Dive Brief:

• Panera on Thursday announced the largest menu update in its history, which will be available across the brand’s locations starting April 4, according to a press release emailed to Restaurant Dive.
• The menu includes at least nine new items, including four salads, four sandwiches and bacon mac and cheese, as well as reformulations of the recipes for a dozen extant menu items. To make room for the new items, Panera is “taking off some menu categories like flatbread pizza, but it’s all in service of refocusing on the core offerings,” the company said in a statement.
• The chain said the menu updates include “enhanced portions” that include “more to each bite, with more chicken and steak on many salads and sandwiches.” Panera didn’t specify which dishes were impacted, but this adjustment bucks industry trends emphasizing snacking occasions.

Dive Insight:

In addition to the new items, “12 classic favorites – including the Bravo Club Sandwich, Chipotle Chicken Avocado Melt, the Fuji Apple Chicken Salad and more have received recipe enhancements,” according to the press release.

Fast casual competitor Sweetgreen has also looked to enhance its dinner offerings with heavier protein bowls and new dessert options. With Dunkin’, McDonald’s and Starbucks all competing over the snacking occasion — with a special focus on cold caffeinated beverages — Panera and Sweetgreen may find an opening in full-meal occasions.

Menu changes have not gone smoothly for Panera of late. Last year, the company faced intense criticism and at least two lawsuits over its Charged Lemonade. According to a suit filed by the family of a woman who suffered cardiac arrest and died after drinking on of the company’s Charged Lemonades, the 30-ounce versions of those beverages once contained up to 390 milligrams of caffeine, equal to about four cups of drip coffee using the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s estimates. The suit also claims the beverage contained 124 grams of sugar, which is more than a quarter of a pound of sugar.

According to Panera’s website, the large version of its Mango Yuzu Charged Lemonade now contains a max of 234 miligrams of caffeine and 77 grams of sugar. Panera did not immediately respond to a request to clarify if and when the caffeine and sugar content of the drinks changed.Those lemonades debuted as self-service drinks as part of the company’s Unlimited Sip Club, a subscription service for beverages that Panera launched in 2022.