P F Chang’s China Bistro

Jules Tjamak
PF CHANG CHINA BISTRO:
The restaurant I visited is named PF Chang. It’s an Asian resto with a lot of really amazing food. Foods that I didn’t taste because I didn’t have time. The resto is in Circle Center Mall. Address 49 W Maryland Street, ste 226 Indianapolis, IN 46 204. I was in the mall looking for a restaurant when I saw two of them, the champs resto and PF chang. I chose pf chang because I like some Chinese food. I went in there and the atmosphere was loud. Many people were there eating, all seats were full. I had to sit in the bar to find a place where I can eat and drink. I was mad a little bit because I went in there looking for a sit, no one help me out. The servers didn’t tell me where to sit. I found that sit myself. first of, I found a sit but the cashier told me it was reserved so I had to find somewhere else, and still no one gave any damn direction where to go. So I went in the bar and there was a chair available. I was like what kind of service is that. There was a guy in the bar he was nice, friendly, patient, attentive and he took care of me. I don’t really know his name because he didn’t tell me but it was great being inside with all these people talking, laughing enjoying themselves. It wasn’t a dead atmosphere, it was a living one. I like living kind of place. I didn’t talk to all of the servers, that didn’t talk to me either, and the server in the bar is the only one I was talking to. He was really nice, smiling, always asking what I need. He did a good job. I ordered the beef fried rice. A typical food I eat when I go to any Chinese resto. It took a long time to come to me. I waited for thirty min. The service was slow, but I enjoyed the food. It was delicious but I didn’t finish it. It was a huge plate. The beef was really good, mixed up with the carrots, onions. It was a really good meal. Overall the food was great but the reception that I receive wasn’t what I expected.

I really like PF Changs, and this was the first one I was ever at probably 15 years ago, but for some reason the food was below my expectations. Service was great, but the food quality has slipped at this location.

My husband and I decided to dine here for dinner Sunday evening. We walked in around 8p (they close at 10p). We walked up to the hostess stand to wait for seating, but instead of being greeted promptly by the woman working behind the stand… We were greeted by a hostess sitting on the bench by the door. Obviously the woman behind the stand was preoccupied, it just caught me off guard to be greeted by the other.
The hostess looked up and asked us if we had a preference where we sat & if we wanted somewhere more quiet. «Sure!» I complied. Instead of the quiet little cozy two top table in the corner that I was looking at, she walked us over and sat us right in the middle of a cheerleader convention dinner –_​–
Our server greeted us after a moment, I ordered the sweet peach ginger tea. He asked if I wanted sweetener, and I asked,“Isn’t it already sweet?” He replied not really, so he’d bring some out.
He returned to tell me they were out of that tea. The other teas had caffeine so I settled with ice water.
Right away, I ordered Garlic Noodles and my husband ordered Chicken Fried Rice, super simple menu items.
Twenty-​five minutes later, our food comes out. The Garlic Noodles probably sat in the kitchen for a while… Because it had that settled, glazed look. It was cold in certain portions and barely warm in other parts.
My husband mentioned that his tasted fine and pretty hot.
I am super uncomfortable with asking for something to be sent back, but when our server swung by and asked how everything tasted, I mustered up the courage to express that my food was cold & not fresh, as if it had been sitting for a while.
He was totally understanding, took it right back to the kitchen to fire up a new Garlic Noodle dish.
He returned eight minutes later to tell me that they were out of noodles. He sincerely apologized and said that my dinner was on them, and I ordered three small sides of asparagus, green beans, and garlic spinach. (I know, I could’ve ordered anything… But I was pretty hungry and that seemed quick & simple to make!)
My husband shared some of his fried rice with me, and he ordered dessert wontons (2 of each flavor). Those were tasty! The perfect portions for after dinner.
My sides came out and were packed with flavor, fresh, and hot. They didn’t use any garlic in the sautéed spinach though :(
Also… I kid you not, halfway through my plate of spinach, before I took my next bite, I had found a beard hair in it. Legit, thumb-​length, course blonde beard hair. I showed my husband in amazement, peered into the kitchen from our table to see if employees were wearing hair-​nets. Almost all the servers had beards.
I asked,“I’m not crazy am I? Is this really happening?” I let it go though.
When our server cruised by with our check, we asked if we could also order the fried banana rolls with the ice cream. He expressed how delicious the ice cream was, and put our request in right away.
The manager walked over to our table and introduced herself, suggesting that we wanted to talk with her. Husband and I just looked at each other, back at her, and expressed that our server was super gracious and handling things well. She really came over to tell us that they were out of that specific dessert, apologized and explained that they’ve been slammed because of the cheerleading convention that had gone on that weekend. They were out of the wrappers for the bananas, but were willing to bring us out a different dessert. She also took care of our entire check, and we strongly insisted that we could pay for our meal, that we understood and appreciated their service… But she took care of our bill and asked what dessert we wanted for the road. We decided on the cheesecake.
Our server walked over, expressed his genuine apology again and explained that he wanted her to come over and talk to us (he was humorous and sincere). He also said that they did indeed have wrappers, the guys in the kitchen found some… So we ordered that instead and explained that the manager was about to put in for the cheesecake.
The banana dessert and ice cream was fantastic. Worth the wait, and easily shared by two. He joked that they made it extra fancy looking for us, and we expressed our gratitude for his service.
Our server was excellent. He gets 5 stars. The manager was generous in taking care of our bill, which shows great customer service. They really extended themselves to make up for the issues.
As far as being out of the tea, getting cold food, being out of the noodles, finding a beard hair in spinach, and sitting there for a little over two hours though… I prefer not to experience that. I won’t be back at any P.F. Changs. The food is simply not good. The atmosphere is nice, but it’s crowded.

The worst fried rice I have ever eaten!!! Very disappointed!

Food was only ok. My pad thai seemed very boring. The wife’s honey shrimp was dry with no sort of sauce at all. Chicken lettuce wraps are always a winner. Ladies restroom was unclean and partially out of order. Not something you’d expect from a place of this caliber.

Whether we eat in or carry out, Chang’s downtown location or their Keystone at the Crossing location are always consistently enjoyable. We tend to select from our short list of favorites over and over… Crispy Honey Chicken, Sweet & Sour Chicken, Mongolian Beef, Brown Rice, Chicken Fried Rice, Pan Seared Dumplings, and any their soups. We do miss the small $ 2 desserts they used to have but that’s okay. Nice meals at a nice price.

Gluten free options! Food-​wise, knowledgeable waitstaff. Nice folks. They just don’t know their own teas. Our waiter kept telling me that their «herbal tea» had caffeine («more than the black tea»). «Really?» I asked. «Normally, herbal tea has no caffeine,» I said. 15 minutes later he came back with the herbal tea and told me it had no caffeine. Told me he had been telling people for years that the herbal was caffeinated. Then told me he would keep telling them that «’cause it was easier.»
*heavy sigh*

I usually order the chicken wrap appetizer. Now it had been awhile since I was at a PF Changs, but today the lettuce was mostly wilted and the portion size of the chicken was noticeably less than I remember. I also ordered the spicy tuna roll. It was ok. Service was quick, but the food was just so-​so. I thought about sending the wraps back for better lettuce, but since there was so little chicken, I managed to get enough crisp pieces to finish.

The food was good, a little pricey. Also there was a party of 50 at the time of our seating and waiter was more concerned about them and didn’t come around as often as he should have. Other then that enjoyed the restaurant.

Very poor service. Our food was brought on the server tray to our table and the waiter went back without serving us the food. So we sat there wondering if she was returning; so we just grabbed the food off the server table. The flavor of the food was underwhelming too! No more chain restaurants for me.

I needed a late lunch while in Indy on business so decided to hit PF Chang’s. The location is convenient and the restaurant has a nice ambiance.
I asked to be seated in a booth but was told that I couldn’t because they wanted to keep them open for larger parties… It was 2:30pm and there were 8 people in the restaurant — okay, so that’s their policy. But it wasn’t. 10 minutes later the hostess seated a single diner in a booth.
I ordered the Hot and Sour Soup, Edamame, and Pork Dumplings. The soup was very good. The Edamame was as expected. The dumplings were cold. And, whatever plating had been done in the kitchen was undone in the way to my table…
So, not a great experience unfortunately.

Worst service I have ever had in a restaurant! Food is OK. Like every other Chang’s. But when there are so many other options in Indianapolis, I would suggest you choose some place else.

All too sweet… I ordered Mapo tofu. But I got some sweet fried tofu with lots of broccoli. I asked it that really was Mapo and it really was. Not for me.

We made a last minute decision to grab a late dinner while down here celebrating our anniversary.
Despite being 30 minutes before close we were seated and greeted with friendly faces. Our server Austin was excellent. He was friendly, patient, attentive, and took great care to make sure we enjoyed ourselves.
The amount of food we got with «Changs for Two,» was awesome! We are about to dig in to our leftovers!

One of my favorite nationwide restaurants.
Got to have my Pepper Steak!
Good location with great service.

Absolute worst service I’ve had in many years… anywhere. It’s now happened the last 3 times I’ve been there. It’s never busy when I’ve gone and I understand why. The manager is in la la land and doesn’t do anything either.
We sat at the bar this time hoping to get better service but asked to be moved because he was too busy forgetting about us… said he had to go and make a drink??? Where? You’re at the bar! And poof… he was gone!
There’s a new menu that didn’t have Dan Dan noodles… my fav. Found out later I could order it even though it wasn’t on the menu (after I ordered something that was on the menu… and it was nothing like it was described) …who knew?
The waitress did offer to switch it out and brought out the noodles and added some sort of broth??? And added it there at the table… this has never been done in the 7yrs I’ve ordered Dan Dan noodles. Needless to say it was now watered down and didn’t taste at all the same. She was very condescending when I asked what she was doing.
I crave p f changs and drive downtown, busy traffic, and pay for parking but will never go back! Done!

My wife and I visited P.F. Chang’s located in the Center City Mall in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. This was our first visit, so we opted for the Four-​Course Prix-​Fixe option which includes one appetizer, two soups, two entrees, and one dessert.
For our appetizer, we chose their popular Chicken Lettuce Wrap, wok-​seared chicken, mushrooms, green onions, and water chestnuts served over crispy rice sticks with lettuce cups for wrapping and a spicy sauce. This dish had deep flavors, was cooked to perfection, and carried a little bite from the sauce. (Dora here. I wouldn’t have minded making a whole meal out of these little goodies!) We both chose the Wonton Soup, which didn’t just have an abundant amount of delicious pork wontons, but also chicken, shrimp, mushrooms, spinach and water chestnuts.
For our main course, I chose the Mongolian Beef, thinly cut pieces of soy-​glazed flank steak, wok-​seared with scallions and garlic. The steak was very good, flavorful and tender, but I would’ve enjoyed it more without the abundance of large scallions. My wife ordered the Crispy Honey Chicken, battered chicken in a sweet and tangy honey sauce over a bed of crispy rice sticks. Dora here. Something about the honey sauce clashed with my tongue. Not my favorite part of the meal, but there was so much more to enjoy!
For dessert, we went with the Sweet Vanilla Cream Wontons, warm and crispy shells filled with delicious vanilla cream, petite and not too heavy, the perfect way to end the meal.
I would rate this restaurant 4 forks out of 5 forks for a family friendly restaurant that is serving great food.
Ernie & Dora Hiers, Fiction Faith & Foodies blog

Very good restaurant with great atmosphere. We had a group of 4 tonight. I ordered the garlic noodles with a side of sautéed beef, my wife ordered the Dan Dan noodles, as did her father, and her mother ordered the street noodles. All seemed very good, mine was good, however, I have a severe mushroom allergy, so I was limited to what I could eat there, seeing that they are very mushroom heavy in their recipes. I couldn’t even eat the famed lettuce wraps because of that. I had the edamame instead. They were good. It’s expensive, for Asian, but it’s really good, and our server was excellent.

Two bad experiences in a row have turned me on this place. During a recent lunch trip my colleague ordered soup and I ordered egg rolls, he was brought a plate of broccoli (?!) and i was given spring rolls. Then after the order was corrected and i had to ask twice for mustard sauce for the egg rolls, the waiter disappeared and we never saw him again. No refills, not even a bill to pay so we could get out of there. We had to literally get up and go track down another wait person so we could leave.
I figured we had a new or inexperienced waiter, and decided to give it another try about a week later.
The very next time I visited I was served cold food. I mean really cold, undercooked, this had to be frozen at one point egg rolls. Wait I thought they made the egg rolls fresh daily? Hardly. Apparently not that day. The waiter was apologetic, and at least I did not have to run down some other random staff person to pay and leave, but after two lousy experiences, I am not planning on going back.

I’ve been coming here for more years than I care to remember. Birthday’s… anniversaries… welcome-​home-​from-​Manila trips… you name it. P.F. Chang’s has always been there for me. This is why writing this review is a little sad for me. As much as P.F. Chang’s has been a part of my life, I feel the chapter might be ending and I might be moving on to something better. If Unilocal let me give partial credit, this review would probably be about a 1.25. Two stars just doesn’t look right for this one.
Picture it. Dinner. Downtown Indianapolis. 2013. A group of friends decide they want to meet for dinner on a Friday evening somewhere downtown. One of the people lives out west and loves P.F. Chang’s. You want to make her happy so she comes back. You suggest P.F. Chang’s. Everyone happily agrees, and then you remember this random Friday night is the SAME night they light the «tree» at Monument Circle, and downtown Indianapolis will be absolutely packed.
When you arrive at the restaurant (after battling 4 blocks of traffic for nearly 45 minutes,) ignore the comments your friends make about how many people are waiting for a table. See, this is where P.F. Chang’s saves the night. Since you thought of this ahead of time, you gave them a ring on the ‘olé telephone and made a reservation. You walk past all of the people who are waiting for a table and give them your name, and you’re whisked away to your table before your friends have a chance to say «let’s go someplace else.» Seriously… make a reservation, even if you don’t think you need it. With so many conventions and groups coming to downtown Indianapolis, even a random Tuesday night can be busy.
I ordered the Salt and Pepper Calamari ($ 8) as an appetizer and the Kung Pao Scallops ($ 18) for my entrée. Both items are different than I remember, and not in a good way. Calamari… I struggle to find something to say positive about it. The portion was smaller, the size and shape was different (I remember nice big calamari rings… this looked like rubber bands) and the color was so pale it almost blended into the noodle-​filler they sat on. After looking forward to a nice big plate of calamari, I was very much disappointed, and won’t be getting this again. The Sake flight ($ 10) was needed to get past the pain and disappointment.
My dinner entrée was equally disappointing. The scallops didn’t look like scallops; it looks like ground up chicken. Someone at the table even asked, «Didn’t you get scallops?» when they saw my dish. Picking through what I call filler «onions, peanuts, peppers», there was actually very little on my plate that was worth the price I paid. The dish was flavorful, but scooping up food, I got more peanuts on my fork than anything else on my plate every time.
I’m afraid my love affair with P.F. Chang’s has come to an end. It’s been a good run, but when you start messing with the quality of food and charging me $ 40 for what I ate last night, I’ll find a place that wants my money that will reward me with fresh, high quality food… or I’ll go to the cheap Chinese place and get something equal to what I had last night and pay $ 10.