Treatment Guide

Panera Bread – Gluten Free Options

Jenny Manseau Gluten Free Works

I love Panera Bread and that we have one not too far from us! Even if we forget that it is there half the time, it is nice when we remember it.  Gluten free panera breadBryan loves their bread and their creamy tomato soup and I truly miss their bread but love their salads and their creamy tomato soup also.  We went to lunch there last week, and like I always do before going somewhere to eat (even if we’ve been there a million times) I went online and checked to see what their gluten-free options were.  However, when I was searching the only updates that I found were from 2008 and 2010 so I decided that I would order something I knew for sure what gluten-free and also e-mailed Panera Bread and asked for an updated list.  Below is the list and e-mail that was sent to me.  The customer service people over at Panera Bread are just awesome – quick in responding, friendly and very informative.

Dear Jenny,

Thank you for contacting Panera Bread. I have included below a list of our menu items that do not contain gluten-containing ingredients. However, because we bake fresh bread daily in our bakery-cafes and bread is core to our menu, we simply cannot ensure that there has been no contact between these items, or any other menu items, and gluten.

Not all of the items listed are currently on our menu and some new menu items have not yet been evaluated for the purposes of inclusion on this list. However, you can find complete ingredients listings for current menu items on our website. (When you choose a menu item in our online Nutrition Calculator, click on the “ingredients” link for ingredients information for that item.)

Please note that nutritional information on our website is updated periodically. New products may be available in our bakery-cafes before a periodic update of this site. In addition, some menu items may be available only on a regional, test or seasonal basis. Nutritional information about these menu items is available at the participating bakery-cafes. Tests of new recipes of existing products may be conducted from time to time in certain markets. These new recipes may contain different/additional ingredients, including allergens, as compared to the original version. For the most update-to-date information, please call or visit your nearest bakery-cafe to speak with a manager.

Thank you again for contacting us. We appreciate your business and value your comments.

Sincerely,
Jamie
Customer Comment Coordinator

List of menu items that do not contain any gluten containing ingredients

**Although we try to meet your special requirements, we cannot ensure that these items have not come into contact with gluten in our bakery-café.

** Gorgonzola and bleu cheeses are commonly made with mold incubated on wheat.  Some may choose to avoid these cheeses for this reason and you may substitute another cheese if you prefer. Items containing these ingredients are indicated below with (G) or (BC).

Salads:    (including the salad dressing)
(source of modified food starch is corn)
Greek Salad Caesar Salad (without croutons)
Grilled Chicken
Caesar Salad (without croutons)
Asian Sesame Chicken Salad (without Won Ton noodles)
Classic Cafe Salad
Fuji Apple Chicken Salad (G)
Chopped Chicken Cobb Salad (G)
Strawberry Poppyseed Chicken Salad
Tomato and Mozzarella Salad (without croutons)
BBQ Chopped Chicken Salad
Fruit Cup – Watermelon
Seasonal Mixed Fruit Cup

Salad Dressings:
Balsamic Vinaigrette
Caesar
Greek
Poppyseed Dressing
Asian Sesame Vinaigrette
White Balsamic Vinaigrette
BBQ Ranch
Light buttermilk ranch

Soups:
Low Fat Vegetarian Black Bean
Creamy Tomato (without croutons)

Beverages:
Coffee
Juice, both apple and orange
Lemonade
Milk
Soda, fountain and bottled
Tea, regular and Chai Tea

All lattes & Frozen beverages
Low-fat Strawberry Smoothie
Low-Fat Black Cherry Smoothie
Low-Fat Mango Smoothie
Low-fat Wild Berry Smoothie
Frozen Strawberry Lemonade
Frozen Lemonade
Hot Chocolate

Panera Bread Potato Chips

If you have a Panera Bread around you – it is a great place to eat if you are gluten-free.  The staff is always very careful about cross contamination and they also an allergen list at the registers for you to double-check anything – especially new items on the menu.

Hope this updated list helps everyone out as much as it has helped me.

—————————–
Author Information: Jenny Manseau – Gluten Free Blogger.
Location: Portsmouth, RI
Website: www.creativecookinggf.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/creativecookinggf
Twitter: www.twitter.com/creatively_gf
E-mail: creativecookinggf@gmail.com

About Jenny Manseau

Jenny Manseau – Gluten Free Blogger. Location: Portsmouth, RI Website: www.creativecookinggf.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/creativecookinggf Twitter: www.twitter.com/creatively_gf E-mail: creativecookinggf@gmail.com

11 comments

  1. Really appreciate the info you shared from Panera Bread. Hope to go there tomorrow for lunch! Thanks!

  2. Hi, I just went there this afternoon. I asked which soups were gf and in addition to tomato and black bean, they said the tortilla soup is gf also. I ordered that so I’m hoping it is really gf…I also ordered the frozen mocha “smoothie”…in the past they have told me it is gf so again, I’m hoping it is as well. Just made me nervous since it isn’t listed on the list they sent Jenny and I know it’s been on their menu for awhile now. I guess in the future I should ask them to check the gf list behind the counter. I’m just wondering if anybody has asked about these two particular menu items?

  3. be very careful. I ordered a Fuji Apple Salad and it came as a Classic Salad with a separate package of dried Fuji Apples. At the bottom of the apple package was a crouton which I bit into before realizing what it was (same color). I spit it out immediately but am sick today from ingesting some of it. this tells me that they are not serious about offering a truly gluten free experience for their customers.

  4. i was very excited to hear Panera has a gluten free menu, but after reading this, it seems panera just has a good salad menu. there is not one gf bread item on the list at all. im sad

  5. People that need gluten free food need to just make it themselves and stop biitching about it. It is really ridiculous. Restaurants should not have to adjust anything for you guys. Do everybody a favor and cook your own food.

  6. @John, you obviously do not have any allergies or sensitivities (pun totally intended), food or otherwise, nor does anyone you know or care about. Having gluten-free options allows people who do have such sensitivities or conditions to enjoy the freedom to eat out like everyone else. I hope nobody you know ever encounters such insensitivity whilst out eating or due to a poorly labelled foodstuff. It can turn into a hospital experience that nobody wants. Cheers.
    PS. many thanks to those businesses that take it seriously, much appreciated.

  7. @John – Really? You’re on a gluten free board. Do you just want to instigate people. Sorry we haven’t figured out how to get a control on debilitating pain and other symptoms that many of us suffer from due to being poisoned by gluten. But serious, once I can a hand on that you will be the first one to know, I promise! If restaurants want our business then yes, they do have to cater to our needs. If they don’t want our business, you are absolutely right they do not have to make accommodations. Yes, changing things may be a pain for you but imagine what it’s like to be afraid to eat everyday because you might be poisoned. So go crawl back in your hole and stir up trouble on some other board! :)

  8. I am glad to see they are responsive to the demands of the market. Unfortunately this list isn’t quite accurate. If you go on to thier website and use the Nutrition Calculator for Soups, for instance, you’ll see that neither the Black Bean nor the Tomatoe soup are gluten free. The Black Bean has “modified food starch” and the Tomatoe soup has enriched wheat flour in the asiago cheese which may be fine but I don’t know if the cheese is blended in to make it creamy. I didn’t check anything else but I suggest checking their ingredients to see what is really gluten free. Best of luck!

  9. I think John is, unfortunately, among the uneducated people who are unaware as to what Gluten is. In fact, I myself was one of those people until I realized I was sensitive to it and became so ill I lost 20 pounds. John may be of the mindset that it is a new diet fad and not actually an allergy. I’m gonna give him the benefit of the doubt.

  10. Hi,

    What is the abbreviation B.C. used for in this context? There are 234 possible abbreviation explanations listed in Google for this, but none are related to gluten. Obviously the (G) you’re using means gluten free, correct? Some may interpret this as “having gluten” so please be more specific in your explanations. Thank you!

    Gluten intolerant solutions in S.C.

    • Hi Linda,

      In the last paragraph before the menu items are listed Panera states:
      Gorgonzola and bleu cheeses are commonly made with mold incubated on wheat. Some may choose to avoid these cheeses for this reason and you may substitute another cheese if you prefer. Items containing these ingredients are indicated below with (G) or (BC).

      G= Gorgonzola and BC = Blue Cheese

      Hope that helps clarify.
      Jenny

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