A fleet of gleaming black Mercedes-Benz shuttle vans delivered guests from a parking lot to just across a busy Foothill Boulevard Thursday evening to the entrance of the re-opened Panda Inn, where a classical music trio, playing by the entranceway, set the tone for its sparkling new renovation. Already, you could tell this wasn’t your grandfather’s Panda Inn anymore.
“From the ground up, including the garage,” said a manager of the nearly two-year transformation that has reimagined this foundational restaurant – the one that launched what would become an international empire of over 2,500 Panda Express locations across 11 countries.
The longtime Pasadena mainstay celebrated 51 years in Pasadena since its opening in 1973 by Andrew and Peggy Cherng, along with Andrew’s father Ming Tsai Cherng. The transformation, which began in January 2023, honors those immigrant roots while embracing contemporary dining trends with new private dining rooms, patio seating, and an exposed sushi bar.
Throughout the space, new artwork chronicles the Cherng family’s remarkable journey from Yangzhou, China, through Taiwan and Japan, to Southern California – a visual feast that nearly rivals the actual feast to come.
Prior to the public opening, Andrew and Peggy Cherng hosted the Thursday night preview with their daughter, Andrea Cherng, Chief Brand Officer of Panda Restaurant Group, and Andrew’s mother, Fung-Ing Cherng. The following day, around 100 community members, including loyal patrons, family friends, and elected officials, gathered for the official ribbon-cutting ceremony, all of them buzzing with anticipation.
Founder Andrew Cherng told a packed, luxurious dining room full of guests and media, his voice warm with emotion, “I’m so glad that we’re here, and this is going to be here for a while. We’re going to make sure of that.”
“The thing that I really appreciate, though over the years and growing up in Pasadena,” he said, “is that I think our guests, they also share the excitement of our success. One story at a time, one person at a time.”
This sentiment was echoed by Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo at the November 15 ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“Your story, Mr. Cherng, and your family’s story, is an American story. It’s the ultimate American story,” he said. “As an immigrant to come here, to Pasadena and start such a legacy, and to give so many an opportunity to be a part of that legacy, is something that I, and everyone in Pasadena and all of you should be proud of.”
The Mayor shared his own connection to the establishment, noting with obvious affection, “I myself have fond memories of so many of the employees here who knew the names of my kids, who knew my name long before I was mayor.”
“And I actually knew most of the guests by their family by names when I was running the store,” Cherng recalled, happily. “And I’ve been away for a while now. But I still remember. I still remember a lot of our guests. And you know what? They’re so supportive, so when we do well, they’re very happy as well.”
But back to the newly revamped restaurant: The dining room is set off by sleek wood paneling and beckoning booths that seem to whisper, “Stay a while.” Floor-to-ceiling windows add a sense of drama to the already alluring dining spot, along with a private dining room for special occasions that looks ready for a state dinner.
An engraved classical Chinese landscape scene and several wooden lattice panels recall the history of the restaurant family’s history, featuring scenes that honor their heritage and journey. The artwork itself tells a story, much like the dishes that would soon arrive at our table.
And oh, those dishes! The food is even more spectacular than I remember it from visits over the years. The kitchen, now led by three chefs from Yangzhou, offers a menu that reflects the family’s cultural heritage, with prices ranging from $5 for their signature hot and sour soup (worth every penny and then some) to $48 for chargrilled beef short ribs that could make a vegetarian weep.
Delicious appetizer servings of honey walnut shrimp, spicy Iberico pork and inari rolls, served from strolling servers who seemed to materialize just when you wanted them, prefaced our first course, their distinctive hot and sour soup, with scrumptious bits of pork.
The platter from the new sushi bar that was delivered to our table was the stuff of dreams – the kind of dreams that make you sad to wake up from. The extensive sushi menu, a new addition to the restaurant’s offerings, includes everything from $20 oysters on the half shell to $49 sashimi platters that look like edible art.
From toro to tuna to mackerel and yellowtail, the fish could have been cruising upstream off the coast of Ventura that morning. And remarkably, it took some effort from our table of four, to actually finish the platter, there was so much there there. Not that we were complaining, mind you.
The main event, created especially for the evening, featured Panda Beef, that crispy mystery that has bedazzled and beguiled guests for decades (and still does), along with the Yanghzou Braised Lion’s Head, (Think Chinese meatballs) in a just-right hot beef sauce, a dish that few local Chinese eateries make. (“Too much work,” a longtime employee stage-whispered to us, with a knowing wink.)
This was accompanied by a brick-sized serving of Chilean Sea Bass, delicate and flavorful even at that grand size, and a steaming bowl of Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice, which arrived when we thought we could eat no more.
Oh, but we could, sort of.
For the vegetarians at our table, there was Baby Bok Choy and large Shitake Mushrooms, as well as Mapo Tofu and Jade Fried Rice. I heard it was excellent, but I was too busy with my sea bass to notice.
A dessert fruit platter with unique peaches and Chinese melons was a sublime grand finale, though by this point, we were all considering wearing stretchy pants to future visits.
The renovation represents more than just a physical upgrade – it embodies the restaurant’s evolution from a single family-owned establishment to the birthplace of a global phenomenon. Today, under the leadership of Andrew and Peggy Cherng as co-chief executive officers of the Rosemead-based Panda Restaurant Group, the company has grown to encompass four full-service Panda Inns in Southern California. The empire truly began to take shape in October 1983 when the Cherngs opened their first Panda Express in the Glendale Galleria, where they later introduced their signature Original Orange Chicken – available here at the renovated Panda Inn for $20, and worth every single penny.
As Cherng said in a pre-dinner interview hosted by his daughter Andrea, “Not only does this place look better, but we’re really upgrading our cuisine as well. We’re giving our guests different choices.
“We are going to invite different chefs from China, and from Taiwan, for example,” said Cherng, “and we have, of course, added the sushi bar here.
“I love sushi, too,” he laughed. “So, we’re making it a more broad menu and broadening the choices. And I’m excited. I’m still excited.”
And so are we.
Panda Inn is at 3488 E. Foothill Boulevard, in East Pasadena. The restaurant is open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. For more information or reservations, call 626-793-7300 or visit pandainn.com. Stretchy pants optional, but recommended.
