Panda Express

Poor customer service. Extremely stingy with fortune cookies and forks. All I gotta say. The convenience and speed of food is its greatest business attractor. Food is mediocre leaning on below average

Go to this place pretty often in price center because I crave that americanized chinese food quite often. This place is definitely one of my guilty pleasures because almost anything you get here is going to be pretttty unhealthy for you. I usually get the 2 entrée plate with orange chicken, eggplant tofu and half chowmein/​fried rice. Prices for a 2 entrée plate are around $ 7, which is pretty cheap since its really filling. However, every meal I’ve eaten here has been the same process, the first 5 minutes are extremely satisfying but as I near finishing my meal I feel sick to my stomach. Worth it. The nice thing about panda especially during busy hours such as lunch, is that its relatively quick since the food is ready to serve as you get to the line.

The definition of no thrills. I don’t really see why people either get excited or complain about this place. 1) it’s Panda Express so you know it’s gonna be meh and 2) it’s on campus and nothing is magically delicious on campus (besides café v of course, jk).
I do enjoy that during the lunch rush they open the right side which is the «express» line and is usually half as short as the usual.
Though the quality is definitely lacking and the flavors are more bland, at least the food is on the cheaper end — compared to other places at PC — and dare I say kind of healthy.

I’ve been going to Panda Express since 1990’s; however, after today, I won’t be going there ever again.
I just ordered a 2-​item lunch, orange chicken and eggplant with a mix of fried rice and chow mein. First thing I noticed when I opened the box was «wow, they couldn’t put any less food?» I mean, there was two tablespoons of fried rice, another two spoonful of chow mein. Very disappointing. I’ve noticed that they were putting less and less food but today takes the cake.
After tasting the food, the blandness caused me to think «It’s a good thing they give you so little food!»
Panda Express used to have great tasting food and used to give you enough portion, NOT ANYMORE. Like every other fast food joints, they are now run by accountants and lawyers. Another great American chain restaurant going down the toilet.
Next time, I am going to Rubio’s which is right next door.

Come here multiple times a month because of the convenience from work and the line usually goes by quick. If you need something to eat… and you are running out of time, come to Panda!
I can’t say that the food here is amazingly good because it is fast food, but it’s just a standard meal with meat, vegetables and carbs doused in sauces. Definitely comfort food though…
Will continue coming here because of the convenience!

Not good. Their rice is usually dry. The chow mein noodles are usually oily/​greasy. But the orange chicken is good.

Sometimes I didn’t have time to walk across campus back to my dorm to grab some food before my next class. Or when I was commuting, I would find myself hungry after forgetting to bring food to school.
This place offered you very Americanized Chinese food. The lines would be super long at lunch time. I remember every single time when I order, the ladies working there would ask, «Medium Pepsi?» I made the mistake of doing this once. It’s pretty much 99% ice and 1% soda.

Lol an ok non authentic chinese place. A good place to go for quick protein and to fill your belly while studying during finals week. I love fortune cookies and the hilarious fortunes they give you haha

I don’t like Panda Express all that much. I guess the first one I ever went when I was younger it was good but other places with better quality food got me spoiled so now I have higher expectations. My favorite is the orange chicken or the beef and broccoli but still not my top choice

I have gone to THIS Panda a few times. The last 2 times I was over charged. my change should of been $ 11.00 and I got $ 1.00. I didn’t realize this until I was ½ way back to work where I eat my lunch. The 2^nd time I went the cashier, she over charged me & the guy behind me gave me a dollar just to get the line moving so I just handed it to the cashier. After seeing my receipt she charged me a 4 item plate PLUS extra for the honey shrimp when it should of been extra charge plus 3 item plate. When I got back to work to eat my food, the green bean chicken had 3 (TOTAL) tiny pieces of meat. The noodles were SO dry & cold & the portions were SO small! my co-​worker called and the owner MIKE, said he would comp our meals if we came back. I only work here once or twice a month so we waited til I came here to order again. My Co Worker (Sara) called & the manager said he told her she had to come back within a week (which is bull since I was in the same room with my coworker and heard her conversation with Mike). Now he said he can ONLY give us 1 item each. We originally ordered a 3 item plate & now he’s declining his original offer to give us what we previously ordered. I am NOT going back for 1 item! SO RIDICULOUS!!! Hope the management team at Panda reads these reviews!

Now I’m not looking for absolution
Forgiveness for the things I do
But before you come to any conclusions
Try walking in my shoes
Try walking in my shoes
Depeche Mode — Walking in My Shoes
Microwaved leftovers or Panda Express? Today I chose Panda Express and had the 3 item combo
chow mein– I like the texture of the noodles. Don’t think they season them as they are really bland and can’t be eaten as is. Chinese restaurants typically add sauce.
honey walnut shrimp — the honey coating taste kinda funny… Not bad enough to ruin good shrimp but this is probably the worst I’ve had.
kobari beef — good quality beef. I’m not sure if I like the sauce. It is a tiny bit spicy. I’m not a big fan of the cheap button mushrooms.
beef and broccoli — good quality beef perfectly cooked, flavor from the sauce is fine. This average dish is the best part of the combo.
This isn’t anything like the Chinese food I normally eat but since the names of the dishes are the same I’m gonna compare Panda with the closest Chinese takeout place I like which is Chung Hing. The noodles are similarly bland. I always get the bbq pork at Chung Hing and it’s excellent. Blows away any entrée served at Panda. There is a $ 1.25 up charge on premium entrees here which includes the shrimp and the kobari beef so a 3 item combo is about $ 11. You can get the same amount of food for about $ 3 less at Chung Hing.
I come here about once a year when I get sick of reheating leftovers. Once again I’m disappointed by Panda. Back to my cubicle till next year. *sigh

So I went to Panda Express after my class. The line was long but it was moving fast so that wasn’t the problem.
Price: Not worth it. Honestly giving me the whole bowl practically full of rice then adding a measly small portion of shrimp and charging me an extra $ 1.25 for it totaling to about 8 BUCKS for a small bowl. AVOID.
Service: When I told the lady there was hardly any shrimp in my bowl she gave me a condescending look and said «7 is the portion,» then proceeded to count the seven tiny shrimp for me. Are you serious lady? I totally felt jibbed already but after that it sealed the deal never to go to Panda again.
Taste: Honestly I felt like there was acne in my mouth. I totally wished that I didn’t have 8 AM classes today or else I would have made my own food. They totally destroy the shrimp by having majority of this shrimp with tempura.
Overall experience: Rip off. 8 bucks anywhere else would have given me a LOT more food.

It’s mediocre Americanized Chinese food…
So what’s there not to like? LOL Sometimes you just want to have something sweet, sour, and fried… And Panda Express hits the spot, while also increasing your blood pressure, etc. etc. etc. But it’s highly likely you’re not stopping at Panda Express looking for a healthy option while on campus. I’d probably recommend Croutons by the Student Center for that. The food is consistently mediocre, which is a good sign for me, as having changes in quality in your Americanized Chinese food would be a huge disappointment. I would’ve just given them 3 stars, but giving a free entrée for doing the survey on the back of the receipt earned them an extra star. It allows for meals here to be pretty filling for the price as I’m a pretty big eater.
tl;dr You probably shouldn’t come here for a traditional taste of Chinese food (…I know right?), but it’s still pretty delicious when you have the cravings.

Considering there aren’t very many Chinese food options on the UCSD campus, Panda Express serves its purpose well enough. It has fake, slightly overpriced Chinese food that is in large enough portions to feed a big eater like me.
A few suggestions:
If you want to eat healthier, you can ask for veggies instead of noodles or rice, or do half veggies half rice or half noodles. (they’re pretty lenient with the combinations).
It can also help to pat the top of your food with a napkin, you’ll probably get an ounce or two of oil out just by doing so.
If you aren’t sure what to get, ask for samples! I think it’s a part of the Panda Express chain’s rule to give samples.
TAKE YOUR RECEIPTS! They offer a free third entrée if you respond to a fairly easy and fast survey.
Go at an odd time — they have a fairly short line before 11 – 11:30 AM and after 1:30−2 PM.

They usually close the kitchen 30min-​1hr before the store closes. If the food doesn’t look fresh, you can ask to wait for a new batch. Friendly service.
Whenever I come here, I always get the honey walnut shrimp, eggplant tofu, kungpao chicken, and cream cheese rangoons. Take note that the shrimp is a dollar extra and you only get 7 pieces.

3 stars just because it fills up my empty stomach from time to time. Definitely not authentic Chinese food but is not disgustingly horrible either. If you’re looking for a quick fix to stop your stomach from growling, this is not a bad choice.
Fairly priced and quick service. Try to go before XX:50 since that is when most classes are over and a horde of students gather around.
**NOTE: the back of the receipt has a slot for a survey. Its a very quick survey where you get a code at the end to use for a free entrée. If you’re extra hungry try it out!

As you’re walking through Price Center at UCSD, you probably have your mind set on eating relatively healthy… «Will it be a nice wrap from Tacone, or maybe a sandwich from zanzibar?». But then it hits you like a slap in the face from an ex gf, that horribly enticing panda express smell.
You tell yourself that this time it will be different, this time they have changed. Smell how good it smells? The food must be that good or better! Boy, have you deluded yourself.
The line moves quickly and soon you’re in the front. «Let’s try and be healthy» you tell yourself. Maybe you order the mixed veggies, but that second item is always the meat: orange chicken or the crispy beef.
In the end, it turns out the same it always does (just like every time you get back with that ex of yours) and you’re left feeling disgusted with yourself. At least with panda the regret goes away quickly and doesn’t linger like the scent of bad perfume on your bedroom sheets.

I overslept this morning, which meant that I didn’t have time to pack my lunch before going to campus. «No big deal» I thought, «I’ll just buy my lunch at one of the fine fast food establishments in the Price Center.»
I arrived around noon-​ish, and it was mobbed. All the options had long lines, but I had heard that the Panda Express line moves the most quickly. And the rumors were true — I reached in the counter in less than 5 minutes and it was my turn to place an order. Props to Panda Express for having a line that moving dizzyingly fast.
I got a 2 entrée + 1 side combo for $ 5.99 + tax. A little pricey, don’t you think? The entrees were chicken and tofu, and the side was chow mein. I can’t remember the actual names of the dishes, but they had plenty of generic-​sounding Chinese fast food buzzwords like «spicy» and «sizzling».
So, was it worth it? No way. I know that fast food is greasy and fatty, but there is no excuse for it to be so bland! Is there an MSG shortage or something? Couldn’t you meet my ultra-​low expectations for fast food?
What a waste of six bucks.

So I go here about twice a year. Today was one of those days (price one pays to hang with a cute girl I guess). Dude, I don’t get it. How does this place get business? I mean it is:
1. Greasy
2. Fatty
3. Salty
4. Blah tasting
5. Expensive by fast-​food standards.
In other words heart attack city! If I’m going to get disgustingly unhealthy food in the Price Center, it will be good ol BK thank you very much. Sure ain’t going to be some half-​decent fast food wannabe Chinese.
One extra star for the fast service.

The UCSD Panda Express has filled my belly many an undergrad night and it has literally been years since I last dined at the core campus eatery. Even with the addition of Price Center East’s new options, there really isn’t much in the way of variety so I decided to revisit the imitation Chinese choice for old times’ sake.
There are really only a few things that interest my palette at Panda so I stuck to my guns and got the combination of fried rice and chow mein with orange chicken and eggplant with tofu. Besides the price going up, nothing has really changed. Munching on their famous orange chicken, I was taken back to the days that I would sit and cram in Price Center only to doze off from the greasy heft of the food and exhaustion. Consistency is their core value and they certainly delivered on that point, and everything tasted just as I remembered it from years ago.
While it may not be the healthiest nor most affordable meal on campus, I think that it may be one of the more satisfying. While it may not exactly be like grandma made back home, it serves up just enough comfort to get through the day. There aren’t many dining choices in PC, and when push comes to shove, I would probably have to go with Panda for a pretty good portion of the time.
Food: ⁷⁄₁₀
Service: ⁷⁄₁₀
Price: $
Atmosphere: ⁶⁄₁₀