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The Deliciously Greasy History Of Panda Express
Jul 30, 2025
Today on Weird History Food, we are going to talk about that ubiquitous Panda Express - they are EVERYWHERE! ...But which was the first one ever? We will take you way back to a germ of an idea between a father and son hat grew into what we know today - the company that actually invented orange chicken!
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Today, we're serving up the sweet and sour history of Panda Express
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In 1973, a young Chinese immigrant named Andrew Cheung had the idea to partner with his master chef father, Ming-Sai Cheung
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on a new restaurant endeavor. The father-son duo opened Panda Inn in Pasadena, California
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The upscale Chinese cuisine was served sit-down style and offered traditional entrees and a friendly staff
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composed mostly of Cheung's family. Eventually, Cheung went off to study at Baker University
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in Baldwin City, Kansas, where he met Peggy Sang. The pair got married in 1975
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and Peggy, who had a degree in computer science and a PhD in electrical engineering
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worked in her field of study while Andrew returned to help with Panda Inn. An open space had just become available
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in the Glendale Galleria food court, and while they didn't have the chain yet
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the churns still recognized a perfect spot for quick Chinese takeout when they saw it
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Andrew and Peggy decided to seize this opportunity, and together, the duo opened the first Panda Express
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in 1983. How does a mathematician major and a computer science whiz turn a tiny food court
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kiosk into a thriving food empire? One of the reasons was Peggy Churn's affinity for designing
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computer software. As an early adopter of computer tech in the restaurant racket
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Peggy used her engineering prowess to design an operating system that could
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among other things track inventory reorder ingredients and store customer reviews Panda Express also touted a larger and more robust menu for their dine customers while most other American Chinese restaurants had little more than chop suey And they were the only
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American Chinese restaurant in the game using these high-tech methods, a leg-up that would
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allow them to dominate the market. In 1988, Panda Express continued to make unconventional decisions
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including opening a location inside a Vaughn's grocery store. This eventually paved the way for
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express locations to pop up in other unusual places, like military bases, casinos, and airports
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which is less weird nowadays. The chain's ability to appear just about anywhere was an early secret
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to its success. Speaking of successes, if you're heading into a Panda Express, it's likely you've
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got one sweet and savory thing on your mind. The exclusively delicious orange chicken. They
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invented orange chicken. Well, Chef Andy Cow did, but you get it. The crispy chicken is fried in the
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oil of an orange peel with orange-flavored sauce, and absolutely no MSG. But if it's not copper-colored
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chicken you're looking for, you can get all sorts of items from Panda Express's robust menu
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However, not even those specialized offerings can hold a stovetop flame to the mighty orange chicken
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which makes up for about a third of Panda Express's yearly revenue. That's a whopping
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110 million pounds of orange chicken sold each and every year. Today, you can find over 2,200
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Panda Express locations throughout the United States, Canada, Guam, and South Korea
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pulling in an impressive $3.5 billion in sales each year
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