Panera Bread

Lake Forest, CA · Cafe

Rating
4.0/5
★★★★☆ 4.0
Reviews
20
Rank in Lake Forest
#96
of 180 restaurants
City Percentile
21%
rating percentile

Panera Bread is a restaurant located in Lake Forest, CA. It is one of 180 restaurants listed in Lake Forest. Its 4.0-star rating is slightly below the Lake Forest city average of 4.3 stars. There are 10 photos associated with this location.

About Panera Bread

From focusing on quality ingredients to serving our food to you in a warm and welcoming environment, Panera Bread is committed to being an ally to our guests. That means crafting a menu of soups, salads and sandwiches that we are proud to feed our... More

Hours

Friday6 AM–9 PM

Customer Reviews

★★★★★ 5.0 Marcus · Jul 2025

Panera’s always fresh and has a ton of great, healthy options. I always get their dark roast coffee and I have the zip club membership so I get unlimited for one low price. The service is quick, and I love that they donate their leftover bagels at the end of the day—it’s a nice touch. If I could change one thing, I wish they opened earlier… 8 AM for most locations is kind of late for a coffee shop.

★★★★★ 5.0 Anita Reyes · Feb 2026

As a vegetarian, I love Panera Bread. The food is always healthy and yummy. A few days ago I had the onion soup with half a Mediteranian sandwich. Delicious! Though I would suggest that, as a restaurant featuring their fine breads, they offer a gluten-free option.

★☆☆☆☆ 1.0 Tanja W · Oct 2025

I used to absolutely love Panera. I’ve been going there for almost two decades — it used to be one of my favorite places for a fresh, comforting meal. The food always tasted high-quality, consistent, and genuinely fresh. But something has changed over the past year. Some of my favorite menu items have disappeared, and even the things that remain just don’t taste the same. The bread is different, the freshness isn’t there, and overall the quality feels like it’s gone downhill. I’m honestly disappointed because Panera used to be my go-to spot, and I really miss how it used to be.

★★★★★ 5.0 O.k Tomahawk · Apr 2022

Came in one day and honestly the lady at the window was super nice came in early in the morning and she was super patient with us. We were at the window waiting for our order and she kept us entertained. I’m not a big fan of Panera but coming here made me want to eat here. Their summer salad was good and I love me some pizza. Can’t complain def worth the trip cause the service was great

★☆☆☆☆ 1.0 Matthew Lucas · Dec 2022

Don't get me wrong food taste great and made fresh BUT I got the half sandwich and cup of soup and a fountain drink total came to over $19. Call me old fashioned but that's ridiculous. The portions were literally kids size but paid for a grown up meal. They need to lower prices or make bigger portions.

Accessibility & Amenities

✓ Wheelchair Accessible Entrance ✓ Wheelchair Accessible Parking Lot ✓ Wheelchair Accessible Restroom ✓ Wheelchair Accessible Seating

Services

CafeBakeryBreakfast restaurantCatererCoffee shopDelivery serviceTakeout RestaurantSalad shopSandwich shopSoup restaurant

Top Restaurants in Lake Forest

NameRatingReviews
U Babci Polish Kitchen★★★★★ 4.920 reviews
Sana’a Cafe★★★★★ 4.820 reviews
Redshift Coffee Roasters★★★★★ 4.820 reviews
QJ Kitchen 秋金★★★★★ 4.820 reviews
Nory's Restaurant★★★★★ 4.720 reviews
Peanuts Pub & Deli★★★★★ 4.720 reviews
Rose Cafe Lake Forest★★★★★ 4.720 reviews
Oliva★★★★★ 4.720 reviews
Kovai Kitchen★★★★★ 4.720 reviews
Handel's Homemade Ice Cream★★★★★ 4.720 reviews

This listing is informational. Contact the business directly to verify credentials, services, and availability.