Eating out / Burgers & American / Panera Bread

What I'd Order at Panera Bread to Lose Weight

Panera's bread bowls turn soup into a 900 calorie carb load, so I order the soup in a cup or pick a power bowl instead.

John Schaefer, fat loss coach for 27 years · Updated October 2026

What do I order?

Tell me where you're eating and your goal weight. I'll tell you exactly what to get, with the calories and protein.

Want me to email you your numbers? Your calories, protein, carbs and fats for your goal weight, plus this page so you have it at the table.

Answers are estimates from published nutrition data, not medical advice.

My Panera Bread orders

Power bowl plus half Cobb

Lunch style

Power Mediterranean Chicken Bowl plus half Green Goddess Cobb with Chicken

620calories56gprotein

For a 150 lb goal: 34% of your calories and 53% of your protein for the day.

Teriyaki chicken broccoli bowl

Carb meal

Teriyaki Chicken & Broccoli Bowl

650calories43gprotein

For a 150 lb goal: 36% of your calories and 41% of your protein for the day.

Green Goddess Cobb with chicken

Lunch style

How I order it, the calories and the protein are in the Eating Out Playbook, along with 59 other chains and 25 kinds of restaurants.

See the Playbook ($7) →

The rule at Panera Bread: the lunch style order is built on protein, fat and fiber. The carb meal is the one you have when this is your dinner, or the one meal of the day you're spending your carbs on.

Skip these at Panera Bread

Bacon Mac & Cheese in a bread bowl1,180 cal
Creamy Tomato Soup in a bread bowl900 cal

Numbers from Panera Bread's published nutrition data via fastfoodnutrition.org. Menus change, so check before you order.

How I fit any restaurant into the day

Protein firstEat the protein, then the vegetables and fats, then the carbs. You're satisfied before the bread matters.

One carb meal a dayBread, rice, pasta, potatoes, fries. Keep the big carb hit to one meal. On a night out, that's dinner.

Zoom out to the weekFat loss runs on your weekly average. One dinner out is easy to absorb when the rest of the week is steady.

The Eating Out Playbook

Every restaurant you go to, already figured out.

60 chains and 25 kinds of restaurants, including Panera Bread. Search the place you're going, pick an order, and see how it fits your goal weight before you sit down. Works on your phone, $7 one time.

Get the Playbook Free: my numbers

Quick answers

What is the best high protein order at Panera Bread?

Power bowl plus half Cobb: Power Mediterranean Chicken Bowl plus half Green Goddess Cobb with Chicken. It comes to about 620 calories and 56g of protein.

How many calories should I eat at Panera Bread to lose weight?

It depends on your goal weight. I use goal weight x 12 for daily calories, so a 150 lb goal is 1,800 calories a day and a lunch around 500 to 800 of them. The power bowl plus half cobb is 34% of that day with 53% of the protein. Type your own goal weight on this page to see your numbers.

What should I avoid at Panera Bread if I'm trying to lose weight?

The ones that stack calories with little protein: Bacon Mac & Cheese in a bread bowl (1,180 calories), Creamy Tomato Soup in a bread bowl (900 calories).

Can I eat Panera Bread and still lose fat?

Yes. I've never told a client to stop eating out. Build the order around protein, keep the carbs for one meal a day, and Panera Bread fits fine. Panera's bread bowls turn soup into a 900 calorie carb load, so I order the soup in a cup or pick a power bowl instead.