Panda Express

Let me start by saying that I LOVE Panda Express. But this location is pretty bad. The food never tastes fresh and the service is very slow. If you want good service and food, hit the Panda in midtown on 21^st — it’s much better and consistently so!

When I think of Panda Express, I think of the «Chinese» food you get when you’re stuck in a theme park like Six Flags. It’s not something I actively seek out, as it isn’t really anything I’d consider Asian food. That said, I have friends who like this place, so on occasion I end up dining at Panda Express. While it’s usually forgettable, I don’t think I’ve ever had a truly bad meal from this place.
The entrees I’ve tried (from best to meh-​est):
Honey Walnut Shrimp– you have to pay extra for this one, but it’s worth it. This is– to me– the only star on their menu. You don’t usually get very much but the flavors go very well together. You can’t get it without the walnuts (or so I was told when I asked) which is fine by me… they’re yummy.
Sweetfire Chicken– the bar jumps down quite a bit, with this being an entrée I’d consider trying again. It’s essentially the bejing beef with chicken instead and… it’s better than the beef.
Chicken Teriyaki– I’m actually not sure if this is what it is called on the menu, but this is what it was. It was good enough to try and devour, but not something I would look for in the future. The chicken was a little fatty in this item unlike the others.
Orange Chicken– the staple entrée of Panda Express. Filling but forgettable. Doesn’t taste too orange-​y which is a good thing.
Mushroom Chicken– I like mushrooms, which works out well because you get more mushroom than chicken. That said, I’d skip this one.
Broccoli Beef– not the best or freshest broccoli, but probably a step above standard buffet grade broccoli beef.
Bejing Beef– it’s supposed to be this spicy beef with some fresh veggies mixed in (think onion, belle pepper), but it’s not really that spicy. While it looks really good in the picture on the menu, as with anything… reality is a lot messier.
And also, the drinks are massively overpriced; it’s one thing about this place I always seem to remember.

My Girlfriend is a big fan of Panda Express, and since we were in a little bit of a hurry today, we decided to have it for lunch. If I were going to choose Chinese food, I probably wouldn’t pick Panda, but there are many options that are much worse. I would say that Panda Express, especially this location, is about average overall. You can get a large amount of decent food for a fair price.
Today, I ordered the «Plate» option with Orange Chicken, Honey Walnut Shrimp, and fried rice. My Girlfriend got a «Bowl» with Orange Chicken and Chow Mein. Both the Chicken and Shrimp were well cooked, but both are served in a sauce that is incredibly sweet. Usually, Orange Chicken is sweet but with some heat to it, and Panda really only has the sweet component. Being that this is their signature dish, I would hope for something with a little more depth.
The biggest problem facing this particular Panda Express is that it doesn’t live up to the «Express» portion of its name. It never really matters how many employees are working, this place just operates at its own speed. It may only seem like there are a couple of people in front of you, but you are going to wait several minutes for each person. I don’t really understand what creates the long wait times, especially considering the food is cooked and waiting to be scooped onto a plate.

Panda Express on 71^st is a great choice for Chinese food. Friendly service and are helpful if you have any food allergies. Knew exactly what was in the dishes and offered to accommodate my needs if needed.

Asking questions on certain ingredients, they actually surprised and knowing what they had! Really great staff food was good and place was very clean !

I found the food to be overpriced and under served. Nothing like paying too much, getting too little (doesn’t come with a drink) and a militant charge for water. Tried going inside once and received poor service and poor communication from the authentic folks serving. I want this place to be good — love Asian food. But this place misses the mark by a long shot.

Its not express if it takes 20 mins in the drive thru. Figure it out! This is the worst drive thru I’ve ever experienced. I seriously don’t understand why it takes 20 minutes to get your food in a drive thru. At that point I might as well just have gone inside and sat down because apparently they’re getting served faster than I am.

Horrible! My boyfriend and I went to eat here and he had a large piece of hard plastic in his chow mien! Disgusting. Panda Express has definitely gotten worse! WIll not be eating here again and will be telling everyone I know not to eat here as well!

Terrible service and prices. 3.50 for a little bitty box of orange chicken. The employees don’t listen and whatever system they are using Sucks there is no communication. I will not be back to this location.

This place rarely disappoints. It is usually delicious and a very courteous staff are always greeting and offering free samples of any of their dishes.
Always get the chow mein. It is wonderful.

Sorry this review was for the Panda Express in Broken Arrow. I posted it on the wrong location. From the looks of the reviews at this location, I would drive to Broken Arrow. Lol.
Panda Express is one of my favorites :) the reason I gave only 3 stars is because I was incredibly disappointed to find out that the Panda’s in my area no longer carry my 2 favorite entrees :-/​those being the crispy shrimp and the mandarin chicken. I kno I’m strange that I don’t like orange chicken. I kno, I kno… I’m not the norm. I kind of like «American-​ized Asian food» lol I tried their replacement to the mandarin chicken and was underwhelmed. It seemed to be a bit dry and didn’t have much flavor unless u drowned it in the optional mandarin sauce. Totally. Underwhelmed. So, after asking why they replaced it I was told this is better quality chicken. Hmmm, I’ll took lower quality with good texture and yummy flavor, please! Lol u get my point. If the replacement isn’t good, then… Anywhoo, after being told that this area is no longer carrying my super-​fave of the crispy shrimp I chose something that was called something surf and turf. It was pretty good and I would order it again. :) as always, their fried rice was awesome. The one constant is that Panda seems to be clean, fresh, made thru out the day and of good quality. Well worth the $ 8 – 10 u will pay for a 2 entrée combo with rice or chow mein and a medium drink. –side note– their drinks r not ur average sizes. The medium is the equivalent of most fast food chains large.

The only complaint I have about Panda is the lines sometime. The lunch rush from Union will slow this place down. Check the trays for what’s freshest. If you order something that has been sitting there for 30 mins then it’s your own fault. You can always ask and or wait for some fresh wok’d items to be put out.

Horrible. The food is always really gross and not fresh at all. They have given us the wrong order several times and take their sweet time correcting it.
I went through the drive thru and waited 20 outside for them to bring me the correct order. Not exaggerating, we timed them.
The prices are ridiculous as well and you definitely pay way more than what this crap is worth.
There are much better options in this area. Avoid this place.

Panda Express is always pretty decent for quick cuisine. I wish I could have finished my lunch today, though. The hair in it just kind of threw off my appetite. Not to say that this place is horrible or gross now. It happens everywhere!

Went through the drive-​thru and THEY GOT MY ORDER WRONG. it showed up correctly on the screen and even on my receipt, but instead of giving me broccoli beef like i asked for, they gave me some nasty chicken dish with pepper and celery. I HATE CELERY.
On top of that, their orange chicken had no chicken in it. just small chunks of deep fried batter. I usually expect one or two pieces of be like this, but the whole order?
STAY AWAY from this place.

Gourmet?!? Gourmet?!? Oh! Wait! I get it… That is a joke right?!?
*Exhales deeply*
I was snookered. A family member knows how much I love Asian cuisine and specifically took the time to suggest I try the Panda Express. He even reminded me that it IS «gourmet.»
So, off we went, and, by-​golly, it does say «gourmet» on the sign. With bated breath, I crossed the threshold and promptly went right back out. I just had to make sure I had not had some sort of fit of hysterical illiteracy in the previous few seconds. Nope. It really does say «gourmet» on the sign.
However, upon entering, I was greeted not with smells of fresh vegetables frying in a wok, but an overfilled trash can and the sight –Oh… the horror! –of food dying under heat lamps. Dammit, I knew it was only going to go downhill from there, but I hated the thought more of finding another place to eat with two angry and very hungry little ones. And, it does have «gourmet» on the sign!
Without further ado… Here is my rundown of the food.
1. Soggy fried chicken dunked in nondescript sweet sauce. Hmm… Soggy, unappetizing, and hopefully kept warm enough not to grow a fine strain of (insert diarrhea creating bug of your choice here).
2. Soggy fried chicken in nondescript sweet sauce. (See above.)
3. Soggy fried beef in nondescript sweet sauce. Yumm… I now get to worry about the food safety of the beef as well as the chicken!
4. Rubbery chicken cooked in a soy sauce stew. That was the special! I rather would have just drank a glass of soy sauce and skipped this nightmare…
5. Grease log. er. spring roll. Oh! The humanity! Hey… I think I just got an idea, instead of calling them «spring rolls,» just call them «Hindenbergs,» because after you try to eat one of these little beauties, you will wish you had been on it!
6. The Cheese Rangoon. You could make these at home with an old bag of open chips and a brick of soured cream cheese. You get the picture.
7. Lo Mein. Actually, I ate this and it brought back a fond memory. I used to eat this very thing as an undergrad. My own version of Ramen Noodles…
8. Ah, the rice. I guaran-​DAMN-​tee this is the same fried rice offered at every other dumpy buffet of Americanized «Chinese» food in America. Seriously, it must come in a prepackage that says «warm-​n-​serve.» Wow! I can not believe how many times I have been subjected to this very rice from Texas to Florida to Massachusetts. I mean… Come on! Show some pride. Make your own.
And, I got to wash it all down with the very same tea you get at Pei Wei. Funny, but it’s tea is not even original!
Oh well…
Lastly… I want to give Panda Express 5 stars for one thing. Actually, it goes to the person who created the Panda Express brand. I give that person 5 stars for having the giant bull’s balls for putting «gourmet» on the sign and not feeling an ounce of embarrassment for doing so. 5 stars to whomever you are!