Panda Express

I always enjoy panda express as fast food. At the DeKalb panda express, sometimes the employees will recognize me and that's definitely a good feeling. They have very good food and it may get busy at times but it never feels stressful to order.

Really good food. Most fast food Chinese places taste the same no matter what dish you order. Panda express has a distinctive flavor for each of their dishes. Dishes are cooked in small batches so nothing sits for too long. Downside is sometimes you have to wait a few minutes for what you want to be ready. Small price to pay for fresh. Started by the son of celebrity chef Ming Tsai this chain seems to maintain their originality and standards across all of their restaurants. I've eaten in 7 now as yet have not had a bad meal. Their soups do seem a bit flat but are still good. Same for the appetizers. Wheelchair accessible and plenty of free parking. Very friendly staff.

Food is standard Panda Express. It's imitation Chinese at best but it's edible and digests OK. They usually have the "Passion Fruit" iced tea which is quite good. Medium & large drink sizes are super-big, maybe why the script (see below) prompts the customer for one of those sizes and doesn't mention the more reasonably sized small size.

However, the service is odd to the point of being uncomfortable. For some reason the staff--both servers and kitchen workers--all shout out "Welcome to Panda" when a new customer walks in. This isn't very enjoyable for this customer who lean towards introverted; I'd prefer a normal conversational "Welcome to Panda" from the server who waits on me. Also, the servers stick so close to a script it's nearly robotic: would you like a sample, would you like a medium or large drink, etc., even if the customer has visited many times and never asks for those things. I would feel more comfortable if the servers were allowed to stray a little off script when they recognize a customer.