Earlier this year, after listening attentively to guest feedback, Panera Bread updated its iconic menu to better reflect what they liked, loved, and wanted to see more of. “The New Era at Panera marks an important and exciting evolution for the brand, one where we are focused on listening to our guests and delivering what they want most,” Panera Bread CEO José Alberto Dueñas announced.
“That means serving great food made just for you, with the right combination of amazing taste, quality ingredients, and value. We are transforming and returning to what our guests love, which will propel Panera into the future as we continue to serve food our guests feel good about eating.”
Panera Bread’s updated food roster introduced several brand-new items and enhanced classics across its menu categories that deliver enhanced portions of chicken and steak and welcome flavorful twists like ranch dressing and balsamic salad dressing options. This appetite-friendly menu is available at Panera Bread bakery-cafes nationwide and includes bakery and breakfast signature sandwiches, salads, soups, and mac & cheese selections in a variety of pairings, portion sizes, optional add-ons, and price points to suit every hunger level and budget.
How Panera Bread Team Members Helped Improve Guests’ Experience
Pleasing guests by giving them more of what they crave at great prices in a friendly environment has always been Panera Bread’s goal. That’s why implementing changes based on insights and input from loyal guests was essential to creating the new menu. However, Panera also paid heed to things the brand was hearing from the other side of the counter.
Based on team member experiences, Panera was able to streamline the company’s pantry and operations, allowing team members to do things more quickly, more accurately, and more consistently throughout the day and maximize the guest experience — because “more is more” when it comes to service as well as value and fantastic-tasting food.
“We have already heard great things from our teams about Panera’s New Era menu. The energy and excitement from our associates around these new menu items have been unlike any other menu change we’ve undertaken. This improved associate experience translates to an even better experience for our guests, with the goal of providing more value and creating renewed excitement,” Debbie Roberts, Panera Bread’s chief operations officer, reported.
“After interviewing more than 30,000 guests during this process, our research shows what they want is a focus on our core offerings, and we are confident that once they try the new menu, they’ll be back for more.”
While the updated menu offers a slew of new sandwiches, salads, soups, breakfast items, and bakery items — some for less than $10 — there’s one tradition that will never change. Every selection Panera serves “is filled with the high-quality ingredients we feel good about, and none of those we don’t because Panera Bread is committed to serving guests food that feels good.”
This article appears in Oct 2, 2024 – Oct 15, 2043.