Panera workers slam new menu item as huge waste…
Panera Bread’s latest menu item is drawing backlash online, as workers of the chain are claiming the new item leads to completely good bread and additional salad being tossed in the trash.
The fast-casual chain’s new Salad Stuffers, which launched April 8, are marketed as “a bread bowl for your salad.”
But workers posting on Reddit declare the offering requires throwing away vital parts of Italian bread — and in some circumstances, leftover salad — according to an article in Today.com.
In Panera’s announcement earlier this month about the new class, chief advertising officer Mark Shambura said friends in testing “couldn’t get enough” of the new roll, and called the idea a contemporary spin on the chain’s signature bread bowl.
The response online, though, has been less enthusiastic.
“The core of the bread is thrown out, and a good chunk of the salad gets tossed in the trash, too,” somebody claiming to be an worker at the chain wrote on Reddit’s Panera discussion board.
“These are a huge waste of money and food. … I wouldn’t recommend spending your hard-earned cash on them.”
Another poster shared a picture on the same Reddit neighborhood, exhibiting a tray piled with hollowed-out bread items.
Panera Bread’s new Salad Stuffers are sparking backlash over claims of food waste. Christopher Sadowski
The individual wrote, “My manager went to a meeting about menu changes and was told these scraps cannot be given to customers or fed to birds.”
Some commenters also questioned whether or not the item represents a true innovation — arguing it intently resembles a normal sandwich with minor adjustments.
“What’s a Salad Stuffer roll? They shove a salad into a hollowed-out roll? Isn’t that just a sandwich then?” one Reddit person wrote.
Another chimed in, “Why not just make a sandwich??”
Others instructed methods the leftover bread could possibly be repurposed to cut back waste.
“We made croutons and had a snack,” one commenter wrote — while another said, “I will be making French toast casserole with these scraps.”
Said yet another individual, “If the CEO were a smart man, these would be the new croutons.”
Someone else added, “They should bake the dough with a tinfoil thing inside so the bread is hollow and doesn’t need to be wasted!!”
Workers on Reddit say completely good bread and salad are trashed, questioning worth. Panera
Others instructed a bread pudding dessert or stuffing.
One commenter merely exclaimed, “I want my bread guts!”
Outside reviewers have also raised questions about whether or not the product is definitely worth the price, including to criticism from some prospects.
In a review, Tasting Table said Panera’s Salad Stuffers have been “meh” as anticipated. The outlet praised a few heartier mixtures, such as the Steakhouse Salad Stuffer, but argued against the worth.
The review in the end really useful that prospects just order a half salad, take the free baguette on the facet and make their own model.
Some critics have also identified that the item bears a resemblance to choices from Bread Zeppelin, a Texas-based chain recognized for its salad-stuffed baguettes, Today.com reported.
Bread Zeppelin also leaned into the comparability.
“Hey @PaneraBread, Zeppelin’s walked, so Stuffers could … try,” the company posted on social media.
It also promoted a limited-time deal encouraging prospects to convey in a Panera receipt to obtain a free salad-stuffed baguette to examine the 2.
The chain has also emphasised that it repurposes leftover bread into objects like croutons and bread pudding.
But not everybody was so fast to toss the Salad Stuffer.
One Reddit commenter said the item was “delicious” and described it as “like a Panera version of a wrap.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Panera, which is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, for remark.
In its announcement about the new Salad Stuffer item, the model said, “Panera chefs and bakers innovated the new Italian Stuffer Roll to deliver the ideal balance of fluffy, soft bread and a freshly prepared dressed salad in every bite. Guests can make any salad on the menu a Stuffer, from classics like the Green Goddess Cobb Salad with Chicken or Caesar Salad to two bold, chef-crafted options created specifically for this new innovation, available at participating cafés.”
Panera Bread first opened in 1987. As of March 31, 2026, there have been 2,251 bakery-cafés in 48 states, in Washington, D.C., and in Ontario, Canada, the company said in its release.
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