One of the things that DC has to offer is a Panera Bread at many high traffic shopping centers. I recently became a member of the sip club. As an introductory offer (at this point in time), a sip club membership is $3/month for the first three months. You cannot beat that if 1. you are a coffee lover 2. you spend $5+ at Starbucks (daily) and 3. you are always on the move. I am currently making money being a Lyft driver and being a door dasher. It is amazing for me to be able to go to my nearest Panera and get an iced coffee on a beautiful sunny morning. I love the ability to get an arnold palmer when the beautiful sunny morning has turned into a beautiful sunny day. I can also get tea (very high quality green tea) when it is snowy and/or rainy cold. If you are reading this review, think about becoming a sip club member. The $3/month offer is worth it just to save money for 3 months but you should not get rid of it because at its standard price of $14.99/month, it is a still a steal if you are a coffee lover. Please get the sip club membership and always get your standard fountain drink at Panera because you will save if you get that McChicken, that bacon little cheeseburger from Five Guys, or that sandwich from Jersey Mikes if you get the entree at the main place of business, and enjoy your drink from Panera (always making sure you are saving in the long run). Now onto the folks you will meet @ the Sterling location. I have met Rickard, Jahtrel, Concepcion, and the general manager, Krystal, (among a few others). I have to give the general manager a lot of props. I believe it was her idea to communicate to the community that if there is a school event or a local organization that wants to initiate a fundraiser, Panera is a great company to co-host. Rickard is a little intense but he's a nice guy - ears gauged, bilingual, tattoos, and always just trying to get through the shift with as much positivity as he can give you. Concepcion is a gem! She is most likely in her late 50s, early 60s, speaks fairly great English for English being her second language, and most definitely is a hardworking, kind-hearted woman (so don't be rude or come to the restaurant with "bad juju"). Jahtrel is cool too - probably in his early twenties trying to save money for memories, experiences, and cool new shoes (as well all do in that time of our lives). Now onto to the food. I grew up going to a Panera not to far way from my childhood home in Silver Spring, Md. The Panera I grew up going to is a-okay. I can confidently say that the bread is fresher in the sandwiches in the Stering, Va location (not to say it's not fresh in Silver Spring), just saying I tried the summer caprese sandwich on focaccia bread and it was very satisfying. I love caprese everything and I was afraid of the focaccia bread at Panera because I have had authentic, straight out of the oven focaccia bread before and I did not like it at all. It tasted too much like black pepper with an after taste of sourdough bread. The focaccia bread at Panera does not taste anything like that. It pairs very well with the summer caprese sandwich. Overall, this fast-casual cafe deserves a 8.5 out of the 10 scale based on food quality, how and who they hire, what they prioritize (community & being a for-profit entity), and the cleanliness (outside & inside) of the restaurant. read more

The footnotes while I ate alone :,) * Kind cashier, friendly and the chat we had for the pastry was great! *Good wait time, I didn't wait a lot of time between ordering and waiting, the back of house got food served ~10 mins after the order was pended *Amazing Food! The Chipotle Chicken Avo Melt and Macaroni and cheese was delicious! The Macaroni was a tad bit tangy for my liking, but the cheese and Pasta was really well cooked. The sandwich, I ordered whole, was more than filling, the spices and avocado were just the cherry on top! *Relaxing vibe, the floor was visibly clean, except for some crumbs, but what can you do really. Music choice was very nice, to be fair I like any type of music, but that's coming from a rock listener in an environment with pop in the background. Lighting, Seating was truly the seller, calming, relaxing, while having a lively atmosphere. This was a great experience for a first time! Not Fine Dining, but not Fast Food. A true cafe experience! Bye! read more

Panera Bread - The Blueberry Lavender Lemonade, Chipotle Chicken, Avo Sandwich with chips, Mac & Cheese - small with French Baguette - Sandwiches Near Me - Sterling, Virginia

Stopped to get a turkey sandwich and received a cookie as well as some bread. Nice surprise and will definitely drop by again when need to pick up a sandwich read more

Panera Bread - To go - Sandwiches Near Me - Sterling, Virginia

Sandwich, soup, coffee, brownie for 26 dollars, which i felt was pretty expensive. Sandwich buns were cold and bacon hard. Coffee was good. Soup was good but overpriced. I disliked the kiosk payment system,which took a long time to figure out what to order, and it had a lot of noisy, aggravating prompts. I forgot my phone, so I entered my name. System said they would find me by calling my name. After 10 minutes, I found my dinner myself. Non one called my name. Tgey seemed short staffed. Not as good as I once remembered.​ read more

Hard to find location and staff that really don't provide adequate customer care. They're cheap on their portion servings, even for large items, and it is randomly filled with homeless people from time to time. I would definitely avoid this location. read more

Could these people be any more incompetent? I've been trying to not leave single star reviews and I've been trying to be nicer, but this place is literally zero-for-three: at LEAST THREE attempts on order fulfillment in the past month. I can no longer abide their willful incompetence. From incorrect drinks and incorrect orders, they can't get it right to save their own asses. We started this most recent saga ordering delivery; and I must say, shrinkflation has hit Panera like an eighty year old man falling through the ice on a frozen lake. The baja bowl, for example, is less than HALF what it used to be, in weight and size, while the price has grown like a teen boy's * in a sorority house party. First, they got the incorrect soups, sides, and drinks, second time it was missing drinks. Finally, this third attempt just now, where we went to the store for takeout, they F*ed up the protein and didn't add any chicken that we paid $$$ for. Now, I will say this, we did inspect the basic order, and my partner looked in the bag and it looked "correct" but she didn't look close enough to check and see if there was chicken in the Mediterranean bowl she ordered. There wasn't. I'm sick of this place. If they can't get it right even one time in three they need to just give up and close. read more

Panera Bread - Wow. Twenty bucks to not get it right.....AGAIN - Sandwiches Near Me - Sterling, Virginia

There is a lot I want to talk about but more importantly, it was the look of food and how extremely rude the manager was. Today I called the Sterling location I called and spoke to a guy. He claimed he was the manager and gave me a fake name. I soon learned his name was ERIC. As soon as I made my order, I called and requested a few things. Extra sauce on the side, butter, and end pieces of the bread. When my food came I had no butter, no end pieces, and no straw for my drink. I called and spoke to the same guy. Eric was not pleasant to talk to and was rude from the start. The whole time we were on the phone, he seemed short and was rushing to get me off the phone. I had called and let him know I just placed the order and wasn't given butter, a straw, or end pieces. His first remark was "we don't normally give butter unless you ask". Then he mentioned that he told the chiefs about the end pieces and they must have not understood him. The thing is, he was not being understanding since we started talking. He was defensive and was pushing the conversation like I had wronged him in a way. I had let him know that I had called right after (and he was the one I spoke to) about all of that. He kept repeating that he told the staff but they must not have understood him. I told him that the end pieces weren't that important but I needed butter and a straw. He kept repeating that I never told him about the butter. That was the MAIN thing I called the store about the first time. It was the most important. He said that he didn't have any drivers to bring them back since it was doordash or whatever. I told him I ordered it through the app. He again got really rude saying that he didn't have anyone to bring it to me and he was not having someone come just to give me a straw and butter. I told him that I had called and requested the things but the straw I didn't think I needed to call and ask for since it was common sense. I told him I needed a straw to drink my Pepsi. He then made a rude remark saying "Why can't you open up the drink and take small sips." He did not attempt to help me in any way. I was neither rude nor yelling at all during that conversation, I was genuinely confused during the majority of it. He kept repeating that he wasn't going to send someone out to bring me a straw and butter and that I needed to call in the future if I needed butter. I kept telling him that I called and spoke to him about it as soon as I placed my order. He again kept repeating that I need to call the store and put it in a message. He did not care at all and did not care about anything I said. At that point, I couldn't take the rudeness anymore. I asked to speak to a manager and he claims he "was the manager," who knows if that is correct? I even asked for his name before I left and that was what he claimed his name was. He said that he could refund me my Pepsi and then make another order for the Pepsi and he could send butter and a straw with that order. As in, I would have to pay for a Pepsi (that I didn't before since I'm a member) and pay for the delivery AND convenience fee, just to get the things I've already requested for) Then when I opened my bag to eat it, the sandwiches looked HORRIBLE! The sandwiches looked thrown and not put together at all. One of the sandwiches looked old and squished. The avocados were brown and looked old.  The other sandwich looked worse. The whole middle was pushed out and the sides were caved in. There was sauce all over the tops of the sandwiches (not in the sandwich, literally on top of the sandwich). I have never had that bad of an experience in my life anywhere. The funny thing is that I was just in last night and ordered food. The woman there with straight blond hair was really nice and even gave me samples of two breads and sauce because I didn't know the name of the one I liked. She was extremely sweet and caring AND I came 15 minutes before the store closed, and she still treated me that way. Edit: Today, halfway through my first sandwich, I noticed a BUG in my food. I did take a photo but it's hard to make out what kind of bug it is. It's "small" and has several legs. It's a little squished so It's hard to tell which king but it was folded into the turkey. It's black, and has several legs but it's not a spider. The only reason I noticed it was because I was trying to rebuild my sandwich since it was thrown and nothing was stacked correctly. I like bugs but the one thing I can not handle is them in my food. After seeing that, I was extremely disgusted and threw away my WHOLE order including the brownie. read more

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The cashier lady was rude. Still I left $1 tip. But the issue was with the food. I ordered spicy chicken Fiesta instead I got a sad slices of chicken slapped in sad bread. What I ordered vs what I got my 15 bucks. The customer screen is down all across the board... why read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Sterling, Virginia

This location needs more staff. I've been four times this week, and the lunch rush is a wild scene. Around 2pm, much quieter and nicer, but tables still need bussing. First Panera I've been to where they don't off table service - does that vary by state? Food is tasty and the right temperature, as usual. read more

I know there are a lot of bad reviews for this place out here. I had no issue with the personnel. In fact, I found one of them to be very helpful after I had spilled the stuff that's by the counter. Of course it was by accident but they were very accommodating and helped pick it up. Of course the place needs a little cleaning, but you get what you pay for. read more

Pretty poor on delivery, waited close to 15 min for a toasted bagel with butter. Ordered from the young man at the register and he gave me a buzzer for when the order would be ready, really, we are talking about a toasted bagel with butter...how hard is this? Why do I have to go to a line and wait almost 15 min with all the other food items being prepared for a lousy bagel? Hubby ordered a orange cranberry muffin, instant gratification!!! This was a Sunday morning visit about 9am. Can we wake these folks up? Never again. read more

I get my sip club reward here often and they always seem very busy here but at the same time still very helpful I have placed the order at a wrong location twice before and they were still accommodating to still give me my sip club drink. I appreciate the hard work they do every time I go in there whether I'm just there for a drink or not. read more

My third time here this month and it's consistently bad. I usually come late morning and order a coff and sandwich. Coffee is good, because you get a cup and do it on your own. The sandwiches it's an other story. Last time it took almost 25 minutes. Today, 15+ minutes. We don't have many choices for coffee here in my neighborhood ugh. read more

I usually have pretty average experiences at Panera, but tonight I did a pickup order and had the best experience with Angel! She was beyond kind and very helpful! Would come back to this location just for the great service!! read more

Woefully slow and inefficient. Won't be stopping here on the way to work again. Hard pass.

30 varieties of fru fru drinks on the menu and only like 4 sandwiches. Cant even swap cheddar out for provolone. This is lame. They should focus on some more food options and less trendy junk. read more

This is a really terrible Panera. Trash bins are overflowing, pastries taste at least a day old, and the coffee is even worse than normal Panera coffee. It's basically water. Was almost afraid to eat my food. People were waiting over 20 minutes for their orders. It was just total chaos and dirty. read more

This location is par for the course when it comes to Panera food-- AKA they sometimes burn your bagels when toasting. I've sadly only been here during COVID times and their curbside service is great! One time I had just parked and they were already bringing out my order. Food is packaged and handed to you on a tray. It can be hard to order ahead on Sunday mornings with the wait time over an hour. Plan ahead and don't crave Panera on lazy Sundays. The location can be hard to find so here's a hint- It is tucked away behind Tamarind with plenty of parking. read more

Staff could be more polite. I have been a part of the Unlimited Sips Club for almost 3 years now because I enjoy the coffee Panera has to offer. However, every time I go to this location for my morning coffee to go, the staff refuses to give me a coffee skewer stick to put into my coffee cup lid to avoid spills. They state that is it "against company policy" to have the skewers available for customers at the coffee bar. I have never had this problem at other Panera bread locations. When I ask the staff to give me a skewer, they will give me one, but they are very rude about it as if it is costing them greatly. read more

I love the curbside pick up option from here and the food quality and selection is great . However the past two visits my order has been forgotten and I have had to go inside and find my order after waiting up to ten minutes past when it was ready. One employee, Ms. Jackie P. stood out this last visit and was empathic to the situation. She made sure Panera did not lose a customer. Excellent customer service! We will keep coming back. Jackie made a difference. Thank you Jackie for listening and for caring. read more

Panera Bread - Curbside pick up is easy and quick. . . - Sandwiches Near Me - Sterling, Virginia

Dirty place and terrible costumer service. Took them 15 minutes to do a simple toasted bagel with cream cheese. Walked in at 6:05 AM and the cashier (Melina) was still counting her cash register, asked me to use the kiosk and had the audacity to ask if I knew how to use it. Luis who I believe is the manager came in late and was more worried about eating his breakfast than actually working. This place has become a joke. read more

Candy Cookies are always hard and over baked ?! WHY Always! 4/26 - another burnt cookie 5/03 - they gave me the perfect cookie thank you !! read more

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This Panera is convenient by a major road, but is a little hidden away in the shopping plaza next to an Indian restaurant. I came here for dinner because Panera was donating part of the proceeds to a local charity - so props for supporting the local community! It's ... a Panera ... so you know what you get in terms of menu options. The Napa chicken salad sandwich was good - not amazing, but tasty and filling. Perhaps it was because the restaurant was not very busy when I arrived, but they had some table service, which I'd never before seen in a Panera. read more

Went in got two salads $12.50 each, and a group soup, and was charged $49.00! I can honestly say that this was not worth it. It was a goof thing we checked the bag before leaving because they hadn't given us one of the salads, and when we asked for it they looked at us like we were crazy. Too expensive amd not worth the money. Spend your money elsewhere. read more

I had gone in during the day just to get a quick bite to eat, as I was in Sterling and I love Panera. This visit honestly made me rethink that. The cashiers were no where to be found. After awhile later, someone finally took my order. The only reason why I gave it two stars was because of how fast the order was! When I went to pick it up, I did it with a smile, but the short person with the long curly hair who hands out the food, gave me the dirtiest look. The workers at this cafe really need to learn how to deal and talk to people. Everything seemed so disorganized, and I will not be going back to this cafe. I'll just go to my home one in Leesburg. For the amount I paid for my food too, I feel like it deserved at least more than a dirty look. read more

Not sure what has happened. Used to love the sandwich there Today, went menu has definitely changed. very limited menu. Turkey sandwich hard to eat as it kept falling apart read more

Came here the other day for lunch and got a large salad and a small cup of soup. The reason I did this instead of a Pick 2 was because at another location - in a far away state when I did the Pick 2, there was nothing to "pick through" in the salad part. I mean it was covered in dressing and had hardly any lettuce. So I thought Panera was just falling apart. Then why did I come to another Panera? Well, lunch time was short - were only given 45 mintues between classes and I really didn't want to have Wendy's. I was really surprised at the potion in their chicken ceasar salad. HUGE. I didn't need the cup of soup I ordered but I had a little since I paid for it. I would come here again just to get salad in the future. It was a pleasant experience for me and I liked the courteous staff as well. read more

Eh so this is my second visit in less than a week. The first visit I stayed and ate. They have changed things up a bit I don't if it was this particular location or something all Panera's are doing. I used to be more of a regular but now the visits are a bit sporadic. I generally stick with the soups or a cookie when I eat here as both are always good and can't seem to go wrong. Not to mention I just enjoy a good soup any time of year. So my first visit of the check ins the soup was good. I got the cream of chicken and wild rice. Always consistent as far as flavor. I got there before the lunch rush so the baguette was also nice and soft. So the change was that instead of silverware I.e. Knife and spoon I had go get my own plastic one in bins located next to the pick up area. No biggie but this is different than my previous visits in the past 4-5 years. Perhaps too many people throwing utensils out. The staff who came by to clear my plates were super pleasant as opposed to the other staff in particular the cashiers who just seem unhappy in general. Based on last weeks visit I would have given 4 stars. Fast forward to today. I picked up a gift card only. Today 2 stars average 3 stars between two visits. The cashier seemed and acted like he'd have a great career at the Sterling DMV based on his demeanor. I observe the people in front of me attempt to order and he's chatting with one of the staff and paying these people no mind. When he does decide to acknowledge no apologies from his lack of acknowledgement. What's more this guy based on his dress appeared to be the manager! Had be done that to me I'd be quite annoyed but these folks paid no mind. As for me I get my gift card. No thank you, no have a nice day nothing. I think next time I want Panera I'd be best served by going to a different one. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Sterling, Virginia

I seriously don't know where these bad reviews are coming from. I've always had a good experience every time I come here. The staff is always nice and attentive. Today they held a tasting event where we tried the new summer salads and the new summer corn chowder. The strawberry chicken salad has fresh strawberries and pineapples with seasoned grilled chicken. The chilled soba noodle salad with shrimp was decent. Although I don't like shrimp, it was good without it. Overall I think the event was good. A lot of people turned out for it. We got to pull and score our own mini loaf of bread and learn a little about how to bake their classic French baguette. It was really affordable (only $5 a person). I hope they do more of these for other items on their menu. read more

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Horrible customer service from Oscar the manager. I ordered Mac and cheese through the app for curbside pickup. Knowing that my kids love it I thought I'd order the group size instead of the large. My order was ready quickly and delivered to me outside. I was surprised at how small the bag is. Expecting the $22+ group size to be bigger. When I opened the bag it didn't look different than the large size so I went inside to ask. The manager was so rude! I said that I had ordered a group size, he said "that's the group size". When I explained my surprise as it's not much bigger than the large yet it's $12+ more he didn't say anything except "it's always been this way". I asked for a refund and got my money back. But I guess I have two complaints here, one towards the rip off price for some Mac and cheese and one towards the rude manager who doesn't know what customer service is. Instead of offering any apology I got a smug "it's always been this way". Never going back there again. read more

This is a brand new location, and it shows a bit in the service. The food quality is up to par with other Panera locations, so nothing to complain about there. The staff seems a bit inexperienced, but hopefully it gets better with time. I did see a customer or two having to wait at the ordering counter for a couple minutes while no staff were there to take their orders (Wed night, normal dinner time). Granted, they had maybe 5-6 staff there total at the time, but you should always be aware of customers. Overall, an interesting layout (feels a bit tight), but not bad. Will probably go back for quick bites. read more

Went here for breakfast last weekend. They had ONE person working the cash register, grabbing pastries, etc., doing all of the up-front work. On a Saturday morning. You know, when a ton of people grab breakfast out on the go during their morning errands. Finally, the manager emerged from the back and opened another register. He was very helpful and helped me customize a sandwich the way I wanted it -- sausage, cheese, avocado, egg whites on whole grain bread. I also tried both of the new smoothie flavors available at Panera (super fruit and their version of a green monster -- both good, neither as good as their mango). When I got my sandwich, it was missing the sausage. The coffee was super old. The time on the dispenser said it was already an hour old when I got it, but the flavor overall just wasn't good. I've never thought Panera had the best coffee, but this was the worst I've ever had at one. It was a serviceable breakfast with some good parts and some bad parts in terms of the food and drink. But the bad parts, coupled with the supremely long wait that is uncharacteristic of the Panera Bread chain, makes this location one that still needs a lot of improvements. read more

GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE! I went inside to pick up my order. I was Greeted by 3 employees. All very friendly and enthusiastic. One lady asked if she could help. I responded " I'm just picking up an order." She asked my name and said it wasn't ready and quickly went to see how much longer and provided me an ETA (I was 5mins early) She offered me a cookie while I wait and started a friendly conversation. read more

They have messed up my order online twice. I asked for no lettuce in my quinoa salad and I received a whole bunch of lettuce and hardly any quinoa (picture below) I'm not sure what's going on but ordering online and customizing my order does it work for this location!!! read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Sterling, Virginia

This Panera sucks. My panini tasted really old and the hot chocolate was the worst I've ever had. How can you screw up hot chocolate?! There was way too much syrup in it; I couldn't even finish the damn thing. I should have taken it back but didn't have time to wait for another one to be made. I'd never come back here.. just disgusting! read more

I love panera bread, however this particular store has continued to mislead what items they actually have available. Yes sometimes things run out, however that is not the issue. Only once I have received my money back. This last order had 3 items missing and they charged me fully. read more

Food wasn't ready for pick up even though I was actually late for the time scheduled. They were out of everything. Even I asked for another egg sandwich substitute, I was told by the manager that breakfast was over. ya need up not even having breakfast at all read more

By far my favorite Panera Bread location and my go to place for any kind of sandwich! I'm seriously fussy about my lunch sandwich and this Panera makes the best. Everything, from the bread to the veggies and fruit, is perfectly tasty, fresh, and well made. I appreciate their sandwich skills and will be back again tomorrow! Try the turkey bacon avocado on sourdough bread; you'll love it! read more

I hate to pick on a restaurant in these hard times but this Panera was just awful with our breakfast order. We ordered via their app. Very simple. Two brioche scrambled eggs sandwiches and two large iced teas. We arrived a few minutes after the time we were told the food would be ready and notified the restaurant we were in the parking lot. We waited and waited and waited. I called he manager and he said the food was ready would be right out. We waited, and waited and waited. I called again and asked what the problem was and he said he was waiting for me to tell him what drink we wanted. I told him and finally our cold food was brought to the car. I showed him the receipt he brought with him and it clearly stated 2 large unsweet iced teas. I asked why the confusion and he just stared at me without an answer. Keep in mind this is several weeks into the process of getting the food in your car because of the coronovirus. The manger was clueless of what was going on. My wife and I are trying to support our local restaurants but we just can't go back to this Panera. read more

Honestly I see the same workers almost every day I come in there, they're always working their butt off. The food always came out right didn't come the quickest but that doesn't matter. Their food is affordable and staff is always nice to me. Only complaint is that the coffee taste a little weird but I only spend $10 a month on it. read more