Panera Bread’s opening is the latest addition to Loves Park’s busy Riverside corridor

March 26, 2025|By Kevin Haas|In 815 News, Trending, Business, Loves Park, Restaurants, Eat & Drink, Rock River Current, News

Panera opens in Loves Park — General Manager John Murphy cuts the ribbon on Wednesday, March 26, 2025, on a new Panera Bread at 7310 E. Riverside Blvd. in Loves Park. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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LOVES PARK — The city’s first Panera Bread opened its doors on Wednesday at 7310 E. Riverside Blvd., filling part of a two-tenant building in a busy corridor near Interstate 90.

The restaurant is in a stretch of Loves Park that has rapidly developed over the past five years with several new dining options and hotels. Mayor Greg Jury said the draw of visitors from Mercyhealth Sportscore Two is a big factor in the growth.

“This is a great turnout, but wait until soccer tournaments start,” Jury said to a full room Wednesday morning during a ribbon-cutting ceremony. “You’re going to have bodies coming in and out of here left and right.”

Panera cut the ribbon on the new 2,500-square-foot space in a celebration with the Parks Chamber of Commerce. There is 3,500 square feet of space adjoining available for another tenant.

It’s the third ribbon-cutting the chamber has hosted in that stretch of Riverside in the past six months. The previous two were for Buona Beef and The Original Rainbow Cone,7350 E. Riverside Blvd., and WoodSpring Suites, 4101 Galleria Drive.

That stretch of Riverside Boulevard is in the city of Loves Park on the north side and Rockford on the south side. In the last four years that stretch west of the interstate has also added Starbucks, Chipotle and Tom & Jerry’s. The newest Lino’s location opened east of the interstate in Riverside earlier this month. A new Hampton Inn is expected to start construction later this year just west of I-90 at 4170 Bell School Road.

Nearly every available frontage parcel on the north side of the road is now filled. There is undeveloped land on the south side of the street.

“It’s been really exciting over the past several years watching the growth and development on Riverside, and Panera will make a great addition,” Julie Altenbernd, chairwoman of the Parks Chamber of Commerce board, said during the ceremony.

The new Panera has dine-in seating, delivery and rapid pickup. There are updated ordering kiosks with automatic loyalty identification and a fully digitized menu in-cafe and in the drive-thru.

It also has new equipment and a new process for breadmaking that guarantees the store won’t run out of supply, said John Murphy, general manager of the new Panera.

“This store we are guaranteed to have breads all day long,” he said.

Stacy Neubert takes a customer’s order on Wednesday, March 26, 2025, at Panera Bread in Loves Park. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

There are also new coffee options.

“Every time you get a cup of coffee you’re guaranteed fresh because it’s made to order,” Murphy said. “You’re going to have more varieties of coffee. Especially for iced coffee, you always had a dark roast blend for iced coffee. Now you can get hazelnut, light roast, decaf, anything you want.”

Panera touts a menu focused on freshly made soups, salads, breads, bakery treats and sandwiches without artificial preservatives, sweeteners, flavors or colors from artificial sources.

There are three other area Panera Bread locations: 609 S. Perryville Road in Rockford, 1512 West Lane Road in Machesney Park and 2510 Pearl St., suite 117A in Belvidere.