Dive Brief:

• Dozens of menu items may be leaving some Panera Bread locations, according to a photo of what appears to be a company memo shared by employees on Reddit. The document includes more than 50 items across 13 menu subcategories that are purportedly on the chopping block.
• Panera confirmed it is “currently testing a streamlined menu in a small amount of Panera bakery-cafes,” in an email to Restaurant Dive on Friday. Panera declined requests for further comment on the specifics of its menu strategy.
• The most notable potential cuts include the the removal of all flatbread pizzas and a number of hot entrees, which would constitute a reversal of Panera’s multi-year emphasis on the dinner daypart.

Dive Insight:

Panera said the reduced menu pilot was intended to speed up service and increase convenience while “simplifying operations for our associates.” The chain said it has a number of tests, ranging from new menu items to menu cuts to new technology, going on at any one time.

The menu items that are being removed for the test, according to the photo shared on Reddit, range from individual bakery items, like the kitchen sink cookie and sesame bagel, to individual beverage flavors like several varieties of hot tea. Entire menu categories will also be eliminated, with the flatbread pizzas, souffles, and children’s menu all slated to be removed from test stores, according to the photo. 

The test removal of entrees, like the Teriyaki Chicken & Broccoli Bowl and several items listed in the soup/mac category — including Bistro French Onion Soup and Broccoli Cheddar Mac & Cheese among others —  would undermine Panera’s emphasis on “warm and hearty” offerings that could serve as a full dinner. Most recently, that strategy resulted in the addition of baguette sandwiches in January.

The reported removal of some brioche and sausage options, as well as the souffle menu category, would also take a chunk out of Panera’s breakfast menu. 

The reduced menu test first became public knowledge in early August, when the Reddit account u/Wolfygirl97 shared a picture of the menu changes. U/Wolfygirl97 didn’t respond to a request for comment.

A smaller menu could spark savings on labor and food costs, resulting in leaner operations as Panera looks toward an IPO with a new CEO and CFO. Increased speed of service has been a target for Panera in recent years, and it has trialed drive-thru AI technology, digital-only stores and Amazon palm scanners to smooth friction in customer interactions and speed up orders. The latest major effort in that strategy, the national deployment of drive-thru pickup for digital and mobile orders, was announced at the end of May.