AJ’s Express

CURRENTLY CLOSED FOR REMODEL. RE-​OPEN DATE UNKNOWN /​NOT POSTED.
The sign on the door shows they were closing for remodeling on around June 3 with expected timeframe to be 4 weeks but it’s mid-​October now and the place still isn’t open and I haven’t seen any real signs of remodel progress in some time. I hope they come back.
I really like the food here and the staff are always friendly and professional. The food tastes fresh and we love ordering off their full menu. Prices are more like those of standard wait-​service restaurants but we put up with them (combined with ordering at a counter and having more of a fast-​food atmosphere for dine-​in) because we love the food. I can’t wait to eat here again. Please re-​open soon!

I love what these people are trying to do namely the owner Alice. She’s a young enthusiastic woman that’s determined to do it right. She used to be on the other end of Ojai so don’t get confused and go to Asian fusion which is where she used to be visit her in Oakview and have quality food for your money and fast and easy service. Good service. Good food.

I went to AJ’s Express last night after learning their location had moved from downtown (right by where I live), and the drive was well worth it! AJ’s has been the only decent place to get decent Chinese in Ojai in a while, and the Express is no different.
The first good indicator was when I walked in and the place smelled fantastic. The prices aren’t the cheap kind you’d expect at an express food place, but you get what you pay for. Also when I ordered, I added on a drink at the last minute, and they didn’t charge me for it which was nice. The coke out of the fountain was great, so the weak syrup problem others noted a couple months ago has definitely been resolved.
At first I thought there may be a red flag when my food was ready so quickly, but when I opened up my take out at home it was quite good. The veggie egg rolls I ordered were hot and crispy, the chicken in the chow mien cooked well, and the shrimp fried rice was also nice. No complaints!
It also looks like their doing some renovations and upgrades on the interior and exterior of the building. The inside looks clean, fresh, and new. Definitely my go-​to place for Chinese in town.
The key to being happy with this place is knowing what it expect. Want fast, hot, decent Chinese: this is the place for you. Want a nice sit down restaurant with traditional food and setting: definitely keep looking.

Pretty good food and very reasonably priced. My only annoyance is how they aren’t flexible about how they package their food, but that won’t stop me from coming back for their delicious Mongolian Chicken. I’m very happy there’s a quick grab and go Chinese restaurant here in town.

Extremely disappointed. The orange chicken was orange in color only, and tasted like flour only fried chicken with orange color sauce on it. Fried rice was tasteless, and so was the chow mein. If your looking for Chus, your not gonna find it here anymore. Only reason I gave two starts was the girl behind the counter and her great attitude. Other than her, place is a complete pass.

Definitely the Best Chinese Restaurant in town!!! The new owner and staff have definitely pored their heart out in this new project… and that isn’t so hard to notice, when you see the beautiful remodeling from the inside and out… A restaurant that not only offers a beautiful atmosphere but Fresh food every day at great prices and Awesome service!!!(:
Highly recommend!

I will never come back. The food wasn’t fresh. I am so disappointed under new ownership. I have been here many times when it was chu’s. Chu’s offer good portion and cheaper. But now. The food wasn’t worth it. Sever wasn’t attentive and made me mad. I never write a review but today I did it.

This was extremely disappointing. The fried rice was just rice with some brown coloring — no flavor or peas or eggs. The chicken in the teriyaki chicken and cashew chicken was so tough and rubbery we couldn’t even eat it. The chow mein was decent, but fast food chow mein is better. The worst part, the fortune cookies were stale! Oh and the egg rolls and fried cream cheese wontons tasted like they were from a frozen package. The only thing that was deserving of any recommendation were the vegetables included in the entrees and the white rice was very sticky how I like.
It always sucks when you crave something and it ends up being a terrible meal where you don’t even want the left overs — who doesn’t love Chinese food left overs?!?
Ugh. This is my second 1 star review of food in this area. Perhaps I’m too snobby, or perhaps I’ve just picked poorly.

EAT AT YOUR OWN RISK*** We (the family) live in ojai, and Chu’s has always been our go to. But now under new management we gave it a try. As we were all munching away, we found a semi big bug (maybe a roach?) in the kung pao shrimp. My brother discovered it in his bowl and rushed to the bathroom. We took it back with the bug, and they did not want to refund our money, let alone acknowledge they had done something wrong. I got my money and the counter girl wanted me to wait to talk to the owner about the situation. I’ve never written a review about anything, but I sure did tonight.

Ok. This review is about Mike who wrote the review here. I believe it never happened before but I said sorry and gave them refund immediately. Since Mike was demanding additional «damages» I called the owner to come immediately. But Mike didn’t want to wait even few minutes. I really don’t know why!!!

We were really excited to have a chinese place open up by us! There aren’t a lot of options unless you want to drive to Ventura or downtown Ojai. Renovations on the place look great! It’s really small and more of a fast casual place than a full restaurant. We were ordering to go though so we didn’t really care. Called the order ahead of time and was ready to pick up in 10 – 15 mins. Great food! Ordered cream cheese wonton’s which we really enjoyed. We also ordered Chicken Chop Suey that was delicious and had great flavor. We also got the Kung Pao Beef. Beef was nice and tender and it had a good kick! They don’t currently offer delivery but said they are working on it. We will definitely be coming back again!

We were happy to try AJs Express last night and see some familiar faces from the former AJs. Food was good and plentiful. Service friendly. But until they do some remodeling, the ambiance is still lacking. It’s not really a full service restaurant yet and serves dinner on plastic plates and the rice in to go containers. The outside stone work is gorgeous, though, and promises more changes to come.

First off don’t judge this place by my review, give it a try and review it yourself support all Ojai businesses. First off you’re located in a place I call the Ojai gateway, you represent who we are as a community so a more friendly and warm welcome would be appreciated and A more happy receptive environment would speak wonders. Il admit the owner you replaced didn’t have the best food but she made you feel welcome and she went out of her way just to extend a friendly hello. 2ndly the food is bland not much flavor, first hint white chicken, white chicken usually means lack of flavor, chicken should be a golden and caramelized looking which means it’s absorbed it’s spices or sauce giving it a very favorable bite to it. Beef is cut thin giving it a rather boiled type taste, veggies are fresh and thick, so if you’re a veggie eater you’re in luck. It is a great value as far as lunch goes only $ 5.99 for a one item entrée with your choice of up to 2 different sides, and $ 1 more each additional entrée there after, up to 2 more. So if you’re curious about this place take advantage of their lunch specials and enjoy Mon-​Sat 11 – 3