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A Customer Paid $71 for Two Soups and Three Sandwiches at Panera and Asked ‘How Did We Let This Happen?’ — X Has Been Asking the Same Thing
By Sohini
4:32 AM CDT on June 15, 2026
A video shows a $71 Panera Bread bill for two soups and three sandwiches
|Images via X/@MatrixMysteries
In a video posted on X by @ @MatrixMysteries, a customer reacts to a Panera Bread receipt totaling $71.62 and asks, "Two soups, two grilled cheese sandwiches, and another sandwich. How? How is this $21 (each)?"
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The customer, who has not been identified, added, "I don't understand. How did we let this happen?"
After the clip spread to X, users began sharing their own experiences with Panera's pricing. "Panera has always been expensive — was only a treat every now and then — but now, no way will I spend that kind of money for soup and grilled cheese," wrote one. Another wrote that restaurant prices have become so "insane" that despite being wealthier than ever, they eat out "as little as I can."
Americans are waking up to how INSANE food prices have become.
He orders 2 soups, 2 grilled cheese sandwiches, and one other sandwich at Panera Bread.
The total hits $71.
For soup and sandwiches.
This is what private equity and corporate greed has done to everyday food. pic.twitter.com/Vss2lFkf1P
— MatrixMysteries (@MatrixMysteries) June 14, 2026
According to Tasting Table, souffles at Panera that once sold for $4.50 in 2024, have climbed to $7.89. In April 2017, Panera was acquired for $7.5 billion by JAB Holding Company, a German conglomerate that also owns Krispy Kreme. Since then, Panera has squeezed both food and labor costs. Panera began serving cherry tomatoes whole instead of halved and added iceberg lettuce to salads, moves that customers criticized online.
Panera CEO Paul Carbone also told QSR Magazine in Novermber 2025, "When the guest comes into the cafe to buy an expensive sandwich of lower quality and a smaller size, they're met with a cafe that we stripped a lot of labor on." That is why he said, "There is no one to talk to."
Panera has always been over priced glorified hospital food, bro just paid $60 for cheese and bread, a bowl of water and veggies
— meatport (@meatportgg) June 14, 2026
One X user who said they had been a Panera customer since 2008 wrote, "When [Panera] was popular back in (...) 2008–2010, it was fantastic. Lines out the door. Fresh bakery items, great soup. Now it's worse than cafeteria food."
The Daily Dot could not independently verify the video or confirm the identity of the customer.
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Sohini is a digital media writer and editor with nearly five years of experience covering trends, entertainment, and online culture. She has contributed to multiple national and international publications in editorial and management roles. When she’s offline, she’s usually watching TV shows and movies with her dog.
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