How does panera make their bagels

Einstein: Eggs come on bagels only and are microwaved. Bagels: Einstein: Soft, fresh, and chewy are the main characteristics. Unlike at traditional bagelries, the bagels here as well as at Panera are not boiled before baking; that's why the crust is never crusty the bagels instead get steamed while in the oven.

Panera: It's a pretty similar bagel as at Einstein. I thought the Panera bagel had a bit more of a malty flavor, and were a little less soft. Edge: A slight one to Panera. Coffee: Panera: Coffee comes in two styles: Dark roast and light roast. I tried the former and it was a strong, solid cup of joe.

There were timers on each brewer so diners can know how fresh the coffee is. Einstein: More choices of coffee Melvin's brand , and equally good as Panera. Except the timers were not on the coffee machines, so one couldn't tell how long ago each one was brewed. Edge: A draw. Service: Einstein: The staff here has turned over year after year, and yet, almost miraculously, the incompetency has remained absolutely consistent.

If you go in and order a bagel to go, unsliced and untoasted, there is at least a 60 percent chance your bagel will be either toasted or sliced; this has been true since day one. Panera: Too soon to tell, but they got my order right the first time, which is something, as stated, rarely achieved at Einstein. Because the workers there can't possibly be worse. Overall: Panera seems pretty impressive at this point -- it really offers a lot more than Einstein, and the quality appears to be better.

Only real edge that Einstein has at this point is that people tend to leave their newspapers laying around, so there's generally something to read when you go there. Good news, carb-lovers: you might be able to get a whole month's worth of free bagels at your local Panera. Multiple employees and customers reveal that Panera Card members may be eligible to receive a free daily bagel for a month. When you're done with your month of free bagels, just make sure you're eating plenty of healthy carbs in their place.

Unfortunately, just because you're an employee doesn't mean you can hand out free food to your friends. Food costs, my friend. Don't harm the cafe that pays you. If you want your favorite Panera food every day of the week, but don't feel like making seven trips to the store, you can buy certain items in larger quantities. Employees reveal that you can buy a full tub of popular products, like hazelnut cream cheese. It may taste homemade, but that Panera soup wasn't actually prepared by the workers at your local shop.

If you've ever wondered why your muffin comes with a knife and fork , that might just be policy at your local Panera. Panera's famous bread may have been baked on premises, but don't expect that the employees have been mixing the ingredients themselves.

The dough is sent to the store pre-made, according to employees. Bad news, Panera pasta fans: that mac and cheese isn't being lovingly made by somebody in the kitchen.

Panera workers reveal that every pasta dish is heated up in a microwave before it's served. If you don't want to annoy the employees at your local Panera, go inside to grab your Rapid Pickup order. Getting your order at the drive-thru holds up the line and makes more work for the people working at the store. While most Panera baked goods are cooked in-house, two items are exceptions to the rule. If your phone is running low on batteries, head to your local Panera Bread.

Some locations are now offering both Bluetooth keyboards and wireless charging stations at tables. Panera's bagels aren't always precisely sliced, but that's not necessarily the result of human error.

One employee reveals that bagels at Panera are machine-sliced to save time and standardize the process. Unfortunately, sometimes even machines make mistakes. Panera employees may all don that trademark apron, but each store's ownership dictates what uniform they're required to wear.

Lucky residents of Washington D. After the chain shed Au Bon Pain in , it completely blew up. What started out as just 20 shops in the St. Louis area became nearly 2, locations in just a decade. In alone, the store expanded by more than 30 percent , meaning a new location was unveiled almost every five days. Not to mention that the company did this all while maintaining quality and customer commitment.

If Beethoven isn't your jam, then Panera might not be the place for you. The cafe is notorious for only pumping the classical beats.

So if you were hoping for some jazz, you might be better off kicking it at Starbucks. Yes, you read that right: A handful of locations in lower-income areas operate on a "pay-what-you-can" system.

At these shops, or Panera Cares Community Cafes as they're called, the menu lists suggested donations, but accepts whatever you can afford. Panera estimates that about 60 percent of customers usually pay that amount or more, and that these stores tend to bring in 70 to 75 percent of the profits of a normal store. Before McDonald's started shilling kale salad, Panera led the healthy eating revolution by doing something that's now considered commonplace: It was the first to start listing calorie counts on menus.

In addition to that, it also removed all artificial trans fats from the menu in and completely eliminated artificial ingredients from its ingredients in January Their soup menu is officially free of artificial additives, though it took over 60 tries to make the Broccoli Cheddar Soup 'clean'!

With outbreaks of salmonella, norovirus and E. All eggs will be cage-free by Panera employs over 6, bakers who make more than million bagels and 50 million baguettes each year.

Every night, fresh dough is delivered to all Panera locations from Fresh Dough Facilities across the country.