15 Restaurant Chains That Serve Bread So Good It Steals the Show
"Don't fill up on bread or you'll ruin your meal." How often have you been told (or thought) that when at a restaurant and you're dipping your third roll into soft butter? Sometimes that basket of carbs is the best part of any meal—especially at these 15 chains, updated from our previous list of 8.
Why is bread so popular at restaurants? In some cases, it's likely the simple fact that bread is served first, thus eaten when people are at their hungriest—by easing those hunger pangs, bread can come to have a positive association. In other cases, breads are the sides that round out and complete a meal, making what otherwise may have been a satisfactory but hardly delightful meal into a filling feast.
Also, there's just something innately satisfying about bread to the human palate. And it's been that way for more than 14,000 years, with the earliest known evidence of breadmaking dating back to around 12,000 BCE, per NPR.
Long story short, people universally love bread—but which restaurant chains serve the best bread? That leads to less consensus, but when we polled our readers, and added new research from social media, some favorites were immediately obvious. Here they are, the 15 chains that serve the best bread.
Texas Roadhouse
When ETNT put out a survey on social media asking "What restaurant chain has the absolute best bread in the world?" there were hundreds of responses, and every few responses pointed to Texas Roadhouse. This casual steakhouse has taken America by storm over the past three decades, and those rolls that are, per the chain's site, "baked fresh every five minutes and served with honey cinnamon butter," are a big reason why. The signature butter is even available in candle form, for true fanatics.
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Red Lobster
The second most-frequent comment on restaurant chain bread in the ETNT survey was from Red Lobster. The chain's Cheddar Bay Biscuits are celebrated far and wide and are so popular that they can even be purchased by the dozen in to-go boxes, and the biscuit mix can be bought from grocery retailers. They are the most popular menu item from this national chain.
Olive Garden
Lots of people have plenty of love for Olive Garden's breadsticks based on their own merit. One Redditor spoke more many when saying: "They are soft, buttery/garlic-y bread sticks. Not dry or hard in the least. They are the best thing about Olive Garden." But let's be honest: why do people really love Olive Garden breadsticks? Because they are endless, with diners served as many as they can eat.
Outback Steakhouse
Texas Roadhouse is the primary breadwinner, if you will, among steakhouses, but many people love Outback's bread, too, as ETNT found in the poll. One respondent spoke for many when saying: "Outback's brown bread for sure!" And indeed, when chopped into thick pieces and slathered with butter, that brown bread is hard to beat.
Popeye's
The internet abounds with love for Popeye's biscuits. One person spoke for many with an ode posted on Reddit which read in part: "To me they are perfect. They're warm, buttery, flaky, and should be the standard for all biscuits." Many, many others agreed.
The Cheesecake Factory
Before you get to the sumptuous apps, the oversized entrees, and the decadent desserts, you're going to be served some of The Cheesecake Factory's famed brown bread, a favorite among many who sounded off on Facebook. In fact, the bread is so popular that it can now be bought in stores in sliced loaf, roll, and baguette forms.
Bonefish Grill
Bonefish Grill is not as large a chain as the others on our list, but with a presence in some 30 states and nearly a dozen locations in some states, no less, it's growing fast. And the hearty bread served with pesto dipping oil is a major reason why so many people love the place. We're willing to bet that, in a few years' time, Bonefish Grill will rank up with Red Lobster and the steakhouses in terms of customer-favorite breads.
Little Caesar's
Perhaps a dark horse entry here, but there's actually a lot of love out there for the Crazy Bread from Little Caesar's. Maybe that's because you get eight breadsticks for less than four bucks? Just a hunch on our part. You can also opt for the stuffed crazy bread, which is a three-piece order of breadsticks stuffed with cheese.
Carrabba's Italian Grill
You're already carbo-loading here—the restaurant's name even sounds like carbs!—so why not indulge in the bread? Known for their warm loaves served with a seasoned olive oil dip, Carrabba's posted a photo of a serving on social media, saying "The bread and dipping combo you crave! Our blend of fresh herbs and spices perfectly seasons our extra virgin olive oil for dipping your bread!"
It got 120 comments, among them: "I like to dip it into the house dressing too, so good!," "This is so yummy I could eat the whole loaf myself, but hubby makes me share. I don't suppose you would share the recipe?" (they didn't), "No pics it goes too fast:)," "Omg I love the bread with extra extra herbs!!!"—yes, you can ask your server for more spices—and "The best combo of herbs, spices, olive oil and bread!"
Panera Bread
I mean, come on: This place is famous for its freshly baked artisan bread, including sourdough and baguettes. The question is, which is the best? "Ciabatta nation make some noise," said one commenter in an active Reddit forum. Answered another: "Ciabatta and tomato. The tomato makes great croutons as well. Add some salt, and you get both salty and sweet (from the crumb topping)." Others added: "Tomato Basil keeps me coming back to Panera," "I'm a fan of the country rustic sourdough, though cranberry walnut will always live in my heart," "Asiago focaccia" and "white miche OR ciabatta. depends on the day." Hmm, no clear winner—you'll just have to try them all.
Cracker Barrel
According to Today, the fresh-from-the-oven quality of Cracker Barrel's biscuits—crafted using their CB Dry Mix, which includes enriched wheat flour, soybean oil, and leavening agents—showcases why these humble baked goods remain a favorite. With ingredients like sodium aluminum phosphate and calcium sulfate for texture, guests consume over 200 million biscuits annually. That said, one Cracker Barrel employee claims the biscuits are now made in advance and heated up, as a cost savings—sound off if you've noticed the same.)
Logan's Roadhouse
The "made from scratch" yeast rolls are served with butter. "Guys….Logan's roadhouse rolls are so … good. I just needed to shout it out to the heavens that I am in love with their rolls….I eat at least 6 of them every time I go…That's gotta be healthy right???" said one Redditor. "Seconded. Now I really want some," responded another. Added a third: "I always ask for a bag of them to go lol." And finally: "They definitely have the best dinner rolls of any restaurant ever!"
Bertucci's
"Bertucci's rolls are my friend group's absolute favorite thing to have with dinner," said one big fan. They've been a staple since the restaurant opened way back in 1981. Just don't forget to dip. ""I love, love, love Bertucci's dipping oil. If you've never been to this restaurant you're missing out!" advises one fan.
Romano's Macaroni Grill
Romano's rosemary peasant bread has inspired dozens of copycat recipes online, as fans try to duplicate the soft texture and salted herbs. One woman had success: "I used the King Arthur Baking peasant bread recipe but used garlic salt and added chopped rosemary. A lot of rosemary. I sent my husband into the garden and tasked him with chopping the herbs for me and he came back with what I thought was going to be WAY too much. It was not too much, it was delicious," she posted. "This is a very easy recipe to follow! I'm relatively new at bread making and had zero problems with this one!"
Ruth's Chris Steak House
You can fault this chain's grammar but not its bread. "Hands down, the best 'free' bread I've ever eaten at a restaurant has to be Ruth's Chris steakhouse. I don't know if they make it themselves, or where they get it if they don't. Or if they do get it from some local bakery, do they have the same quality of bread in other locations? I don't know. But the bread is amazing. It's brought to the table warm, with real butter on the side. It's a dense sourdough, with a soft, chewy inside and crusty outside. Every time we go there we just can't get enough of it," wrote one fan.
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