Au Bon Pain, the international cafe bakery and a leader in the fast casual restaurant category, announced today the official launch of made-to-order, oven-hot-all-the-way-through, sandwich sensations in ABP's US cafes.

"The launch of our five, completely new sandwiches is designed to add an exceptionally exciting, truly hot sandwich offering to what our customers can now expect at Au Bon Pain cafes," says Maria Feicht, Au Bon Pain's Chief Branding Officer. "In addition to employing a technologically advanced cooking system that delivers an 'oven-hot-all-the-way-through' eating experience, our new sandwiches are individually packaged, right from the oven, in specially crafted boxes and paper wrapping to assure that every sandwich is still hot and our baked bread is still crisp when our customers get to their office or to their favorite lunchtime oasis."

According to Au Bon Pain's Executive Chef Stefano Cordova, consumers often complain that many 'hot' fast casual restaurant sandwiches are cold in the middle, creating a disappointing sandwich experience. "After nearly a year of testing equipment and recipes, we have perfected our baking method and selected the right packaging to ensure an 'oven-hot-all-the-way-through' selection of sandwiches that deliver the quality and comfort you crave in a warm sandwich. By employing both sophisticated oven technology and superior, heat-insulating packaging, Au Bon Pain is now stepping beyond the industry standard to assure customers that their hot sandwich is just the right temperature, through-to-the-middle."

Over the past year, Executive Chef Stefano Cordova has introduced Au Bon Pain guests to 'sandwich crafting' – a process that involves carefully layering quality ingredients and flavors to maximize the Au Bon Pain sandwich experience.

"Once again, ABP has listened to what consumers told us they want," says Feicht. "Now, by offering a line of sandwiches that are unconventionally hot, Au Bon Pain has taken the fast casual category sandwich to a new, distinctive, industry-leading level and raised consumer expectations of what a hot sandwich should be," added Feicht.

Au Bon Pain's oven-hot sandwich menu and ingredients include:

Black Angus Steak & Cheese – Sliced Black Angus steak, horseradish aioli, caramelized onions, fire-roasted red and yellow bell peppers, ABP three cheddar blend cheese, roasted tomatoes on ancient grain ciabatta. Tuscan Grilled Cheese – ABP three cheddar blend cheese, tomato spread on sliced country white bread. Chicken Pomodoro -- All natural chicken breast, fresh mozzarella, asiago cheese, tomato spread, roasted tomatoes on ciabatta. Turkey Cubano – All natural turkey, Black Forest ham, Swiss cheese, sweet pickle relish, Dijon mustard on ciabatta. Newport Turkey – All natural turkey, fresh avocado, cheddar and a touch of zesty, honey mustard on country white bread..