Popular chain restaurant closes in SLO after a decade of sandwiches and soups
Popular bakery chain Panera Bread has closed its San Luis Obispo location after a decade in business.
The restaurant opened a decade ago at 299 Madonna Road with a visit from former professional football star and sports commentator Keyshawn Johnson.
A sign posted Friday on the window of Panera Bread’s San Luis Obispo location stated, “We are sorry but this Panera Bread location is closed. Please visit our Arroyo Grande Cafe. 1390 W. Branch St. 805-473-9292.”
The company’s corporate media contact didn’t immediately return requests for comment Friday.
Panera Bread opened in 2011 in the Madonna Plaza shopping center as the fifth franchise location for First Picks Management, a company majority-owned by Johnson, a former National Football League star who won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It’s unclear if the company still owns the San Luis Obispo store.
When it launched, Panera Bread employed a total of 75 full-time and part-time workers, managing director Ingrid Roberts, then managing director of First Picks, told The Tribune at the time.
The Panera Bread chain specializes in freshly baked bread and other bakery items as well as sandwiches, soups, salads and pasta.
Panera Bread was established in 1981 and is headquartered in Sunset Hills, Missouri. The chain has more than 2,000 stores nationwide, according to the company’s website.
%20Cropped.jpg)