I've heard that the Panda Express in general is usually not remotely close to authentically Chinese fare, but that doesn't stop the millions of people who want their Chinese food fix.
Daily addicts to Chinese food cuisine can have it all here at the Panda Express, but without the fuss of actual dining with menus in a legit Chinese restaurant on any given day. All the classic favorites are made here and there must be yours here included in the mix. For what it's worth, Panda Express is basically where you just need food of Chinese origin and that's basically it. I've grown up Chinese and thought Panda's is decently good, but can be very price sensitive, if you aren't careful. Many of the panda expresses I've been to are found in airports, but this time around, this one happens to be near where I've been working for the last 7 years, but this Panda Express has been around for less than 5 years. For what it's worth, the overall experience here at times can be loud and annoying, as far as the atmosphere goes. The buffet line concept is how it goes here. Pick and choose your menu options and pay for it. Get in and get out, if you are taking out or if you are dining in, there is plenty of tables and spaces to hang out and relax while eating. Regardless of why you come here, just have fun with it and indulge yourself with Panda Express.
This Panda Express location is located within the Kamehameha Shopping Center in the heart of Kalihi. It's next door to the Subway and Starbucks. You can't really miss it. They accept major credit cards, which is always a plus, but the main thing you ought to do is to not come here when there's a longer than expected wait. You'd want to just get in and out as fast as you can. Like a bank or the supermarket, if you can help it. If you are like me, public transit routes 1L, 2, and 2L come through the area on North School Street and stops in front of the shopping center. If you are like most folks out there with a car, there's plenty of parking space, underneath and upstairs in the parking garage, as well as parking in front of McDonald's, depending where you are shopping. Still, Panda's can be a good place to chow down all things Chinese, but in Honolulu, there's often a better choice, but Panda's is a good quick fix when you don't want to deal with the time commitments of a full scale dining experience. Yet, panda's express is kind of pricey for what they offer. Be expected to pay upwards of $8 to 10+ per plate, depending on how much entrees you decide on getting.
The restaurant itself is rather clean and very stylish. Yep, the redesign of the interior itself is quite appealing, especially when you are dealing with a fast food restaurant. Usually, I rarely come here, but when I found out that I had failed to file a review for this place, I had to return again, grab lunch, and file one. I thought I did already, but what can you do when yelp says you didn't. My experiences here at Panda Express can be described as above average. While the service is generally okay good, I do like the fact that the line can go really fast, depending on how much people are there at any point of time. I guess that's how they are - trying to move a lot of product in a short amount of time, like a buffet line. Sometimes, the service can be robotic and not much better interaction between the customer and staff, but that's okay. We are there to get food and leave. Time is always precious these days. One of my favorites here at Panda Express is the beef broccoli and the orange chicken is always hot. Sometimes they would have a vegetable stir fry of some sort mixed with beef or chicken. I do like the chao mein noodles here, but most of the time, I hit up the fried rice, just because.
It's always good to try new entrees here, although I try to stick to past favorites and often times, the walnut shrimp is a reward for a mid week treat. If nothing else, Panda Express can be the alternative you are looking for, in terms of Chinese fare.
3.5 stars, but rounded to 4.0. Wish it was a little cheaper.
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