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Atlanta Bread Company
Categories: Restaurants Sandwiches Food Bakeries Sandwiches, Bakeries [Edit]
1905 S Neil StChampaign, IL 61820
(217) 356-8040
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- Free
- Good For:
- Lunch
- Alcohol:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
23 reviews for Atlanta Bread Company
23 reviews in English
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Review from Lesley A.
5/18/2012 2 Check-ins Here
I have yet to have a meal here that I didn't like, even if it is a chain restaurant and I'm a big fan of independent businesses.
Atlanta Bread Company is like Panera in featuring baked goods (breads, desserts), sandwiches (paninis included), salads, pastas, pizzas and soups. I usually go for the half and half meal that I get with a half sandwich and half salad. Note though that the half salad is still a big salad that can be a meal in itself so I usually save my sandwich for later.
Meals I've had, all of which lack complaints:
Chargrilled Chicken Pesto Sandwich
Chopstix Chicken Salad
Turkey bacon rustica -
Review from Les P.
Mahomet, IL
3/29/2012
Went there for lunch today and had a very good turkey and brie sandwich.
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Review from Nicole U.
Santa Barbara, CA
7/23/2011
Mediocre.
Place is expensive and I'd probably wouldn't eat here if I didn't have connects.
Chopstix Chicken Salad was alright except they forgot to ... add CHICKEN to it and also there isn't enough dark green leaves.
Bistro Chicken Press is http://bomb.com.
Raspberry-Mango-Strawberry Smoothie/Yogurt? it comes with granola and it's seriously the best yogurt I've ever eaten. It must be fattening :(
Margherita Pizza is tasty and simple.
Their pastries with cinnamon or whatever on top are realllllly really good.
Their Sweet Tea isn't very good. There's like no flavor.
There's no drive thru ;( and finding comfortable seating inside can be very bad by 12-1 (lunchtime).
If a comparison needs to be made, I prefer Panera. -
Review from Vanessa J.
Best california avocado sandwich!!!
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Review from Jen F.
Burlington, NC
12/6/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Chicken salad is great!!
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Review from Tsey-Lin C.
Champaign, IL
10/18/2010 1 Check-in Here
Someone asked me if Atlanta Bread Company and Panera Bread are the same. I guess the comparison can't be helped as they're both soup and sandwich chains, but my answer: absolutely not. I harbor a special love for Panera in my heart that Atlanta will never compete with, no matter how many tries I give it. My visit today pretty much confirmed that.
A fist-sized portion of bread is served with most meals. In the past, I've always been turned off by their bread, which is usually pale and under-baked. I don't have much faith in a place that claims to be a "bread company," but serves such sorry bread. On my most recent visit, the baguette wasn't disturbingly discolored and it had a nice crunch to the crust. I also noticed a subtle hint of olive oil in the bread's recipe. Maybe they're making a few improvements.
Like most lunch chains, I'm sure the soup comes packaged and is heated in-store. I ordered the chicken and wild rice soup today. Highlights: the soup had conspicuous specks of pepper and bright green chives. Unfortunately, it also had the color and consistency of glue... I suspect that the grain had broken down and congealed into a thick paste that was not appetizing.
Atlanta also separates itself from Panera by serving a few additional items on their menu, including pastas. My vegan lunch buddy tells me that Atlanta is a little more generous to those with dietary restrictions, though I don't have any special recommendations to vegetarians/vegans out there. -
Review from Barack O.
Evanston, IL
9/14/2010 1 Check-in Here
Once just a Panera ripoff, Atlanta Bread has since added many more of its own creations. I tried the Italian vegetable panini the other night: tasty but expensive, given the portion size. Even after finishing the pickle and kettle chips that came with it, I felt barely satiated.
Decor is nice, as is the free wifi, but service is somewhat lacking. Nonetheless, this place feels like an adequate option if you're in the mood for a sandwich. (The pastas, however, are quite bland.) -
Review from Tabitha D.
Savoy, IL
10/24/2011
One of my fave places to eat! Good service. Good Food. The half and half deal is great! You can even only get one half of sandwich without having to get another side if you aren't that hungry. They have started rewarding their customers who are fans of them on face-book. In October if you check in on fb and show the cashier, you get a free med drink when you by an entree'. Oh and they have also come out with some amazing yummy muffins...my fave is the caramel apple crunch muffin... but there are also wild blueberry and french toast muffins... also yummy!
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Review from Ernie T.
Champaign, IL
9/17/2010
Every time I go here, I end up wishing I hadn't. In my opinion, the amount of food received for the price is very low.
I just went today to get some soup, and ended up with a 10oz. bowl of Chunky Baked Potato soup and what I would describe as a 'morsel' of bread for about $4. The bread was about half of the baguette size at Panera (which seems to be the obvious comparison, and similarly overpriced), and I felt that the soup quality (approximately cream of potato) and portion size were low on both counts.
I have been here at least 3 times, that I can remember, and have had similar feelings each time. My previous visits were for sandwich/soup combos that were definitely not worth remembering. The building and location are both nice, and convenient to my work, but I can't say for certain that I'll return soon. -
Review from Lisa B.
Champaign, IL
7/20/2010
This one was a little hard for me to review. I have been here a couple of times and I wasn't much impressed with their sandwiches or the salad. I think it's a rip off that any salad you get with the half and half deal doesn't have any meat on it. You can have the "signature" salads but it will cost you more.
Today I had the tuna met and I didn't finish it. I really didn't care for it. It was bland. It was not what I thought it would be at all. I also had the french onion soup which is why I gave 2 stars. I love the French onion soup here. I always order it. I like it better than Panera's but not by much. My friend had the Waldorf salad and she said she would order it again.
We went at lunch time and it's really annoying when people by themselves sit in a booth big enough for 4 people and work on their laptops the entire lunch. We had to sit in a little tiny table off to the side because of this. No less than 3 people were doing this. There should be some law!
I also feel as though this place is too expensive for no more than you get. On the cheap side you can spend almost $8.00. That's just too much for me to spend on lunch everyday. -
Review from Tim M.
Champaign, IL
5/7/2010
I went to Atlanta Bread Company last week with a few co-workers to finally try it out (they had all recommended it), and I was just plain disappointed. When I first ordered, the girl at the counter couldn't understand what I was saying, even though I was speaking loud and clear. She seems distracted the whole time, so I'm pretty sure she just wasn't paying attention. The cashiers were rather chatty, which is totally fine, except they were ignoring waiting customers just so they could finish their conversation. Very unprofessional, not to mention annoying.
As for the food...meh. I ordered the veggie panini and was not impressed. The bread was soggy and all sorts of mashed, and the filling was pretty flavorless (haven't they heard of herbs?). It came with a pickle and chips, which you can't really mess up. All in all, I was not happy with this place, and I won't be eating there again.
Honestly, just go to Panera. The food is better and the service is usually on point. -
Review from Aimee R.
Chicago, IL
10/18/2009
Foods pretty good (although portions are small), coffee's good and you get pretty much unlimited refills if you drink it there, but tea selection is terrible (and poor quality). A pretty good place for lunch and studying, though. It's never gotten too loud during lunchtime or right after lunch, but sometimes they shut off the free wifi from 11:30am-1:30pm to deter people with laptops from hanging around during that time.
Large booths and tables tend to be a pretty good size, big enough for a couple people to study at. Unfortunately, they close pretty early during the week and on the weekends, forcing people to pack up and go somewhere else. Overall, not bad for food and studying, but not great for those who are looking for somewhere to study at night. -
Review from Liana K.
6/22/2009
eh I'd rather get a cheap burger.
I got the mango salsa salmon salad and it was ok but I was still starving afterwards. -
Review from Sarah L.
Binghamton, NY
7/20/2007
It's hard to be in this place without comparing it to Panera, and I think it comes up short. The dishes I had did consist of fresh ingredients, but I think they were more healthfully prepared which made them not quite that super sodium-y fatty Panera tasty.
It was really clean in there, but I kind of got the feeling that was only because it was brand new and that in 6 months it would be grimy. The staff were really friendly, but it was a very forced friendliness.
The free wifi is cool. If it were closer to campus, I would probably think it was a great place to have a working lunch or a sticky bun while doing more work after work. -
Review from Anne W.
9/3/2007
I'm not impressed with this place at all. I do compare it to Panera because they serve identical things with similar decor. If they wanted to not be compared, they should have done something about their menu or decor.
I think their sandwiches (and warm sandwiches) are smaller. I don't like their bread either. As are their soups. I tried the chicken chili and it was good but too small... but it's not better than the Panera Chicken and Wild Rice Soup.
I think this place is only better because it's cleaner. They have a person that cleans off the tables (unlike Panera) and it's closer to campus for students. -
Review from Wendy M.
Urbana, IL
6/15/2010
My colleagues decided to eat at The Atlanta Bread Company last week. I wasn't too excited about returning after a disappointing visit a few years ago... one of those "been there, done that/no need to go back there" visits. I've got to say, I was pleasantly surprised! I ordered a soup & salad combo. The sandwich was a Chicken Waldorf-- a tasty filling served on an even yummier focaccia. The "new" chicken and wild rice soup had good flavor and consistency.
Everyone in my group left very satisfied with their meal. I'm glad they forced me to give Atlanta Bread Company another try. -
Review from Dustin L.
Champaign, IL
8/23/2010
The food here is lousy for such an establishment. For just a little over 20 dollars we received an Avocado sandwich, Turkey Bacon Rustica sandwich, and a strawberry smoothie.
Well.... The avocado was quartered and put on the sandwich which made the greenish brown bits slippery thus, fall out frequently onto your plate instead of in your mouth. To top this the avocado had the stem attached. What could make this any better? Perhaps the bread wasn't quite leavened to the point of a bakery shop's presumed reason to exist. I'm not sure why we actually ate this (We were quite hungry). The Turkey Rustica wasn't that much better. For having the word bacon in it, I do not remember actually being able to taste any sort of bacon within its contents. The bread also seemed to be a bit stale, but it was at least cooked correctly.
To be fair some of the more finer points is that this place made a good tasting smoothie (although, one can argue how hard that is). Being from the west coast, perhaps I am just a snood to what a good upscale bakery/sandwich/cafe shop should be. This is not that kind of example. -
Review from Alice D.
Champaign, IL
3/29/2011 1 Check-in Here
I like their chicken rice soup.
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Review from Sara A.
Urbana, IL
6/23/2009
I ordered their Chicken Waldorf sandwich on wheat bread and a half salad. The chicken waldorf was excellent; big chunks of chicken with cranberries and nuts - yum! The wheat bread was huge - think texas toast size - which made it very difficult to eat two slices as a sandwich. I eventually threw the bread aside and just ate the chicken salad out of it with a fork.
The half salad was bad. No, really bad. The lettuce was not fresh and I had a lot of pieces of lettuce that had the hard white vein running through the middle of the leaf. Ick. They don't have french dressing so I went with the honey mustard which was another bad choice. I took two bites and threw it away - there went $3!
For the amount of money I spent (total was almost $10!) and for the amount of food and the quality I received - the next time I'm going elsewhere. -
Review from Edward M.
Urbana, IL
8/19/2011
Atlanta Bread Co is NOT comparable to Panera. To begin with, the bagels here are not as good, nor is there the same variety. The pastries also leave much to be desired. I love the Bear Claws at Panera but the ones at Atlanta are dry and have minimal filling. Sandwiches and salads are somewhat comparable each offering something the other doesn't. What I like about Atlanta is the breakfast menu. There are several omelets and all are decent, though not exceptional. The accompanying potatoes are so-so and usually cold. Toast is always soggy. The breakfast sandwiches are decent. I have breakfast there every day during the week as it is near my workplace. I have something different each day and the price is reasonable and the food is tolerable. Under $5 for a three eggs omelet, potatoes, and toast isn't too bad. I've tried all the omelets and two of the breakfast sandwiches and while they won't win any culinary rewards, they are filling and somewhat tasty. Somewhat. Do I recommend this place? Well, like many such places, it's hit and miss. Don't go with high expectations and you will be okay. It's not gourmet food or haute cuisine but you'll probably find something you like and will enjoy.
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Review from Daniel F.
8/25/2007
Not bad. The decor sort of has an industrial feel, unlike Panera's warmer environment. I think the bread, esp, sourdough, is better at Atlanta. I did have breakfast here, and thought that pretty good. Many more choices than Panera. Sandwich-wise I prefer Panera. However, Atlanta is a little closer to the main drags, and the local Paneras (esp. the Old Farm one) have such throngs of retirees, locals, students, meetings, etc. that it can be a zoo at certain times.
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Review from Ashley B.
7/27/2008
I'm a big fan! They definitely give you bigger portions than Panera and aren't badly priced. Their chicken enchilada soup and greek salad are my favorite things there. I've also had their pesto sandwich, but I'll agree with Sarah L. when she said their food is much more healthy and not quite as tasty as Paneras, which is far more fattening. I'd definitely reccomend checking it out regardless!
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Review from Brenda D.
Somerset, NJ
6/20/2010
I give this place a 5 star rating because the sandwiches were excellent. They tasted fresh and uniquely exquisite. I usually go to Panera, but Atlanta Bread does a definitely good job. Also, the prices are much reasonable compared to other places. For instance, their croissants look amazing and taste even better. Unlike those from Espresso Royal.
