Panda Express

I have been to a few different Panda Expresses over the years. I went there for dinner last night in Algonquin and it fit my needs well. The place was clean, the staff was friendly and I got my food quickly. Granted, this is not gourmet food, but for fast food it was pretty good.

While the service was good and the folks are pleasant, the food definitely has issues. I’ve been to many Panda Express locations and the place is generally clean, this location has a few problems.
First, the food I ate tasted as if it had been sitting there all day and was dry. And close to the end of my meal, I found a long orange hair in it… gross. I’m not the kind of person who goes up and complains especially since most of my meal was eaten but maybe I should have.
Second, the employee who was cleaning the almost empty restaurant, spent a great deal of time sweeping underneath my table while truly making the eating experience unpleasant.
I’m pretty good at giving places a second chance, but sadly, I probably will opt for other locations and I hate saying that.

Staff not to friendly except for the young girl cashier.
This is my 3^rd time at this PE and unlike the others, this one NEVER has fresh food or no food at all. I always have to wait for noodles or spring rolls, just about anything.
I will not go to this PE again since the one on 14 by main is way better.
This franchise owner’s pockets will be getting a little lighter now since my money will be spent at the other PE.

Decided to try P.E. today for some orange chicken and white rice (thats all I usually get here). The orange chicken tasted like it always does, nothing over the top special.
I also ordered the crab rangoon and these were by far the worst I’ve ever had at any establishment I’ve ever been to. They definately dont make these there, they have to be frozen, thats my guess.
Why after I eat this place do I fall into a food coma and get very very very sleeeepy?
Uh, it’s aight… if you’re looking for a quick nap after lunch.

My kids love this place. Personally, I think the food is okay, but it gives me a stomach ache each time I eat here. However, last week, I had an experience here that will keep me away forever. While waiting in line at the cashier to pay for my kid’s meals, I glanced into the glass fridge that stored the vegetables. (On display to show you how «fresh» everything is, I suppose. Anyway, I saw MOLD on the three of the red peppers, and in general, the peppers were old and starting to shrivel. Not a little mold. Big ugyl patches of mold, and this was just on the peppers I could see, the ones in front. I pointed this out to the cashier, who giggled and told me «oh, that’s not mold, don’t be silly». I walked over and pointed it out to her. She repeated «that’s not mold». Pleeeeez! I know what mold looks like. More than the mold, her response shocked me. I can’t ever eat here again.
Also, I did follow up by filling out the survey on the back of the receipt. I left my story (see above) along with a phone number and email address. NO RESPONSE in last 6 days. If I get a response, I will edit this review to let you know what they said.

This is going to sound really weird, but I just had the best tasting Chinese entrée I’ve ever had … At a Panda Express.
The Mongolian Beef. Usually, beef at most Chinese places is thin, tough and dry. Rubbery, even. The Mongolian Beef here had a coating that made it crispy/​chewy, combined with whatever the sauce was (orange-​colored, spicy), plus red peppers and onions, I couldn’t get enough!
I doubled up on the entrée (you get two), which was a good thing because the fried rice was … unspectacular. Dry, little flavor, and barely lukewarm (they should know that a full-​sized pan at a steam table needs to be covered).
I mentioned to the server that this was my first visit to Panda Express and she offered samples of any dishes I wanted to try (no further sampling was necessary after I tried that Mongolian Beef). It all tasted very good, perfectly cooked, sauced, and fresh-​tasting. ‘Til I tried the Mongolian Beef, I was having a tough time choosing among them.
Wish I had sampled the fried rice, I’d have known to pass.
Update: Tried the Orange Chicken and Fire-​something Chicken, with steamed rice. Good, not great. To be honest? I couldn’t tell you which was which. Neither tasted of orange (if Orange Chicken is supposed to have any orange flavor, I dont really know), and neither was hotter (spicer) than the other. Despite my previous lack of enthusiasm for their fried rice, next time I’ll choose that over the plain, very plain, white rice.
Update: Spring rolls. Quite good. Went with the Mongolian beef again as it is just too good to pass up when nothing else strikes my fancy.
Update: Peppercorn Shrimp, Angus Steak. The Peppercorn Shrimp tasted like … wait for it … Peppercorns! No, not «peppory,» or «Gee, this burns for some reason,» but like you bit down on a fresh peppercorn. Like Peppercorns (and shrimp, and veggies, of course). Nice balance there of strong-​but-​not-​overpowering peppercorn flavor, heat, and the flavor of the food itself. Top notch. The Angus steak was nice pieces of steak (a few grisle-​ly — sadface), nice flavored sauce, few veggies which is fine). Better steak than the Mongolian beef, not sure that I’d say it’s better flavor (if you count the sauce and all).