Why The Soup At Panera Bread Isn't Made Fresh

When it comes to fast-casual, Panera Bread knows what it's doing. The national chain prides itself on serving "freshly prepared, clean food" to the masses, including sandwiches, soups, and salads, and this consistently makes it stand out among the myriad of fast-casual dining options out there. However, at the end of the day, Panera Bread still falls under the fast food umbrella, meaning it isn't quite exempt from typical fast food practices. One such practice is freezing food. That's right — if you didn't know, Panera Bread soups and mac and cheeses are not necessarily "freshly prepared." Rather, they are made elsewhere, frozen, and then reheated at each location with a rethermalizer when they're ready to be served.

While you might be a little disappointed to know that there are no Panera employees in the kitchen stirring a big vat of mouthwatering mac and cheese or whipping up a batch of the chain's absolute best soup (Spoiler: It's the seasonal Autumn Squash Soup), don't let this turn you off completely. The reasons for freezing are completely logical.

In an interview with USA Today, Jessica Hesselschwerdt, Panera Bread's Senior Director of Public Relations, said that freezing helps the chain "avoid using certain preservatives that do not meet [its] clean standards." It also allows for consistency across the country: If every Panera Bread location made its own soup from scratch, odds are, it would differ from store to store. Freezing the product allows for it to be the same, regardless of where you are.

If you buy frozen fruit or veggies at the grocery store, there's no reason to stop eating Panera Bread's soup or mac and cheese. Freezing food works to preserve almost anything since it helps stop microorganisms from growing which, in turn, keeps food fresh and safe. It is a natural preservative, so when you freeze food, you can pretty much guarantee it will remain fresh without the need for additional chemicals or extensive processing.

If you look at the ingredient list of Panera Bread's soups, you'll notice that all the ingredients are typical soup ingredients. They're "clean," as the chain refers to them; each one is recognizable. So just because they're not made in the back of the kitchen each day doesn't mean they're anything to be scared of. If you're against the idea of frozen food in any capacity, try one of these 12 popular chains for fresh, not frozen food. However, if you eat at any other fast food and fast casual restaurants, there's a high chance that many of the menu items were formerly frozen and then reheated. That's just how it is in the world of fast food: If you want it fast, sometimes, you just have to settle for frozen.