Three retired teachers met today at the Valparaiso Panera Bread. The lady who took our orders was so sweet. She made sure we ordered just what we wanted. We were all pleased with our food. I had the Mexican Corn Soup which was delicious and the half chicken salad sandwich. Soup was hot;sandwich was chilled...just perfect. Lots of conversation and catching up. Marvelous time with old friends. Lots of people seemed to be enjoying their meals in a pleasant, clean establishment. read more

A week ago Friday, I came into this restaurant and purchased 2 large soups, two salads and two whole sandwiches. The total came to $97. The food was good but over the weekend, after friends and family were surprised at the high cost, I decided to return to the restaurant to doublecheck the total. A young man, with dark hair, a beard and glasses came up to the counter. I explained that I wanted to doublecheck the total because it seemed high. The first thing he said to me, in a snippy tone, was, "Do you have proof you bought it?". I am a 61 year old woman who said I wanted to doublecheck the total. I had not said a word about getting a refund. I told him I had declined the paper receipt at the time of the purchase but I had the receipt from the to go bag, that showed the total, and the credit card I used to pay for it. He checked the total and said it was correct, letting me know that the 2 large soups were $24 a piece. I like the food at Panera but I can get 32 oz of the most delicious Lentil Soup I have ever had from King Gyros and the King Gyros team members have never been snarky to me. Customer service is to me as important as the food and this young man did nothing but turn me off. read more

First time eating at this location. The service was fast and pleasant. My husband had the bacon avocado on sour dough, which is his favorite. We also got a chicken on focaccia which was very yummy. This location doesn't have a drive thru so we ate inside. The grounds were clean and everything was in order. read more

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They are always super kind and quick the food is always really good I highly recommend them

disaster!! Went In and got two salads, and a cinnamon roll. to go. they forgot the cinnamon roll, put salads in bag sideways, containers both opened and spilled into bottom of bag. sorry to say, very poor service! read more

It is inevitable that this Panera is going to get your order wrong 75% of the time. I can't tell you how many times I have ordered something gotten all the way home and had the completely wrong order- called them only to have them tell me I have to come back in to pick up the correct order. I'm sick of it, go to Portage you'll be much happier. read more

My egg! We popped in for a lite breakfast and both went with the sausage, egg and cheese on baguette. You can choose scrambled or over easy. I requested over medium. Is that okay? Nope. I don't understand. Can't you just leave it on the grill a bit longer (inner monologue)? Okay. So scrambled it is. You order, sit down and wait for your whatever but definitely not medium egg. Mine came without an egg at all. I stood back in line as my sandwich dropped to room temp and finally got my scrambled egg. I'm not mad at all. The bread was okay. The rest was so horribly bland... My companion picked at hers. Deconstructing the thing searching for a bit of salt. Meh. Prices are good but the egg... How can it not be medium and salt. Please pass the salt... read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

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I am not a bagel eater so I can't help you there, but I have had their salads and they are really good. Always loaded with whatever you want on them with a side of bread if you like. The bread is tiny and usually hard. Get 2 if you want more. read more

Panera Bread - Loaded Cobb Salad - Sandwiches Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

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Not good. Had the Sierra Turkey. Dry, no flavor! Barely anything but the bread. Forgot to give me red onion and barely put any field greens. Terrible read more

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Great fresh and healthy offerings, but a little bland for my taste. My favorites are the black bean soup when available and ... TIP ... Ask for an Asiago Baguette rather than chips, apple or regular bread. Like Tony the Tiger says, they're GRRRREAT! The recent remodeling is very nice. You should visit again if you haven't been there recently. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

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Panera used to be a great place! I know Covid hit all the restaurants badly, but you would think a chain restaurant like Panera would've managed better. We ordered soups and sandwiches which would've been great, but they allowed our soups to sit on the counter for more than 15 minutes after we watched them sit them up there. The sandwiches didn't take long after that, but no one notified us until the sandwiches were sitting there another ten minutes. Needless to say, the soups already had the"skin" formed on them and the sandwiches were dry and had barely any meat on them. Unlike previous times when we went inside for the same. The only blessing was that we could get our own drinks! read more

Good food variety, quick service, definitely a solid choice for any time a day. I like their self service ordering stations, when there is a line, it's easy to still order quickly. read more

This is for the Panera on Silhavy. First off $12 for a chicken sandwich that is no better than anywhere else that sells it for $6. Then $3 for a small fountain drink! .89 cents at Casey's gas station. Then they want your name for the order, but then give you pucks so they can advise you remotely when your food is ready. What the heck do you need my name for?!?!?!? At a table next to mine they were given the wrong salad. The young girl told the lady she was with, who went to get the food, that she was hungry and would just eat it. If you're going to charge stupid high prices, everything should be perfect! Never again!! read more

took over 15 minutes to get a bagel with cream cheese. I was the only person there at the time. o asked for vegetable cream cheese and no one told me they didn't have it, just gave me a bagel with sou cream and chive cream cheese. when I told them I was supposed to have vegetable cream cheese, they g me plain cream cheese. I asked again for the vegetable cream cheese (now 20 minutes after ordering) and was told they don't have vegetable cream cheese. read more

We ordered rapid pickup. Mistake! Tuna sandwich was ordered with extra onion. Almost no onion on sand which. Ordered on tomato basil bread. Received on focaccia bread. Not good texture. Called store. System hung up on me. Called back. "Mike", supposedly the manager, said sorry, but if I can't buy you off with a coupon, tough. Management should be better trained. Bottom line- Check your order , hold up the line while you do it! read more

I like the food and my kids do too. When it was warmer, they had flies all around the food prep area. They seem to like to buzz around the ceiling mounted cameras. Who know what the back room looked like. I thought maybe a few got in, so I tried not to think of it. Today I went and they are out of the French bread. Okay, I can't do anything about that. As I watch them making the sandwich, one of the employees flicked her hair back. She used her hand, which had a plastic glove one it. Then she continued to make the sandwich. Got home, the order was wrong. Wrong soup, no bread. It was pointless and disgusting to go. read more

Staff is nice. Food is always hit or miss. Definitely a miss this time. Chipotle sauce on the side is all over napkins, plate and bun. Cheese not melted. Sausage cold. Basically hot sandwich was cold. First time back after a few months. Won't be back for awhile again. Sick of the guy offering to order at kiosk which always takes longer. Lay off dude. read more

Panera Bread - You have got to be kidding me. If i wasnt so hungry i would have taken it back. Cold and messy. Gross. - Sandwiches Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

Just terrible customer service. I ordered thru the app and they only delivered half my order. I called them to see what the issue was, and they HUNG UP ON ME before I could speak. I called again, got someone, explained that I didn't receive half my order. I got put on hold, she came back and confirmed my address, and said "that's the address he delivered to," as if that somehow resolved the problem. I replied "yes, I know, I only received half of it." She immediately asked if I didn't receive the cinnamon rolls. HMM HOW DID SHE KNOW THAT I WONDER. I said yes. She explained that they're out of pastries right now, as if that somehow resolved the issue. She then started telling me that they don't do refunds, only mail-in coupons. I got so mad I hung up before I started cursing at the poor girl. If they were competent, they would have called me to let me know they were out of the item. The fact that they "don't do" refunds is ridiculous. You can't just toss out half-assed excuses and hope a problem goes away. What pisses me off most is the snot nosed delivery driver ran away with a $7 tip that I can't get back for his incomprehensible, staggering, stupendous incompetence. Makes me so sick to my stomach that I threw out the rest of my order. They're never getting money from me again. read more

It's honestly hit or miss here. More miss than hit. This is my daughters favorite place to go, so if it wasn't for her, I would never come back to this location. They have problems with the ovens. Over cooking and burning the bread. I had to switch out my utensils because they were dirty. It's more of a social fest behind the bar where the food is made. I understand having a good time when at work, but when you are giggling and laughing about a customer not getting parts of their meals...kinda unprofessional. I have dealt with attitudes, a manager that shrugged off my complaint (they burnt my daughters grilled cheese sandwich), and a 'sorry about ya' kinda professionalism. Again, only still coming because my daughter enjoys herself here. read more

We ordered delivery and they left out a couple items. We called and they were very apologetic. They offered options to make it right. We just asked that they send us what we ordered. They did and brought us a goody bag of pastries. They handled everything very well and made a wrong right. read more

We went there on Sunday. It's a typical Panera. Clean. Plenty of space to eat. The menu has a good variety. We were sadly sadly disappointed that they were out of most of their baked goods like bagels, breads, and goodies. It was 2:30 when we went. I asked the cashier if they would make more since they would be open for another 6+ hours, but she said they would not make more. I can understand that they may not want a lot of waste at the end of the night, but geeze-o-louise running out that early is so disappointing. We nearly left. I got a Strawberry Field salad and it was A-MAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!! My friend got a pastry and a bowl of soup. She said those were good. Since they're not good at knowing what days/times they're the most busy so they can't plan better, I would recommend going here when it's early. read more

The staff at this Panera have always been friendly, and the restaurant has always been clean when I've been there (this is not always the case with Panera's). The friendliness and the cleanliness were going to bump this from a three to a four, but then I remembered how they took my two favorite vegetarian items off the menu - the fandango salad and the grilled portabella sandwich - so that's bringing them back down to a three as an overall chain. They've done the opposite of most places post 2000 - instead of bringing more vegetarian items onto the menu, they've removed several of the ones they had. Though at last check they did still have a vegetarian soup every day, so that's a plus - keep that up, bring more vegetarian foods back, and maybe more of my business will head Panera's way. read more

I love this location. It's always clean and have friendly staff. The only down fall is they try to skimp on everything. I bought a cup of soup for $4 and it's 90% water 10% vegetables. Canned soup would be more filling than this. I also ordered a smoothie for $5 and half of it wasn't filled up and the cups are tiny!! I keep going back because the soups are to die for but seriously?! They are always super nice about fixing it but it's getting annoying always having to ask for my food to be fixed. I hate to be that guy but the foods pricey for what you get. read more

Panera Bread - Sandwiches Near Me - Valparaiso, Indiana

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I frequent Panera Bread locations often especially when traveling but the Valparaiso location has gone downhill. My last 2-3 visits have been bad and I am done giving them another try. Dirty kitchen area, dirty silverware on my tray, filthy dining room and literally 2 pcs of chicken in salad. Skip this location. read more

We placed a to go order. Store manager was quick to check us in curbside and retrieve our order. We love the bread and bagels. If the stores are running out Panera certainly is not. Great service and fantastic bakery items. Thank you Mr Manager. read more

My food was ok. It's always ok. Except that I had to go ask for them to put cheese on my sandwich that was supposed to come with melted cheese. I watched them put a cold slice on and not bother to melt it for me. Then my husband and I left before finishing our food because we couldn't stand listening to the guys cooking anymore. First, they went on and on gossiping for about 15 minutes, loudly, and then one of them was whistling so loud. It was nonstop. So weird. I wanted to yell. Get it together. read more

I walked in , 1:52 and asked for a bread bowl with cabbage and cheese. They Lady brought it out to me and she spilled it all over my pants! Ouch! read more

Panera in Valparaiso I love Panera (though their prices are getting rather high) and the service is usually good. Friendly, helpful, [prompt etc but cashier/server Mary should consider switching to Ed Debevics, maybe. The first time I ran into Mary, I had gotten a free cup of soup for a week because I participate in the Panera rewards program. It was fall, so I was ecstatic. So I swiped my card and explained that I wanted to use the reward (something pops up on the screen to tell them about the reward and how to apply it etc). But Mary started treating me like I was trying to scam them . . . out of a cup of soup. She didn't even look at the screen. After explaining, yes, I had to explain and placate the cashier, that I understood that it was an unusual reward (other cashiers hadn't heard of it either but they didn't attack me) but it was on my card etc she finally hit the button or whatever . . . Only to COMPLAIN TO MY FACE that giving away soup was a bad idea. Excuse me, how is that my problem? I just wanted to get my food and eat it in peace. I didn't decide on the reward and frankly, didn't like feeling like it was my fault. I was a little freaked but figured that I would never see her again. ONLY. Today my family came in and Mary was our cashier and server. Great. I politely asked if I should swipe my rewards card because sometimes they have to hit a button to prepare the little swipe machine. It didn't look like it was ready and I wanted to make sure that it went smoothly. I was rudely informed that I could. Fantastic. Then she MESSED UP MY ORDER. I specifically stated that I just wanted a cup. I received and was charged for a bowl. I REPEATEDLY CLEARLY AND LOUDLY stated that I wanted a cup just to make sure know it all Mary got it. She was also unfortunately our server. My family is currently going through a bit of a rough patch and WE DID NOT APPRECIATE HER "HUMOR". We come to Panera to enjoy a nice meal out. If I run into her again I am taking my business to the Merrillville location (near where I work). All the other employees at Valparaiso and Merrillville are fine in my experience. read more

My favorite place to eat. I us the app to pickup which is great so I can just walk in and walk out. If dining in I use the kiosk which is also great to customize my order and skip the lines. Foods always great and their frozen mocha is amazing. I love their broccoli cheddar soup and the avacado chicken melt. Would eat here every day if I could read more

I used to like this place but my last few visits have been awful. I can no longer come here. Last month I ordered the acorn squash soup in a bread bowl. The dish was 96% bread and 4% soup. After 4 bites of the soup there was nothing left but bread. Today I had the Chicken Caesar salad. Half the chicken was still frozen. I don't know who is running this place but it seams getting the food out fast is the #1 goal and quality control is completely absent. read more

Solid menu of soups, sandwiches, and salads. A variety of flavors and styles. Plus, they have a variety of bakery items like muffins, pastries, and cookies. I like that they have the calorie count of each item listed on the menu. The staff here is friend and fast. It does seem like the prices have increased lately, but the portion size and quality is still there. read more

I was surprised to be the first to review Panera Bread. We have been here for two hours and the line is out the door. We enjoy the free Internet. They have decent soup, good salads and some nice bread. The bagel we had was too sweet and the coffee is not great by any means, but free Internet! read more

Standard panera. Food was ready before we even got a table. My favorite sandwiches: sierra turkey and bacon turkey bravo

Panera is one of my normal go to spots for breakfast. I loved the Panera in Wichita KS for one simple reason, the drive up window. This way i don't have to go in and deal with all the people who work in these restaurants. It's not just the store in valpo, it's pretty much all of them i frequent across the US. read more

The employees are friendly. The restaurant is clean. The food is great. Our favorites are the asiago beef sandwiches and also the cinnamon crunch bagel, chocolate chip bagel and asiago one. read more

Amazing visit here, don't come often. the lady that took my order, whose name was Susan, was an amazing lady the nicest person I've ever met In this kind of industry. I will be coming back here just because of her! read more

only took one star away due to pricing but other than that they have the BEST FOOD. best bread, salad, sandwiches, soup, shakes, pastries, everything. I probably go once a week, always get something different, and leave with either a pastry ring or a loaf of bread for my house. read more

The food is pretty good and nutritional sides are offered. I love this place for a quick lunch with friend or family. I usually order the chicken salad sandwich on asiago bread and soup combo. Several of their sandwiches and soups are great. The baked goods selection is pretty good and the staff is always very friendly. They have two down sides: The tables are often not cleaned and the parking lot is awful. read more

Overpriced. Overrated. Relies upon the female crowd who thinks they are avoiding fast food. The pastries are inedible and the bread is stale. Soup is straight out of a bag. read more

The food is good but sometimes the sandwiches and soups are a little short on volume. Plus, my main concern is the place looks filthy. The carpet is worn and dirty and the tile floor looks dirty as well. The tables and chairs just look worn. The place needs a face lift in the worst way. read more