Au Bon Pain

Just got a Newport Turkey sandwich from this place. To begin with, the lady behind the counter, who also made the sandwich, was rude, acting like I was the biggest scumbag to walk the face of the earth, which is usual for this place. At least, I thought, the sandwich will be good. No chance. Got home, opened up the box to find the most miserable looking sandwich I have ever seen. Not sure if I can even eat it. Almost $ 8 for this abomination. No wonder it’s located inside a hospital. Saves driving time for the ambulance. Stay clear of this place. (I wonder if they have some sort of ‘deal’ going with Tufts?).

I come here for lunch when I’m too lazy to walk to the Panera. Location is probably the only reason I’m a customer. Food isn’t that good, coffee is weak, staff are hit or miss, my sandwich order is messed up maybe 20% of the time, and their ordering process could use some management. I felt it was a bit better before it closed and reopened but not by much.

I really don’t know how this awful place got the hospital contracts! Employees, across the board are rude, lazy, slow and treat you like they’re doing you a favor. Smiles must be frowned upon. Oh, coffee sucks

This Au Bön Pain is located right in the atrium of Tufts Medical Center. It was closed a few years ago and reopened earlier this year.
Coffee and pastries are self-​served. The quality of coffee is okay. It does the job to keep me awake but taste wise it’s just all right. You can expect to wait for a good while for any wraps and sandwiches. The alternative would be to grab a pre-​made salad or wrap, or get a bowl of soup and some breadsticks.
Most, if not all items are overpriced for the mediocre food. If I have more time to spare, I would prefer to walk a couple of blocks down to the Panera or Starbucks. There are always TMC employees here due to the convenience. It’s just easy to walk down to the atrium to grab a bite when you have a long, busy workday, even though there are many better options just a few minutes away from the hospital.
During breakfast and lunch hours, it is always packed and service is incredibly slow, so try to avoid those times if you can.

Very good and cheap coffee. The breakfast sandwiches are much better than dunks or Starbucks and much cheaper.

This place is super convenient so that’s a plus.
I would expect this place to have much faster service! Like hello it should not take over 5 minutes for you to make a wrap, and it wasn’t even busy.
The coffee was pretty much gross and was watered down. The layout that they have is confusing.

Great lunch place if you are looking for something that is yummy + time saver. I ordered the turkey bacon sandwich. The sandwich literally just came with one small lettuce leave, one tomato, one slice of cheese, 1 piece of bacon, and turkey baloney stacked up to 1 inch thick. I guess I prefer my sandwiches to have at least a little more veggies in it? Anyhow, the following day I also tried the chicken salad and the chicken parmesan which were delicious. If you go here, also try the mini chocolate chip cookies next to the registers, you will not be disappointed!

Closed for good. Remodeling for new café. 3^rd floor has coffee sandwiches and salads ²⁴⁄₇ now.

After having tried many of their sandwiches, soups, salads and pastries since I moved here for school, i can safely say that it’s really sub-​par food for the money.
–bread quality for the sandwiches is variable, mediocre most of the time.
–pastries are all dry and pretty much garbage… passable between 10 pm — 11 pm when they’re 50% off and you’re in desperate need of a sugar fix.
–some of the soups like chicken dumpling and black bean are decent.
–salads are horribly overpriced for the quality.
The only saving grace is the manager who does a great job of serving the customers during peak hours.

This Au Bön Pain is located inside the Tufts Medical Center on the entry level. It is located directly across from the Orange line Tufts Medical Center T stop exit.
They have a large assortment of sandwiches which you custom order. You fill out a piece of paper with bread type, meats, cheese, toppings, etc. They also have a decent soup selection, a VERY wide assortment of pastries (which I am told are sometimes half price late in the evening) and about six types of coffee (Hazelnut, Vanilla, Decaf, Breakfast Blend, Dark Roast and one other medium blend I can’t recall). I had a medium cup of coffee which I found to be pretty standard. I also had an everything bagel which I brought to the counter. The employee toasted it for me and gave me a choice of cream cheeses (lite, herb, sun dried tomato, etc.). My friend had a lemon danish which he enjoyed.
I have tried the sandwiches at other locations which I would say are similar to Panera, but haven’t tried them at this location.
Nice quick place to go for a quick bite to eat.

I agree that this is a mixed bag.
it was too cold to get anything outdoors during my really short grab and eat break while I was at the medical center.
Mayan Chicken Harvest Rice Bowl with jasmine rice wasn’t bad. The jasmine rice was good and so was the chicken. The side of greens and veggies gave me that little daily filling of goods. Chicken Pesto Sandwich was a little hard to eat but the little smear of pesto gave the sandwich a good balance. The best part is the gingerbread man!!! How seasonal!

A mixed bag.
Sometimes the people behind the sandwich counter are good and take care in making your food; other times they are sloppy. It’s easy to tell, especially behind the glass counter. I got a Thai Peanut Chicken wrap and saw it being assembled. The employee initially used the wrong dressing, and upon realizing this, she retrieved a packet of the right dressing and proceeded to completely smother the ingredients. I complained to the manager, who was very calm and offered to make me the wrap himself. I declined, saying I’d just pick something else.
We ended up getting two hot sandwiches. Both were gross.
+1 star for the manager.

I worked at Tufts Medical Center for 2+ years and most everyone that works by this place cringes at it’s sight. The only reason an employee would walk in here is if it’s a last resort. Their pastries and such are not too bad but usually are pretty dried out. The prices are sky high for what you’re getting too. $ 5.00 for a tiny little cup of soup. You can’t walk out without spending $ 8 or more dollars for nothing.
So, if you have no other options an have to stay close. maybe this Au Bön Pain is your ticket.

I have mixed feelings about ABP. Sometimes the soups look and sound fantastic. Sometimes they look and sound gross. One time when the lentil soup sounded and looked great, it only tasted so-​so. The baked goods look pretty tempting, and they’re average price — treats can be had for a buck.
What makes this place a must-​walk-​through store is that there are free samples about ¹⁄₃ of the time I pass through the Med Center. Free samples of soup or sandwich are always welcome. You have to go right at the beginning of lunch though to get your free slice of heaven. Then just grab and go, my friends.

When you have just nearly died… not eaten in at least a week… and are vegan, having a go-​to option for the concerned mother that keeps asking you ‘What can I get you?’ is a God-​send.
–Not only does it provide much needed nutrition… it provides her a distraction.
The place is apparently quite the hub (I would not know, I just sent my she-​servant), so it might take you a bit to get your food. Seating is apparently a problem during the rush times, too, I had the best seat in the house: private-​room-​articulated-​bed, complete with IV! –so I did not have to mess about with that.
Once your food is delivered*, you only have one job to do: enjoy. Soup is served in a ridiculous portion; try as I did, I could not finish it. Bread is their name, so there was no margin for error. The whole grain baguette that came with the soup was, again, huge, and my breakfast in and of itself the next day. Lovely earthy taste, nutty with its hearty portion of seeds, with just the right amount of salt.
Prices are reasonable for quality quick service. Above MacDoh, below fine dining.
So, eat up, heal up, then go home with enough to pay your hospital bills.
*Delivery service arranged on demeanor-​per-​mother basis.

This Au Bön Pain Café is located at the ground level of the New England Medical Center. I’ve had breakfast here twice during my trip to Boston since it’s right across the street from my hotel. The interior is poorly laid out and I felt that I have to walk around in circles just to put down my bagel order at the hot food area, get my coffee, pay at the cashiers and then find a seat in their small dining area. I tried to go high end for the salmon-​wasabi horseradish bagel ($ 3.99) for my first breakfast but didn’t like it very much. However, I did enjoy the bagel with sausage and egg ($ 2.99) during my second breakfast.
Bottom Line: Probably better than the typical hospital cafeteria.