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Vegan Options at Panera
Panera Bread is an American company with over 2000 branches spread all around the United States of America and Canada. It’s known for its baked goods ranging from croissants to muffins.
Most of their baked goodies are vegan, i.e., animal and dairy-free. Apart from the vegan options in terms of a bakery, they have added numerous other options. This is related to their breakfast and soup menu as well. You can also choose to customize dishes and make them vegan at Panera Bread. It has been reviewed well by PETA and has also released a plant-based menu.
Going out to eat as a vegan can be challenging because most restaurants and cafes aren’t entirely vegan or do not serve vegan options to their customers. However, Panera Bread is one such location that does. In this article, an updated guide on the vegan options at Panera has been provided.
About Panera Bread
Panera Bread has made it to the headlines repeatedly with its newly launched vegan options on the menu. However, variations keep on occurring from one location to another. Thus, it’s best to clarify with the café staff before you order.
Listed below is a detailed guide about vegan options at Panera based on the information laid down on the official website of Panera Bread.
Panera Bread Vegan Options
Ten Vegetable Soup
The Ten Vegetable Soup is an entirely vegan soup available at Panera Bread. This is one of the most popular dishes.
This soup is a rich amalgamation of chickpeas, tomatoes, spinach, brown rice, onions, peppers, garlic, and carrots in vegetable soupy broth with dried chili on top for taste. It is bound to make your mouth water!
Vegan Bread
Panera Bread is also known to serve a large number of vegan bread. These include the following:
- Whole Grain Farm Style Bread
- Country Rustic Sourdough Bread
- Sea Salt Focaccia Bread
- Classic Sourdough Loaf
- French Baguette
- Artisan Ciabatta Loaf
On the other hand, the non-vegan styles of bread are as follows:
- Tomato Basic Bread – it contains honey derived from bees
- White Whole Grain Bread – it has honey as well
- Brioche Roll – it contains egg and milk
- The Classic White Miche Bread- it has milk
Thus, if you wish to visit Panera Bread as a vegan, you know precisely which bread to choose from.
Steel Cut Oatmeal With Strawberries and Pecans
Steel-cut oatmeal is relatively healthier than the other oats you eat. It comes with a cinnamon topping. This oatmeal is digested slower and leads to restricted insulin reactions. Additionally, it’s been minimally processed. If you want to have an even healthier oatmeal dish, you can choose to get rid of the cinnamon topping as well.
Customizable Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich
No sandwich at Panera Bread is indeed entirely vegan. However, the available sandwiches can be customized and vegan as per your preference. For example, you can ask to change the bread to a vegan one from the aforementioned options.
The honey can also be removed. In this case, your sandwich will consist of peppers, onions, hummus, cucumbers, tomato, and salt.
Soba Noodle Broth Bowl With Edamame Blend
The Soba Noodle Broth Bowl with Edamame Blend is one of the main dishes at Panera Bread. However, this may not be available at all its branches.
This dish has a rich miso broth. The noodles contain edamame, onion, mushroom, cabbage, sesame seeds, spinach, buckwheat, and cilantro.
Panera Kettle Cooked Potato Chips
As the name suggests, these potato chips are made by Panera itself. They are 100% vegan and incredibly delicious, per the customer reviews. These are not brought from external sources.
Customizable Salads at Panera Bread
The salads at Panera Bread aren’t entirely vegan. However, you can mix a variety of options to get yourself a vegan salad created. Listed below are a few options that you can opt for:
- Seasonal Greens With Avocado And Quinoa
- Poppyseed Strawberry Salad
- Greek Salad Excluding Feta Cheese
- Modern Greek Salad Excluding Feta Cheese
- Spicy Thai Salad Without Chicken And Wontons
- Asian Sesame Salad Without Meat
- Fuji Apple Salad Excluding Meat
The dressings that you can choose from for your vegan salad are as follows:
- Asian Sesame Vinegar Dressing
- White Balsamic With Apple-Flavored Vinegar Covering
- Greek Dressing
- Thai Chili Vinegar Covering
Fresh Fruit Options
Panera Bread also offers fresh fruits. These come in the following options:
- Pickle Spear
- Apple
- Banana
- Fresh Fruit Cup
Vegan Smoothie Options at Panera
The two already-made vegan smoothies available at Panera Bread are Greenpassion Smoothie and Peach And Blueberry Smoothie With Almond Milk. The rest of the smoothie options at Panera Bread use Greek yogurt and other animal-based products.
Vegan Beverages
When it comes to vegan beverages at Panera Bread, the options are endless. Below mentioned are a few drinks you can have to fit your vegan lifestyle.
Juices
- Orange Juice
- Apple Juice
- Organic Apple Juice
Tea
- Iced Tea
- Hot Tea
Coffee
- Espresso
- Cold-Brew
- Light Roast Coffee
- Dark Roast Coffee
- Decaf
Additional Options
- Bottled Water
- Mist Twist
- Pepsi
- Papaya Lemonade
- Blood Orange Lemonade
Vegan Bagels
The bagels that fall in the vegan category at Panera Bread are as follows:
- Plain Bagel
- Cranberry Bagel
- Sesame Bagel
- Everything Bagel
- Blueberry Bagel
The non-vegan bagels include the ones listed below:
- Sprouted Grain Bagel – it contains honey derived from bees
- The Chocolate Chip Bagel – has milk
- The Cinnamon Swirl Bagel – also includes milk
- The Asiago Bagel – has milk
- The Cherry Vanilla Bage – is made of milk and honey
- The Cinnamon Crunch Bagel – is made of milk and honey
Why Aren’t These Dishes Vegan?
Several dishes on Panera Bread’s menu sound absolutely right for those living a vegan lifestyle but aren’t. These dishes have been mentioned below with a clear and brief description of why they aren’t vegan.
Vegetarian Autumn Squash Soup – Although the dish sounds vegan, it isn’t. This is because of the presence of milk.
Panera Mac And Cheese – This isn’t vegan. Other types of cheese are vegan, but this one isn’t.
Creamy Tomato Soup – The term “creamy” indicates the presence of milk in this soupy dish.
Bistro French Onion Soup – This soup contains chicken and milk, making it a non-vegan dish.
Blueberry And Orange Scone – It contains milk.
Can You Get Whole Plant-Based Dishes at Panera?
The answer to your question is ”yes”. You can get a whole plant-based diet at Panera. The food items that fall on this list do not contain refined oil, animal-based foodstuffs, refined sugar, and refined flour.
From Panera’s menu, the following food items and drinks fall in the whole plant-based diet menu:
- Ten Vegetable Soup
- Fresh Fruit Cups
- Peach And Blueberry Smoothie With Almond Milk
- Green Passion Smoothie
- Steel-Cut Oatmeal With Strawberries And Pecans
- Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich
Wrapping Up
The vegan lifestyle you’ve chosen for yourself must involve no compromises when eating food outside your home. With Panera Bread locations, you can enjoy the taste of excellent vegan dishes, drinks, and smoothies.
With so many options at hand, you can even choose to customize your breakfast salads, sandwiches, and much more to suit your personal desires and needs.
Thus, we hope to have answered all your queries through this article and provided a detailed vegan food guide for Panera Bread. It will help you make the best possible choices for yourself when it comes to food.