Nonprofit Eatery, Panera Cares, Slated to Open Next Month

Panera Bread is known for its soups and sandwiches.

By Naomi Kooker

Imagine getting your morning coffee and pitching in what you can afford. Well, that’s the idea behind Panera Cares Community Cafe, a nonprofit eatery that’s set to open in Government Center next month, according to Boston Globe and Boston Business Journal reports.


Panera Cares is an offshoot of the national bakery and sandwich chain, Panera Bread. Customers will have the opportunity to pay for their food with suggested donations. This will be Boston’s first café with a suggested-donation menu, according to the reports.

Panera Bread already operates four other nonprofit Panera Cares cafes.

“Simply put, in these non-profit locations, we will feed anyone,” according to the mission statement on the Panera Cares website. “We will offer a dignified dining experience in an uplifting environment - without judgment - whether or not a person can pay.”

Information from boston.eater.com was also used in this post.