Exhibit 99.1 PRESS RELEASE Contact: William W. Moreton Chief Financial Officer Phone: 314-633-7100 PANERA BREAD COMPANY TO PRESENT AT RAYMOND JAMES INSTITUTIONAL CONFERENCE St. Louis, MO March 4, 2002 - Panera Bread Company (Nasdaq: PNRA) will be presenting at the Raymond James & Associates 23rd Annual Institutional Investors Conference to be held in Orlando, FL on March 6, 2002, at 10:35 AM Eastern Time. An audio webcast of the presentation will be available over the Internet at http://customer.nvglb.com/RaymondJames/Institutional/. A replay will be available for 90 days at the same site.