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Panda Express began in 1983 in Glendale, California, when Andrew Cherng and his father, Chef Ming-Tsai Cherng, opened the first location inside the Glendale Galleria mall. The idea was to bring American Chinese cuisine into a fast-casual setting, making it more accessible to people who wanted quick service without giving up bold, familiar flavors.
Before Panda Express, the Cherng family had already experimented with restaurant concepts, including a sit-down restaurant called Panda Inn, which focused on a more traditional dining experience. The success of that earlier restaurant helped shape the faster, more streamlined model that would eventually become Panda Express, where consistency and speed were just as important as taste.
As the mall food court culture expanded across the United States in the 1980s and 1990s, Panda Express grew alongside it. The brand became known for signature dishes like Orange Chicken, which was introduced in the 1980s and gradually became one of its most recognizable menu items. This dish in particular helped define the company’s identity, blending sweet, tangy, and savory flavors in a way that appealed to a wide audience.
Over time, the company expanded beyond malls into standalone locations, airports, universities, and shopping centers. This shift allowed Panda Express to reach a broader customer base while maintaining a consistent menu and operational structure across different environments. The focus remained on efficiency, standardized recipes, and quick preparation, which helped the chain scale rapidly.
In the 2000s and beyond, Panda Express continued to grow internationally, opening locations outside the United States and adapting slightly to regional tastes while keeping its core menu intact. The company also invested in culinary innovation, introducing new dishes while maintaining its best-known staples.
Today, Panda Express operates as one of the largest Asian-inspired fast-casual restaurant chains in the world. Its history reflects a combination of immigrant entrepreneurship, adaptation to American dining habits, and a steady focus on scalable food service that balances speed, consistency, and flavor.