Panera Bread plans to expand its salad and sandwich options with the “largest menu transformation ever” — including many items for less than $10 — as it shifts away from dinner meals, the company announced Thursday.
The popular chain — which recently earned an exemption from California’s new $20-an-hour minimum wage — will add nine new menu items and enhance the recipes for 12 existing classics in a “new era” at the company, according to a press release.
The rollout at Panera’s more than 2,100 locations is slated to begin April 4.
“We’ve listened to thousands of guests on our path to unveiling more than 20 new or enhanced menu items and are thrilled to bring these products to Panera bakery-cafes nationwide,” said Alicia Mowder, SVP of Product Strategy & Insights.
The budget-friendly items will include a Tomato Basil BLT, Ranch Cobb Salad, and Mediterranean Greens with Grains. Other new items include the Toasted Italiano — with Black Forest ham, soppressata, and provolone — as well as a Chicken Bacon Rancher sandwich served on Black Pepper Focaccia in addition to Southwest Chicken Ranch and Ranch Cobb salads.
Panera’s hearty macaroni and cheese — which can be served inside a bread bowl — is getting an indulgent counterpart, the Bacon Mac & Cheese, which Panera teased will feature “our tangy aged white cheddar sauce, topped with applewood smoked bacon.”
It wasn’t immediately clear if any items would be axed from Panera’s menu aside from its flatbread offerings, which it introduced in 2019 to draw in diners at dinnertime.
The menu overhaul shifts away from dinner and refocuses on Panera’s breakfast and lunch offerings.
“Panera’s ‘New Era’ is incredibly exciting, not only for our guests but also our associates, who will be able to renew their focus on our core menu and serve our guests more efficiently with enhanced portions and better value,” Panera COO Debbie Roberts said.
The company said that its transformed menu will “help streamline operations for bakery-cafe teams,” and comes at a time when Panera is reportedly trying to go public again.
Though there doesn’t appear to be any changes to the bakery at this time, Panera said that additional details about its menu revamp will be unveiled in March.
The company confirmed to CNN that its Kitchen Sink Cookies aren’t going anywhere.
One thing that’s also here to stay: Panera’s controversial Charged Lemonade, whose 390 milligrams of caffeine — more than three times the 111 milligrams of caffeine found in a standard 12-ounce can of Red Bull — was blamed in separate lawsuits for causing fatal heart attacks.
Most recently, 28-year-old Lauren Skerritt from Rhode Island alleged in a complaint that she was rushed to the emergency room after suffering heart problems caused by the popular drink from Panera.
The two other plaintiffs — Ivy League student Sarah Katz, 21, and 46-year-old Dennis Brown, from Florida — suffered fatal heart attacks after sipping on the lemony beverage, their respective lawsuits claimed.
Meanwhile, Panera franchise owners in California won’t have to pay a higher minimum wage because of an unusual carve-out that exempts “chains that bake bread and sell it as a standalone item,” according to Bloomberg News.
California Gov. Newsom reportedly sought the exemption, which benefits Greg Flynn, the billionaire CEO of Flynn Restaurant Group, the company that owns some two dozen Panera Bread locations in the state, among others.
It reportedly isn’t the first time that Flynn, who attended the same high school as Newsom, has been involved in business dealings with the Democratic California governor.
Flynn — who is worth an estimated $1.1 billion, per Bloomberg — has also contributed to Newsom’s political campaigns.
This story originally appeared on NYPost
