Panda Machi

Loved Panda Machi! Great selections of Chinese food and the sushi was tasty. My husband does not like sushi but he likes Chinese food vs. myself who loves sushi, so this place works out great for the both of us. The price and the menu selection are friendly to every budget. I wish there was a closer location so that I can go there at least once a week. Highly recommended!

We’ve been coming here for several years now and things are always great. The food (both Chinese and Japanese) is invariably excellent. Service can slow down a little when the place gets super busy but never falls below the very good level.
If you’re anywhere in the San Diego east country area be sure to drop by.

Small little Chinese food restaurant, located in a small country town…
It will do in a pinch, the service was friendly… so that’s always nice.
Popped in here for a quick lunch, ordered the Pan Fried Noodles. They also have a reasonably priced lunch menu.
This place lacks an authentic flavor, extremely Americanized Chinese food located in Honky Tonk Land…

Perfect combination of Sushi and Chinese foods! Fishes are FRESH and thier chinese dishes are TASTY with resonable priced. Highly recommended!!! Thumbs up for Panda Machi

I love the salt and pepper chicken wings here. The wings are salty, peppery, and sweet which is different than ones found in San Diego. The 20 minute preparation time is a little long, but once you bite into a wing … Oooohhh weeeee

Pretty good sushi place is small but the food is usually pretty good. Have been here a few times and it was just okay but lately they’ve stepped their game up and have a great online menu

Absolutely awesome. The freshest fish and and a beautiful presentation. If you like sushi you will LOVE this place. Wherever you live in San Diego it’s worth the trip.

Solid food. Stopped on a road trip. Good wonton soup, gyoza salad and Mongolian beef.

I like to come to Panda Machi for the sushi. It is good sushi at a reasonable price. You can go there and get a sushi roll and some saki for under $ 10…try doing that Downtown or in Pacific Beach!
Only reason I give 4 stars instead of 5 is because of the service. We have been going there for years, and there always seems to be a revolving door-​type of wait staff. People don’t seem to work there for more than 4 or 5 months or so. And the service used to be pretty good, but it is continually declining.

Now panda machi. Now i like this place. They have egg foo young! reasonable prices. service alittle slow but friendly.

There service is always so slow, that is the downfall. But the food is great and the happy hour is great as well. I do like coming here other than that!

Best sushi I’ve had in the San Diego area and same goes for the Thai iced tea (: the customer service is on point every time we come here, which is usually once a week. Ahi roll and surf-​n-​turf roll are AMAZING. If you like nigiri, go for the hamachi or seared ahi. I wish there was a Panda Machi closer to SD so I could go there even when I’m not in Alpine. If you haven’t tried it and want to go on an adventure, it’s definitely worth the drive.

I have never been a fish eater, let alone sushi. My husband LOVES sushi and we would go here from time to time and I always ordered from the Chinese selection on their menu. Then one day, after talking with the sushi chef, I decided to be brave. What I didn’t like about sushi was the seaweed wrap, and he introduced me to soy paper. So I ordered a crunchy roll with soy paper. To my surprise it was actually pretty delicious.
It’s been several years now since we started going to Panda Machi and I’ve graduated from the basic imitation crab, to the full of fish and flavor Rainbow Roll and my favorite, the Rock ‘n Roll. The fish is FRESH, which is important. I’ve tried other places and for me nothing compares. This is the best sushi in San Diego. And since I learned about the soy paper I actually crave sushi now. Thanks Panda Machi!

Sometimes you like to go where everyone knows your name. This is that place for my family. We always sit at the sushi bar and order sushi. It is the only sushi restaurant where my teenage boys want to go.

A bit slow sometimes but well worth the wait. Thumbs up. Try the popcorn green beans and monkey roll sushi. Awesome combo.

ALWAYS GREAT. My husband and I come here about once a month for the year or so. Every time the food is so good. Honey walnut shrimp is my favorite. It honestly tastes like it is make from scratch. My husband loves the sushi rolls.
The service is always promt and friendly.

Have you heard of Panda Machi?
It’s a cross between Japanese and Chinese restaurant. The daily lunch special can’t be beat. They offer teriyaki chicken to sashimi lunch specials. If you are undecided you can always stop by. Are you are salivating for Chinese? This is the place to be. If you change your mind and decided you want some California rolls or sashimi, have not fear you don’t have to go far.
Popcorn green beans, rainbow roll, caterpillar roll, salmon hand roll, crispy beef, etc., etc., and etc. Yes I have tried all of the above. I do like the popcorn green beans, it’s very tasty so I have to order this and it doesn’t matter if I am in the mood for either Chinese or Japanese.
For the taste and value this place deserves a five star. The service is a hit or miss, understandably since you get a good deal on your lunch the place can be crowded. This translates to slower service, but don’t get that confused with slow cooks. Once your order is placed it’s a matter of minutes before you get your food.
I highly recommend their specials, you do get your bang for your buck.

There are a few times in life when a sushi roll is so expertly crafted and planned that it is nothing short of genius. Tonight, I had one of those rolls.
The roll was excellently prepared. Fresh, succulent, and topped with a thin slice of lemon that brought out a hint of zesty crispness. The combination of the fresh fish and perfect sushi rice alone was to die for.
As far as the rest of the rolls and dishes we had… Exquisite. My wife and I come from Chicago just to eat at Panda Machi. It’s that good.

The customer service is great, you can call in your order or eat there.
I ordered just the simple egg fried rice and the fried pork wontons.
The egg fried rice was super good, and they had added in a lot of egg. Which to me, is perfect. I had asked them to add in some extra green onion, and she repeated it back to me. Somehow, they never made it in. No big deal though.
The fried pork wontons tasted amazing, but I feel like they could have easily added in more pork. It seemed a little under portioned. Like I said though, they were good!
I’m the kind of person who will drown all Chinese food in soy sauce (sorry!) and I didn’t add in ANY. I didn’t have to. It tasted that good!
IN A NUTSHELL:
For $ 10, I feel I should have recieved a bigger portion (filling-​wise in the wontons) and my onions should have made it into the rice, but it all was super tasty!
I’ll go back for sure, and am glad Alpine has some really good Chinese food.

Unilocal brought me here.
I arrived to find this lovely strip mall sushi bar and restaurant mildy busy for the lunch hour. This is a very casul restaurant — with lots of trinkets on display and with worn in furniture. And one television set was set to international news; one set was tuned to sports. Both were set to low volume.
It seemed that the folks seated were hardcore locals. I got the sense that most of them came here on the regular, and bumped elbows with the staff often. Also, I figured that the wall of photos and cards was a good sign that this is a beloved establishment.
I wanted a chirashi bowl, but was interested in a number of other items on the list. Considering that chirashi bowls tend to run large, I opted to go for the bowl, but asked that the menu be left behind.
I had my food and water in less than 10 minutes. I was astounded by the swift service!
I must say — the freshness is on point! The chirash came with four different cuts of fish, all fairly thinly sliced: salmon, white fish (I believe) and two types of tuna, one of which was seared. While I was very disappointed with the serving size (too much Furikake and way too much rice, and not nearly as strong enough offering of fish), it was delicious!
I opted, then, to order a California hand roll and ikura. Both were so fresh and flavorful! The California hand roll was very light on cream cheese, and the ikura (salmon roe) was bright, with a nice balance of brine and sweetness.
And the three ladies holding down the lunch crowd did an excellent job!
All told, the ticket price was $ 29. The chirashi alone was $ 17.
So, yes, the chirashi bowl was very expensive — simply not worth the price. But, overall, I am more than pleased with the experience.
Also, the restaurant offers a whole range of Chinese and Vietnamese dishes. The rolls seem most popular from what I could tell during the lunch hour.