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Panda Express is an American
fast food restaurant A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast-food cuisine and has minimal table service. The food served in fast-food restaurants is typically ...
chain that serves
American Chinese cuisine American Chinese cuisine is a cuisine derived from Chinese cuisine that was developed by Chinese Americans. The dishes served in many North American Chinese restaurants are adapted to American tastes and often differ significantly from tho ...
. With over 2,200 locations, it is the largest Asian-segment restaurant chain in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, where it was founded, and is mainly located in North America and Asia (in addition to other countries and territories). Panda Express restaurants were traditionally located in shopping mall
food court A food court (in Asia-Pacific also called food hall or hawker centre) is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dinner. ...
s, but the chain now operates units in many other environments and formats, including stand-alone restaurants, as well as universities, casinos, airports, military bases, amusement parks and other venues. The chain offers a variety of Chinese-cuisine-inspired dishes, including orange chicken, sweet fire chicken breast, Beijing beef, grilled
teriyaki chicken ''Teriyaki'' (kanji: 照り 焼き) is a cooking technique used in Japanese cuisine in which foods are broiled or grilled with a glaze of soy sauce, mirin, and sugar. Fish – yellowtail, marlin, skipjack tuna, salmon, trout, and macke ...
, and
Kung Pao chicken Kung Pao chicken (), also transcribed Gong Bao or Kung Po, is a spicy, stir-fried Chinese dish made with cubes of chicken, peanuts, vegetables (traditionally Welsh onion only ), and chili peppers. The classic dish in Sichuan cuisine originat ...
, with certain premium dishes such as honey walnut shrimp and black pepper Angus steak having additional costs for the patron. The company is headquartered in Rosemead, California. The Panda Express brand is a casual, fast-food variation of corporate sibling
Panda Inn Panda Inn is a chain of sit-down Chinese restaurants in California owned and operated by the Panda Restaurant Group. The company's original founding goal was to bring new varieties of Chinese cuisine, such as Mandarin cuisine and Szechuan cui ...
(a chain of upscale, table service restaurants).


History

The Panda Restaurant Group, parent company of
Panda Inn Panda Inn is a chain of sit-down Chinese restaurants in California owned and operated by the Panda Restaurant Group. The company's original founding goal was to bring new varieties of Chinese cuisine, such as Mandarin cuisine and Szechuan cui ...
, Panda Express, and
Hibachi-San Panda Restaurant Group, Inc., parent company of Panda Inn, Panda Express and Hibachi-San, was founded by Andrew and Peggy Tsiang Cherng Jennings, Lisa"Having words with Peggy Tsiang Cherng: chief executive and co-chair, Panda Restaurant Group" ...
, was founded by Andrew Cherng, Peggy Cherng and Andrew's father, Master Chef Ming Tsai Cherng. Andrew Cherng and his father are Chinese born, while Peggy was born in Burma and raised in Hong Kong. Both Andrew and Peggy Cherng are alumni of Baker University in
Baldwin City, Kansas Baldwin City is a city in Douglas County, Kansas, United States, about south of Lawrence. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 4,826. The city is home to Baker University, the state's oldest four-year university. History ...
(where they first met). Andrew went into business with his father in the United States in 1973, opening their first Panda Inn restaurant in
Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. ...
. At the beginning, business was lacking to the degree that Andrew had to offer special deals and freebies so that customers would dine at Panda Inn. In 1982, Peggy joined Andrew in the restaurant business. While operating Panda Inn, Andrew became acquainted with then-UCLA head football coach Terry Donahue, as well as Terry's brother Dan, who happened to be in the real estate business. It was because of this connection that in 1983, Donahue Schriber Real Estate, the manager of the Glendale Galleria, invited the Cherngs to develop a fast-food version of Panda Inn for the Galleria's food court, and Panda Express was launched that October. A second location was opened two years later at the Westside Pavilion in 1985. The chain has steadily expanded across the United States since then. Chef Andy Kao claims to have developed the original Chinese-American orange chicken recipe at a Panda Express in Hawaii in 1987. At first, Panda Express restaurants were found solely in food courts in major shopping malls. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Cherngs began experimenting with
supermarket A supermarket is a self-service shop offering a wide variety of food, beverages and household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earlier grocery stores, but is smaller and more limit ...
-based branches, through a deal with Vons, and then stand-alone restaurant locations. In 1997, the company opened its first stand-alone,
drive-through A drive-through or drive-thru (a sensational spelling of the word ''through''), is a type of take-out service provided by a business that allows customers to purchase products without leaving their cars. The format was pioneered in the United ...
restaurant, in Hesperia, California. Today less than 2% of its restaurants are in malls. Because Peggy had worked for several years as a software designer and engineer for defense contractors like
McDonnell Douglas McDonnell Douglas was a major American aerospace manufacturing corporation and defense contractor, formed by the merger of McDonnell Aircraft and the Douglas Aircraft Company in 1967. Between then and its own merger with Boeing in 1997, it ...
, Panda Express computerized its operations early on. Peggy also brought a
systems analysis Systems analysis is "the process of studying a procedure or business to identify its goal and purposes and create systems and procedures that will efficiently achieve them". Another view sees system analysis as a problem-solving technique that ...
perspective to the business and worked through the logistics and standardization issues necessary to scale up the concept. In 2005, Panda Express began to open units in food courts on college campus, some of which participate in the residential student meal plans. In 2008, the Cherngs were the recipients of the City of Angels Award, given by the LAX Coastal Area Chamber of Commerce, for their contributions to the greater
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
area. As of 2007, the company's highest revenue location, bringing in over US$4 million annually, was located at the
Ala Moana Center The Ala Moana Center, commonly known simply as Ala Moana, is a large open-air shopping mall in the Ala Moana neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii. Owned by Brookfield Properties, Ala Moana is the eleventh largest shopping mall in the United States an ...
food court in
Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
. On November 23, 2009, it was announced that Panda Express had selected Trusonic to provide Asian themed background music to its store locations. On the
ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast '' ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include morning news-talk show '' Good Morning America'', '' ...
TV program ''
Nightline ''Nightline'' (or ''ABC News Nightline'') is ABC News' late-night television news program broadcast on ABC in the United States with a franchised formula to other networks and stations elsewhere in the world. Created by Roone Arledge, the prog ...
'', April 18, 2011, there was a feature segment on Panda Express and its success. The segment described how Andrew Cherng encourages his workers and management to go through self-help programs emphasizing Landmark Education. In 2011, a suit was filed by the
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a federal agency that was established via the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to administer and enforce civil rights laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination ...
against Panda Express because it was reportedly treating its Hispanic employees differently than Asian employees. In June 2013, it was announced that the restaurant chain will pay $150,000 to settle another EEOC action on behalf of at least three female teenagers who were allegedly sexually harassed between 2007 and 2009 by one male kitchen supervisor in
Kauai, Hawaii Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the 21st largest island ...
. In addition to the fines, Panda Express revised its policies and was required to provide anti-discrimination and sexual harassment training for employees. Later that year, Panda Express opened its first location in the western Pacific by opening a location in the American territory of Guam. The first location in the state of
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U ...
was later opened in December 2015. As of 2017, the Panda Restaurant Group had annual sales of over $3 billion and close to 39,000 employees. The Cherngs also opened Panda Innovation Kitchen in Pasadena with their daughter, Andrea Cherng, overlooking a majority of the restaurant's business. The idea for Panda Innovation Kitchen is to experiment with new flavours and ingredients to come up with new menu items. In addition, they also opened a tea bar to introduce Taiwanese drinks such as boba milk tea and new drinks like the Fortune Cookie Shake. In December 2017, Panda Express had opened the chain's 2,000th location, which is located in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
near
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
. In February of 2022, Panda Restaurant Group filed a U.S. trademark application for the name PANDAVERSE for “downloadable virtual goods, namely, food items and beverages for use in virtual worlds" and "virtual food and beverage products.” The filing marked an intention to expand the Panda Express brand into the Metaverse.


International

Panda Express also operates in Canada, Guatemala, Japan, Mexico, El Salvador, Philippines, South Korea, Russia, and the United Arab Emirates. The first location in Mexico opened in
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
in September 2011. In October 2013, the first Panda Express located in Canada opened its doors on
Hunt Club Road Hunt Club Road, also known as Ottawa Road 32, is a major east–west route in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It originally ran from a dead end east of Bank Street to the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club; later, there were many extensions due to the 1970s ho ...
in
Nepean, Ontario Nepean ( ) is a former municipality and now geographic area of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Located west of Ottawa's inner core, it was an independent city until amalgamated with the Regional Municipality of Ottawa–Carleton in 2001 to become the ...
but has since closed. The first location in
Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...
was opened in October 2016. On May 26, 2014, it was reported by
Arabian Business ''Arabian Business'' (''AB'') is a weekly business magazine published in Dubai and focusing on global and regional news analysis. The brand is aimed at the English- and Arabic-speaking communities and is published in both languages. Its circula ...
news that Panda Express would be opening a restaurant in the United Arab Emirates. The first Panda Express restaurant in the
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
was open in
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, wikt:دبي, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates#Major cities, most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 ...
in November 2014. The first location in South Korea was opened in Seoul in September 2014 as a joint venture with Seoul-based SF Innovation Co. In July 2016, Panda Express opened its first location in Guatemala, in
Guatemala City Guatemala City ( es, Ciudad de Guatemala), known locally as Guatemala or Guate, is the capital and largest city of Guatemala, and the most populous urban area in Central America. The city is located in the south-central part of the country, ne ...
. In September 2017, Panda Express opened its first location on the
Dutch Caribbean The Dutch Caribbean (historically known as the Dutch West Indies) are the territories, colonies, and countries, former and current, of the Dutch Empire and the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean Sea. They are in the north and south-wes ...
country of
Aruba Aruba ( , , ), officially the Country of Aruba ( nl, Land Aruba; pap, Pais Aruba) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands physically located in the mid-south of the Caribbean Sea, about north of the Venezuela peninsula of P ...
at the
Queen Beatrix International Airport Queen Beatrix International Airport ( nl, Internationale luchthaven Koningin Beatrix; pap, Aeropuerto Internacional Reina Beatrix), colloquially known as Aruba Airport , is an international airport located in Oranjestad, Aruba. It has flight s ...
. Although no reliable source can be located when and where Panda Express had opened its first restaurant in
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
, there is reliable information that the second Panda Express in Saudi Arabia was opened in the capital city of
Riyadh Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the ...
in January 2018. Both Saudi Arabian restaurants are operated by Gourmet Gulf. In July 2018, Panda Express entered El Salvador for the first time by opening 2 locations in the capital city of
San Salvador San Salvador (; ) is the capital and the largest city of El Salvador and its eponymous department. It is the country's political, cultural, educational and financial center. The Metropolitan Area of San Salvador, which comprises the capital it ...
In September 2018, Panda Express announced its joint venture with
Jollibee Foods Corporation Jollibee Foods Corporation (abbreviated as JFC and Jollibee Group; also known as Jollibee after its primary fast food brand) is a Filipino multinational company based in Pasig, Philippines. JFC is the owner of the fast food brand Jollibee. W ...
to bring its stores in the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
. A year later, in December 2019, the first Panda Express restaurant in the Philippines opened at
SM Megamall SM Megamall, simply known as Megamall, is the third largest shopping mall in the Philippines and the thirteenth largest in the world that is developed and operated by SM Prime Holdings. It is located in Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong, Philippin ...
in
Mandaluyong Mandaluyong, officially the City of Mandaluyong ( fil, Lungsod ng Mandaluyong), is a first class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to ...
. This was followed by a branch in
SM City North EDSA SM North EDSA (formerly SM City North EDSA, The SM Center North EDSA and The SM City North EDSA), and colloquially known as SM North, is a large shopping mall located in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. It is the first SM Supermall in t ...
in
Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...
in 2021. As of August 2022, it now has eleven branches in the Philippines, all located in
Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...
. The first Panda Express in
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
opened in
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
in September 2018. Panda Express previously had eight locations in Japan that were operated under a franchise agreement that later lapsed. In November 2016, the company returned to the country by opening a new location in Kawasaki. This new location is operated as part of a joint partnership with
Ippudo Ippudo, also known as in Japan, is a Japanese ramen restaurant chain with locations worldwide. Ippudo is well known for its tonkotsu ramen, and has been described as "the most famous tonkotsu ramen shop in the country". History Ippudo was star ...
. As of August 2022, there are nine locations in the nation. In October 2020, the ''
South China Morning Post The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remained ...
'' reported that a fake Panda Express restaurant in the southwestern Chinese city of
Kunming Kunming (; ), also known as Yunnan-Fu, is the capital and largest city of Yunnan province, China. It is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province as well as the seat of the provincial government. The headquar ...
had been reported for trademark infringement, and was closed during an investigation. The reportedly fake restaurant used the same Panda Express logo, and its menu reportedly included the same Kung Pao Chicken and Tangerine Peel Chicken as the company's restaurants. In August 2022, Panda Express opened its first European location in Kaiserslautern Military Community Center food court, Ramstein Air Base, Germany.


Philanthropy

In 1999, Panda Express launched Panda Cares to give back to the community. They provide funding, food and volunteer services to children in need and disaster relief efforts. The company installed donation boxes in all the Panda Express restaurants in 2010. The charity has raised $107 million, with $89 million coming from in-store donation boxes, and $41 million has been donated to "The Leader In Me", a program to teach leadership and life skills that has been rolled out to 865 elementary schools in 39 states. The organization has also donated $37 million to Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, to support medical costs for poor children, and also supports disaster relief efforts.


See also

*
List of Chinese restaurants This is a list of notable Chinese restaurants. A Chinese restaurant is an establishment that serves Chinese cuisine outside China. Some have distinctive styles, as with American Chinese cuisine and Canadian Chinese cuisine. Most of them are in th ...


References


Further reading

* * * -
Asia Society The Asia Society is a non-profit organization that focuses on educating the world about Asia. It has several centers in the United States (Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Houston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco) and around the world (Hong Kong, Ma ...
, Southern California.
Andrew Cherng interview
The Tavis Smiley Show, original airdate November 14, 2006. * Jennings, Lisa
"Having words with Peggy Tsiang Cherng: chief executive and co-chair, Panda Restaurant Group"
Nation's Restaurant News, August 1, 2005.
"panda express feedback"
@Mizzou,
University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus University of Missouri System. MU was founded in ...
, Alumni Association magazine, January 2004.
Panda Restaurant Group Corporate Data
from Panda Restaurant Group website * * Bernstein, Charles, 'Manchu Leads the Working Race,' Restaurants & Institutions, August 1, 1994, p. 30. * Cebrzynski, Gregg, 'Panda Express Breaks TV Ad Campaign as Test to Raise Brand Awareness,' Nation's Restaurant News, August 9, 1999, p. 11. * Farkas, David, 'Fast and Friendly,' Chain Leader, March 2000, p. 72. * Glover, Kara, 'Success on Oriental (Food) Express,' Los Angeles Business Journal, September 25, 1995, p. 21. * Krantz, Matt
"Panda Express Spreads Chinese Food Across USA"
''USA Today'', September 11, 2006 * Marchetti, Michele, and Alisson, Lucas, 'Creating Panda-monium,' Sales & Marketing Management, January 1996, p. 14. * Martin, Richard, 'Panda Express: Bullish about the Bear,' Nation's Restaurant News, May 16, 1994, p. 86. * ------, 'Top Chi-Chi's, El Torito Execs Tackle Panda Push,' Nation's Restaurant News, August 7, 1995, p. 18 * * *


External links

*
Hoover's Financial Data on the Panda Restaurant Group
{{Portal bar, Companies, Food, Los Angeles Chinese restaurants outside China Fast-food chains of the United States Restaurant chains in the United States Restaurants in California Companies based in Los Angeles County, California Restaurants established in 1983 1983 establishments in California Restaurants in Greater Los Angeles Rosemead, California Fast casual restaurants