Panda Express Gets My Vote for Freshness

The Panda Express located at 10250 Bloomingdale Ave. in Riverview gets my attention this day and, much to my surprise, it was a pleasant stop for lunch on a day that was getting out of hand and in need of some new direction. I got what I needed that day—a smile.

I’d like to think of myself as an open-minded type of person but, for some reason, a drive-thru Chinese restaurant seemed out of bounds. I’ve been overseas quite a bit and lived out West for some time and the whole thing felt unnatural to me. Forgive me for quoting my 13-year-old daughter but: My Bad!

I stopped by a little after noon on my way home from a meeting and only saw a couple of cars in the parking lot that probably belonged to the employees. There was a car with two guys that pulled in at the same time as I did but, other than the three of us, the place felt abandoned. 

I looked at the hours of operation sign on the door and, according to the post, they had been open for more than an hour.

I walked in and looked around at a very clean restaurant with lots of shiny stainless steel behind the counter—I like shiny kitchens. Most of the pans were empty but were being filled, rapidly.

Two men behind the counter, working in an open kitchen, were putting items in steel bowls that the two women working the line were loading into the steam pans.

I told the lady working the counter that this was my first time in and she gave me a very warm and pleasant smile. She poured a large bowl of chow mein into a large hotel pan and showed me how everything was labeled and that if I had any questions to please ask her. She never skipped a beat as we spoke and I'm guessing she's heard this before.

A well-oiled machine describes what I witnessed for the next few minutes or so as the four employees filled most of the pans with a large variety of different foods. The man working the wok was furiously fast as he constantly emptied the wok into the bowls and refilled them with fresh meats and vegetables. Very impressive work!

While I was watching the cooking show in front of me, I forgot about the front door that kept opening behind me. When I turned around, the room was full of people and I’m talking about three tables and 20 people ordering at the counter. The place suddenly was like a revolving door at the front and the parking lot was almost full. Was there some type of memo that went out about the hour delay for the freshest food?

I ordered the chicken egg roll that was one of the freshest I’ve eaten with a crispy won ton shell that was deceptively hot. I paid dearly for that quick bite as I wasn’t thinking about the hot oil I just saw the cook remove the food from—had a few choice words for myself after that, none of which made note of my intelligence.

The cream cheese rangoons were delicious. Maybe I would have added a few more onions but as far as quality goes—superb!

I had a choice of chow mein or fried rice, of which I chose the latter, and two entrees. I had the Beijing beef and the orange chicken, both of which were cooked perfectly. The coating was crispy and, despite being soaked in a sauce, remained crisp for quite some time. Word of warning, though: the beef was a touch spicy and I’m told you can get it as hot as you would like—no extra charge for the added pain.

I’m giving these guys four stars. Nothing beats quality like food that is cooked in front of you and delivered steaming to you within minutes. I’ll be back!

1 Star--Wouldn't go back on a bet

2 Star--Would have to go back, but only on a bet

3 Star--If I was in the neighborhood and hungry

4 Star--Would go out of my way even if I wasn't hungry

5 Star--Would make reservations and wait in a line