The reason why I chose Panda Express is because it was originally founded in Pasadena, California by a father and son from Jiangsu Province, and although the flavor is already very American, it's a great choice for international students who don't know how to cook or don't have the tools to cook. On the other hand, Panda Express is already located in almost every major campus and theme park across the United States, so when you really don't know what to eat, you can't usually go too wrong with Panda.
Here's how to order food from Panda Express, so you can have a great meal without being embarrassed.
Panda Express is inexpensive, usually less than $10, convenient, and a good choice for student lunches. Customers who want to order can either look at the menu leaflets on the wall or the real food in the window. Most people will order the set menu, choosing one meal and two dishes.
Tips to get started:
1. Get in line
2. Once you're in line, you'll be greeted by the waitresses with a warm greeting, something like, "Hello, Welcome to Panda Express, what do you want to order?"
Maybe she speaks fast, so don't be intimidated, just return the huge smile and say "Hello, can I have (the main food)?"
Note: If there is a new dish being introduced, the girl may sometimes ask you, "Do you want to try some sample"? That is to let you try the dish. It doesn't matter if you don't understand, as long as you hear "Sample", if you want one, just point to it.
From left to right are fried rice, white rice, brown rice, chow mein, and mixed vegetables.
The staples are rice, chow mein, and veggie mix (the menu calls this side), which in English are Steam Rice, Brown Rice, Fried Rice, Chow Mein, and Vegetables (veggie mix - doesn't have much flavor).
You can order just one or a mix of both.
For example, you could say "Can I have steam rice and chow mein"?
3. Usually another waiter will ask you what you want "What do you want"?
Then you can boldly and safely point to the dish you want, for example you can say "Can I have some broccoli beef and orange chicken?
Note: If you order a dish with a lot of soup and want the girl to pour the soup over the rice, you can just say "Can I have some sauce on rice? Spring Rolls, Fried Dumplings, Rangoons/Cheese Wonton, Fried Shrimp, Hot & Sour Soup.
From left to right: Egg Rolls, Spring Rolls, Fried Dumplings, Cheese Rangoons, Fried Shrimp, Hot & Sour Soup.
4. Finally, congratulations, there's just one last step left, and that's the checkout!
The checkout girl will ask you, "Do you want something to drink?" Water is free here, and she'll give you a cup to distinguish it from a drink.
Give the cash or card to the girl, get your meal, plus a fortune cookie (complimentary), and end the order!