Panda Express has grown tremendously since it opened its first door in 1983. Andrew J.C. Cherng and his father, master Chinese chef Ming- Tsai Cherng, founded a full service restaurant in 1973 called Panda Inn. They were in Pasadena, a suburb of Los Angeles, one of America’s ethnic melting pots. The Cherngs wanted to expand the full service Chinese restaurant but the competition would be too much in an area with a large Asian American population. Andrew Cherng saw that fast food, drive-thru restaurants was very successful in the United States. He then sought out to experiment with an “oriental” food version of that kind of idea since southern California offered a good market. Cherng moved away from the full service restaurant idea and expanded into the quick service restaurant field.

Panda Express has become one of the largest “Chinese food” restaurant chains in the United States, having restaurants in over 34 states. They are located in places like, mall food courts, supermarkets, shopping centers, key intersections, airports, and university and college campuses. It can practically be put in the fast food category now along the lines of healthiness. Panda express in addition to other Chinese fast food restaurants double the number of McDonald’s franchises. Many Americans, including Asian Americans, are gaining weight because of misconceptions about the food. Many think that it is healthy since there are vegetables in the meals. Panda Express is in the market for customers in the age eighteen to thirty four bracket, the working population who will most likely eat fast food. They are slowly raising their level to a hamburger, fried chicken, and Mexican food chain dominated market.

More importantly, I feel that Panda Express has taken a big step in the promotion of Americanized Chinese food. They have moved further away from traditional Chinese cuisine and moved towards modifying their food for Caucasian American tastes. Americanized Chinese food is taking over and “real” Chinese food is losing its authentic cultural aspect. Chinese food in America is recognized as a kind of fast food while many Chinese people are not proud to call it theirs. Immigrants from China that try this food for the first time usually do not like it at all. Much of what passes for Chinese cooking in America would sicken a traditional Chinese gourmet chef. Canned pineapples, canned fruit cocktails, corn starch, MSG, and heavy doses of sugar are found in these “bizarre” American creations. The basic formula appears to be: take the fattest piece of meat you can get, cook it in a lot of oil with the sweetest mixture of canned fruits and sugar you can make, add soy sauce and thicken the sauce to a glue-like consistency. Think about it the next time you get carryout!