If you’re hoping to get your fill of cheddar broccoli soup in a bread bowl, and you happen to be in the northern suburbs of Houston, you may be out of luck for a while. Multiple Houston area locations of the popular chain Panera Bread have closed amid a legal battle pitting the nationwide brand against a franchisee.
Panera LLC, which operates and franchises Panera Bread cafés across the country, filed a lawsuit May 23 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri against EYM Cafe of Texas, LLC, which ran several franchise locations of the soup-and-salad fast casual brand. In the original petition, Panera alleged EYM Cafe broke its franchisee agreement regarding 10 locations across the Houston area.
Specifically, Panera’s allegations against EYM include “failing to make a timely payment of any amount due to any third party”; “failing to comply with Panera’s specifications and standards relating to food handling, cleanliness and sanitation”; and “failing to have sufficient funds available in designated bank accounts to make payments to Panera and failing to make timely payments to Panera.”
Moreover, Panera alleged EYM continued to operate the locations illegally after their franchise agreements were originally terminated…