Panda Express

Come on, it’s a Panda Express, what did you expect? This review isn’t about the food, it’s about the awkward location that forces you to run the gauntlet of junkies that sit on the concrete across from the Verison. You can either approach from a gloomy isolated breezeway or walk all the way around the shrubbery and get harassed by panhandlers. The other day there was a white dude manning the junkie-​gauntlet. He was wearing a brand new poncho and a large sombrero. He was very hyper and I detected something was off. To avoid walking the gauntlet I jumped over the concrete wall, which I did not accomplish with any elegance. I have no idea what architectural engineer thought it was a brilliant idea to make it so hard to approach this place from the parking lot. After I secured my orange chickens, crazy sombrero guy was still there making eye contact a laughing so I took the creepy breezeway only to run into Aqualung. I accept that these folks are around. It’s just how it is here. However, the way this place is set up makes me feel really vulnerable to potential crime.
Yes, I survived this time, but considering this complex has a high incidence of stabbings and crime, you think they’d make the foot traffic a little easier.

Came two Panda Express at 9:25 Pm they were already closed. The guy inside was still taking order from a customer I don’t know why he didn’t wanted to open the door for me. Will not go to panda express ever again

Food had a short piece of black hair in it. Of course, we stopped eating it. I have been calling the store for the last 2 hours to explain what happened & demand a refund & the number is giving me a busy signal. I called the number listed on their website and was placed on hold. I waited for about 15 minutes until they hung up on me. I called back, and now I am told that to call back during business hours. So upset with Panda’s service in every way.
Could not have failed any worse.

I’ve been here 2 times, and will not be back. Both times were Sundays (when the good reasonably priced Chinese restaurants in my area were closed) and both times I was starving and CRAAAAAVING Chinese cuisine.
Usually Panda gives me my fix, but this place didn’t do anything.
I’m the location doesn’t get much business. Both times my meat choices tasted a little dry: 1^st time orange chicken and steak, 2^nd time: orange chicken and honey walnut shrimp.
And I was disappointed because these choices looked freshly cooked (or at least more so than the other choices which looked shriveled and dried out.)
The veggies both times were shriveled and scorched looking.
So either they had been sitting out forever or the temp for heating their pans it WAAAYYYY too hot.
Either way, just avoid it. Drive 5 – 10 minutes to Broadway for Chinese food on a Sunday.

As Panda locations go in Sacramento, this one is middle-​of-​the-​road. Never had any problems with the food, but the service is often a little slow, and the seating is a bit limited.

Broccoli beef has always been freshly cooked and not overdone. B&B, String Bean Chicken, and Mixed Veggies 370 calories. What’s not to like?

This was a decent location — pretty small and desolate. The staff was friendly, and the food was OK.
We didn’t go a weird time, but a lot of what we had was definitely sitting out under the lights for a while. It was dry and overcooked, but still good in flavor.

I ate here on a Saturday morning just when they first opened at 11:00 am. I ordered the two entrée plate with a choice of side dish. Side dish is a choice of either chow mein or fried rice. I went with fried rice. For the entrees, I ordered the Beijing Beef and the Orange Chicken. The orange chicken and fried rice was standard Chinese food, and the stand-​out dish was Beijing Beef. It was delicious and spicy (but not too hot). The cashier hands you the condiment, choice of either chili sauce or soy sauce. There is no condiment table where a customer can take as many sauce packets as they wish like the Taco Bell on Broadway. Additional star because I noticed the cook came out and assisted an out-​of-​towner with directions on how to get to 6^th & J St. even though that wasn’t part of his job.
Ate here again today during a busy lunch hour. Although there was a huge line of customers, the Panda Express team was able to service the heavy flow of customers in a matter of minutes, even a customer who was in front of me who wanted the Honey Chicken and the server told him Panda Express has never carried such an item.
It seems rather redundant to rate a chain but Panda’s Chinese food is comparable to many small ma and pa Chinese restaurants in Sacramento.

New Panda Express obsession: bacon orange chicken. *droooool*
Panda Express is Chinese fast food, so don’t expect the world. Sure there are better Chinese restaurants out there but it’s quick, it’s cheap, and it satisfies a craving. It’s in the Safeway shopping center (in case I’m feeling too lazy to cook dinner after I’ve shopped for the groceries to do so). Plus I like that it’s close enough to my place for me to walk to… it’s usually the agreement I make with myself in trade for the insane amount of calories I consume by eating there. :p

Although I’m a frequent customer, I can’t say this Panda is anything to get excited about. If not for their eerily consistent offerings with mass-​chain certification of quality, I would avoid this place completely.
Admittedly, the food is good and satisfies a craving. I love the black pepper chicken and the kung pao chicken, both of which are very similar to what you’d get at a dirty-​good mom and pop Chinese joint. The service, on the other hand, leaves much to be desired. Almost every time I come here, I’m the only one in line and I’m still ignored for many minutes without a hello or «We’ll be with you in just a moment.»
Since the neighboring Safeway sadly serves as a gathering point for the homeless, expect to see a lot of homeless patrons spending their change on an egg roll or two. It’s not the best eat-​in meal experience, but more importantly it reminds you of Sacramento’s large (and largely undressed) homeless and mental health issues.

It’s been a few hours and I still can’t let this go. I ha been shopping at Safeway and all if a sudden had that I have to pee now drama. I rang up and went to the back of the store and the bathrooms were closed for cleaning. Dammmmmmmmmmmmmmmm… I hustle back to the front for my cart and make a run for the car. All of a sudden I think of panda, where I have eaten at this location a few times. Service is okay. Hard to go wrong when all the ingredients are the same and stocked in the franchise… Except for how long things sit… Anyway. I make a stuff leg run for it and step in, see that you need to ask an employee for a key, so I do so.
«No, the restroom is for customers.»
I explain my hard luck story about safeway’s bathrooms being out of order but the kid doesn’t care. I blurt out that I am going to pee my pants and he decides to hand me the key. His manager, a woman, comes over and is about to put a stop to his breaking the rules, so I take my precious key and slip in as I hear her demanding explanation from him.
Of course I was thinking about what I could buy when I emerge, when I hear the woman trash talking me and chastising him that he shouldn’t have been nice to me.
Really.
I return the key and, very unlike me, say loudly… I would have like to purchase something, but now I can’t because the boss is a meanie.“
Meanie!

Prices went up and the quality of food went down. … orange chicken over cooked. Sad. …

Place was empty when I got here. Now I know why. Chow mein was old and not even edible with soy sauce. Breading on the sweet fire was disgusting. Even the fortune cookies tasted stale (and told me to spend my money better). Okay, no more money on this panda!
EDIT: My boyfriend ended up puking most of the night. Yeah… Not coming back here for sure. :(

HORRIBLE!!! I am at my wits end with this location!!! Always a long wait & never have food ready! I appreciate the Freshness of the food but come on!!! I counted 7 EMPTY SPOTS for food!!! It is always a wait in this place! We were told that the Chef was on break & we would have to wait till he got back??? Seriously??? Tried to talk to Manager who told me I need to wait to talk to her??? WOW! Never again! Walked out & never coming back! I am officially done with this place!!!
THIS PLACE NEEDS NEW MANAGEMENT PERIOD!!!

The food? Well, if you get there early, it’s hot and fresh. It’s not THE BEST Chinese food in town, but I don’t think you go here expecting that.
The service? Gotta say, I’m impressed. For example, about a year ago I arrived, waited in line, placed my order and when I finally got to the register, I reached into my purse for my wallet, only to realize I left it at home (in Fair Oaks). The lady at the counter wrote out an IOU and gave me my food. I was pretty stunned. I came back the very next day, ordered another lunch and paid my «debt.»
The employees are always friendly and helpful. The dining room is always clean. I just really can’t complain!

Standard fast food Chinese orange chicken and kung pao of which mine had a boat load of peppers and lots of diced chicken giblets.
I opted out of the fried rice because it was down to scraping the pan time and the crew was having trouble making it.
Our timing was good since there is now 15 in line and the phone has not stopped ringing

I don’t usually eat at this place but I was hungry and it was convenient as I was leaving Safeway.
Food has never been all that but it hit the spot and did the job. Convenience has it’s advantages… lol.
Small area should you want to dine in.

Maybe my (low) expectations are driving the 5 star rating, but I tend to think of this place a shining palace of palatable pseudo Asian quick cuisine. The counter folks are always friendly, they are willing to make pretty much any of the menu items to order if they are out, and… it’s probably one of the least expensive meals you can find in midtown.
As for quality, I really have no complaints. The chicken is never mysterious (almost all white meat), the veggies are never frosty/​frozen tasting, and again… it’s probably one of the least expensive meals you can find in midtown.
Did I mention it’s one of the least expensive meals you can find in midtown?

I very reluctantly came here, but only because I needed to grab lunch in a hurry. I eagerly looked around for my favorite chinese dish — the only thing they still have worth eating — but I didn’t see it. Then, a greasy looking guy behind the counter asks me «What do you want for an entrée? Chow mien or fried rice?» I paused for a moment. They both looked equally offensive… but I reluctantly said «Uh, chow mien…»
After he gave me the (obviously dried out) chow mien I asked about my favorite item: «Do you have sweet and sour pork??» He replies (with the same answer I heard the day before): «No. Sorry. That’ll be 8 minutes.» to which I let out a long exasperated sigh, and said «Uh, no, just give me the orange chicken…» (The same thing I ate the day before).
–
Let me just start out by saying that I love Chinese food. And I’m not Chinese, so my review of this restaurant is not biased by race or heritage. But rather, my experience with many other Chinese restaurants and their food.
I remember when Panda Express first came to Sacramento. I was just a teenager then. But everything was delicious and tasty. All of the items on their menu looked as good as they tasted, and everything was cooked to perfection. In those days, «Chinese fast food» was almost unheard of, so of course a place like this would quickly gain popularity.
I loved Panda Express when I was young, but due to their increasingly poor service, and awful food preparation, I came to loathe this restaurant. The whole chain. So much so that I even swore that I would never even give them the privilege of getting a Unilocal review from me! But after my recent (and hopefully last) visit there, I thought that someone should hear/​read about the level of my disgust and sheer disappointment with them. I want everyone to know how bad they are… they have disappointed me for the last time.
And as the years went by; they’ve gotten worse and worse, they started cutting corners, becoming more expensive, less healthy, and they couldn’t care less about quality.
Today, the orange chicken and chow mien noodles are usually all dried out. The mixed vegetables are overcooked with no sauce. And the beef and broccoli has has gone horribly wrong… it tastes ok, but makes me sick to my stomach every time.
You see, good chinese food is cooked fresh, and prepared after you order it – not sitting in front of you when you walk in, drying out in a big tin pan. I also don’t like the «cafeteria line» feel that they, and many other chain restaurants have. Such a setup makes it unnecessary for them to even use any polite etiquette that a waiter or other food server in any other non-​fast restaurant would use. Their service is also the worst.
Even though its unlikely to happen (since they are the McDonalds of Chinese food) I really do hope that Panda Express goes bankrupt and gets replaced by something better. Urgghh even writing this review annoys me, so I’ll wrap things up.
In conclusion, I wouldn’t say that Panda Express is the worst chinese food in town, (I’ve tasted far worse) but believe me, its WAY down there at the bottom of that list. This place is a joke. (0 stars) If you want GOOD Chinese food, go to Shanghai Garden (by McKinley Park). You’ll love it.

The orange chicken is sprinkled with crack… it has to be!
On the occasion, I get a craving for this fried, coated in goodness, that is called Orange Chicken. I can’t decide between rice and noodles as my side dish… which I’m sure every Asian has this internal conflict… so I go ⁵⁰⁄₅₀.
Their basic meal is two main dishes and one side… I think you can get a one item, but I always feel bad just saying only one main dish. Oh hell, who am I kidding, all healthy ideals go out the door when it comes to their Orange Chicken.
I’ve tried a few other things, but nothing compares. Its great for what it is… I do enjoy the authenticity of Asians in the back manning the wok, but I also appreciate that the Mexicans can get down with cooking our food too. I don’t really care who does, just as long as it makes it from their wok to my plate in a timely fashion :)
Don’t mess up their efficiency, they like to have you order and paid within two minutes flat. I’m okay with that, because you aren’t paying that much, so I don’t expect five star service.
Clogging my arteries one meal at a time… I shall die a happy girl ;)