Damn their Mongolian Beef is good! Too bad I only had at most two ounces of beef in my serving. The kid who took my order said nine words; small or large, your change is ten seventy nine. More concerned with his phone than the customers. Sad state of affairs our country is coming into. Why waste any more thumb effort writing anything else?
Aileen K.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Los Angeles, CA
Lived my whole life without entering a Pei Wei and recently we had to settle for this spot because it was the only real food place in the area. I was surprised to see that it was not a sit-down-and-order type of restaurant but then again I have no idea why I had such expectations to begin with. I got the sesame chicken because it was supposed to be spicy. It wasn’t spicy at all but understandably to a non-Asian diner this might be considered spicy? It came with plenty of vegetables and the chicken was tenderly cooked… imagine the type of thin texture you picture for a pad see ew chicken dish. However, overall the dish was mediocre. All the others who ordered different varieties including noodles and quinoa all complained about the food. It was definitely better than the fast food quality of Panda Express or Fast Stix but taste wise, I think I prefer Panda if I’m going to overlook the unhealthiness and sodium of it all.
Mark S.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Carlsbad, CA
Every time we come here several tables are dirty with dishes and rice etc on the tables. Tonight was a new record, 14 tables out of 18 were dirty! I told the manager but he didn’t seem to care. All tables remained dirty while we ate. Terrible place to have a nice meal. Go to another location.
Katherine P.
Rating des Ortes: 1 San Diego, CA
I love the Pei Wei chain, but this particular location was S T R U G G L I N G. My husband and I went here tonight for dinner and had a very simple order: 2 small bowls of Chicken Pad Thai. Nothing else. Not complicated, right? To start, the kid who took our order misheard our order, even though there were 2 of us and I had spoken clearly and even held up 2 fingers to indicate our order. When he said the total was less than we were expecting, my husband clarified that we wanted 2 orders of the pad thai. The order was corrected, our receipt printed, and we were handed our cups and table number. We went over to the drink station, and found there was no ice in the machine. We went to look for a table, and was aghast at the state of the dining room. There were only a few other people in the dining room, but every empty table had dishes and needed to be cleared. Dirty plates, glasses, and food everywhere. We reluctantly sat down at the ONE small clean table directly in the middle of the dining room. We were starving, but were hopeful that our food would be brought out quickly since there wasn’t anyone in front of us in line. There was one server working the dining room and he looked completely overwhelmed. We saw him returning money to people on their way out the door, obviously not satisfied with their experience either. He looked around the dining room as if he didn’t even know where to start. I was stressed just being there. After a full 20 minutes, he brought out one bowl of Pad Thai. Just one. He assured us that the second bowl was on its way out though, so my husband graciously told me to start eating and he would wait for the second bowl to come. ANOTHER30MINUTESLATER — not even exaggerating — I am completely done with my bowl and my husband’s food is no where in sight. We ask where our food is, and the server drops off a $ 10 gift card on our table. No explanation, no apology. …um, thank you? We wait for another 10 – 15 minutes but still no sign of the second bowl. We see other tables receive their food, but even they seem like they’ve been waiting awhile. No one in the restaurant seems happy. At this point I’m very confused because my husband and I literally ordered the exact same thing. Did they make one order of chicken pad thai, and then started over with the second? Why didn’t they just make an extra large batch? This is kitchen management 101, people. We asked the server to just bring out the second bowl to-go, because all we wanted to do at that point was get out of there after being there for over 45 min already. I was completely done with my dinner and my poor husband still had yet to see his food. We follow the server back up to the counter and hear him make excuses to the kitchen staff, «this guy just asked for his pad thai to go… so sorry… I know it’s annoying…» Glad he could apologize to the kitchen staff and not to us. How dare we ask for our food to go. What an inconvenience that puts on them to put a lid on the bowl. The next part was the icing on the cake. While we are standing there waiting for our second bowl of pad thai, the kitchen staff hands the server a bowl of pad thai that is FORANOTHERTABLE — so he walks right past us with the pad thai and tells us we have to wait for the NEXT pad thai bowl. I’m so confused. None of this makes sense. Is there a rule somewhere that says you have to make one serving of pad thai at a time? We FINALLY get our second bowl to go, and again — no apology, no explanation, nothing. I pass the manager on the way out the door and mention to her that our experience was entirely disappointing, and SHELAUGHS. She actually laughed at me. I have no idea what was happening at this Pei Wei tonight, but everyone there was having a rough day I guess. Maybe it was simultaneously everyone’s first day on the job, I don’t know. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt and I would very much like to believe that the restaurant is not normally like this, but I can say that my husband and I will not be back. My advice? Just set your expectations low, and don’t show up too hungry. ;)
Anya B.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Carlsbad, CA
I usually really like Pei Wei for what it is(lower cost fast food compared to P.F.Changs) however the latest experience at this location was just meh. Ordered take out(Cashew Chicken and Kung Pao Chicken with brown rice) Both were very dry. Not enough sauce at all or maybe they cooked it down all the way? I appreciate that the chicken meat seems like good quality(other than that it is probably antibiotic laden non organic chicken which is the norm when eating out) The digital menu display was only showing a Microsoft error… sooo…I expect more for a good review. Seeing the latest reviews it looks like it is not run right currently…
Jade M.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Oceanside, CA
Despite the bad reviews I visited this Pei Wei because other locations I have been to have never disappointed me, however this location is not a good one. Veggies under cooked and protein very dry. I ordered a kids meal for my son and even that was horrible when I asked for an exchange so my son could eat, they gave me the same exact chicken just switched the rice and added more sauce. I wouldn’t waste my money at this location if rather drive to another one or better off just eat Panda Express.
Eve T.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Vista, CA
Great service, food was excellent and I especially like the self service take home. Definitely a PF Chang chain but i will visit again soon.
Justin M.
Rating des Ortes: 4 San Diego, CA
12:30pm on a Thursday, party of one. Place was half full of diners. Ordered the Dan Dan bowl with bird. Solid dish. Flavors were generally good. Chicken was nice. I like the saucers of hot mustard and Wei fong chile sauce. The cashier was extremely friendly and welcoming, he was working the entire time, cleaning etc during down time. Good hot tea selection on a rainy day. Overall it exceeded my expectations. The Flavors are all slightly muted for us Americans but I’m sure it’s by design
Edward T.
Rating des Ortes: 2 San Diego, CA
Last week we tried to eat at this Pei Wei and they were out of the Thai Wonton Soup. Tonight, they are out of white rice! How does a Chinese restaurant run out of rice? Seriously! I will say that the Kung Pao chicken was delicious.
Seth C.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Boulder, CO
Food is normally great but hands down worst experience ever tonight. Ordered over the phone, told to pick up the food in 25 min. It’s been one hour and 10 minutes and they haven’t even started my food. What a joke, so much for our favorite fast food local joint. At the very least they should be offering beer or something, where’s the manager when you need one.
Steve H.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Encinitas, CA
I cannot believe the story I just heard. My friend, who is a single mom battling breast cancer, going to school and working two jobs took her daughter to this location. After 45 minutes, she asked for a refund for food that hadn’t even been fired yet. They didn’t start the food. No apology, no attempt to fix the problem, just«oh, okay.» I am shocked. I worked as a restaurant manager for many years and the lack of accountability taken by these employees frightens me. Things happen, but you fix them. They didn’t even try here. They’re cruel. That’s unacceptable and you should not waste your time and money at this location. Ever. Probably not any location.
Eileen r.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Solana Beach, CA
Ordered the spicy thai with tofu and extra veggies. The tofu was so dry it was like eating leather. The extra veggies amounted to 2 bites of broccoli and 3 pea pods. The sodium in the sauce(if you call that crusty stuff sauce) was 2 weeks worth. Since I ordered it to go on my lunch I didn’t have time to go back. Not edible. Won’t be back, there is no way to make up for a meal you cannot eat any of.
Jazmin P.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Oceanside, CA
I haven’t had Pei Wei since I moved back to California from Arizona so I was very excited to have the dish that I’ve been craving! The place was empty so I’m not sure if they had a rush but a majority of the tables were not wiped down. The food did come out right away though and when I got my food I couldn’t help but notice the different taste. I haven’t had it in so long so i did feel like the name was even off but it was the only spicy food item on the menu. The food was fresh and very delicious I just wish the ingredients would stay the same throughout states however. But all in all great quality food
Andre R.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Carlsbad, San Diego, CA
been here before more than a few times with no issues but tonight was different. Some of the Pei Wei spicy chicken pieces we ordered had a chewy texture as if not cooked all the way. I’ll know for sure later :/that wasn’t the bad part. When we were almost done with our meal, I ordered a bowl of the wonton soup to go. The cashier even said it should be fast since it’s just soup. hmm makes sense… 25 minutes later i had to ask for the soup and finally a short time later it was delivered to the table. over 30 minutes for a simple soup without an explanation or apology?! you’re better than that Pei Wei. I would have been more understanding if the place was packed but there was only 1 other table. I have a feeling that it was forgotten until I asked and then played off = 1 star
Norma M.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Gilbert, AZ
Very dirty and understaffed. Manager is too busy fixing food and not keeping track of the eating area Definitely not someplace I would return. I like Pei Wei just not this particular store.
Carmela S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Carlsbad, CA
So, the food is fine for fast food Asian American style. Good quality ingredients, consistently cooked well. I know what to expect every time & they deliver on taste. BUT phone in and pick up/to go service could be SO much better! John took my order… unenthusiastically. I get it. It’s probably busy but I was the only person in the queue on the phone that he had to take an order from. He at least could have been friendly at the onset, or at least use some intonation instead of monotone questions. I find that if I give the same attitude that I receive, people tend to realize they are being rude and tend to straighten up, which he did after I answered him monotone and single syllables. My hubby went to pick up the food and the guy that was putting together the order was very short with him as well. I don’t know if it was the same person that took the order, John, but either way he was not friendly. Unfortunately, for take out service when you pay with credit card, there is not an option to tip. Maybe if we were given that option to add tip on the card, the service would be better? Since there is not that option, we can only assume that is why the take out service was not positive. «Swipe your card. Sign it. Here.» AND he didn’t put in the fortune cookies to add insult to injury! We all want the fortune cookies! That’s part of the fun! He wasn’t rude, but he wasn’t friendly either. He did his job, period. Next order. The great part about Pei Wei is the fact that they can fix the food without sesame as we have a sesame allergy and the family. It’s one of the very few Asian places where we can order the food and be confident we won’t have any sesame contamination. They even bag it separately from the food that does contain sesame. Because of this, we rated them higher, but took off a star for lukewarm service…& no cookies :(
Orrin B.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Carlsbad, CA
It seems these folks are working hard to turn this place around. Just a couple of months ago, I had sworn this place off. They seemed to have lost their way, but tonight was a solid experience. Hot, perfectly prepared Pad Thai, served in minutes was a refreshing improvement. Keep up the good work!
McKay T.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Carlsbad, CA
I don’t know if they were having a bad night or if this is a norm. It seemed like the kitchen and the front of the kitchen was very disorganized. The waiters were constantly delivering the wrong item to the wrong table. Each food item on our table came out separately rather then all at once like most restaurants. They threw away our ticket before they were finished delivering all of our food which resulted in some of our food coming out 25 minutes after the first part of our order arrived. Overall a frustrating experience.
Candace R.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Carlsbad, CA
Def a corporate chain asian diner. Nothing really authentic about it but the food is priced low and quality is consistent. Décor is boring music is a mix of top 40s tracks. Food is asian but heavily catered to the western pallet. Entrees are all made for 1 and come with rice. Not the typical shareable size but are prices accordingly. I like to pop in for a quick lunch. The Pei Wei spicy chicken salad. Its a bed of lettuce and Napa cabbage stopped with chopped scallions, shredded carrot, crispy rice noodles, tomatoes, cucumber and then sauteed chicken and snow peas in a sweet and spicy sauce. I like the small size. Its perfect for 1 and they don’t skimp on the chicken. The lime vinaigrette dressing is good but I usually don’t need it. Its plenty moist from the chickens sauce. The small salad is only $ 5.99 and about 600 calories(w/out dressing). Perfect for lunch.
Essie K.
Rating des Ortes: 4 San Diego, CA
We love Pei Wei! It’s the sister company of PF Chang’s so it tastes the same but is much cheaper! Pei Wei has a nice selection of Chinese food including entrees, salads, appetizers, and sushi rolls. The food is always fresh and made to order. You can substitute any of the items for healthier options such as lettuce cups instead of rice or noodles and steamed meat/vegetables instead of fried. All entrees and meal-size salads are less than $ 10! Plus you get a free fortune cookie to go :) A perfect stop to feed your Asian food cravings!
Cynthia P.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Encinitas, CA
Pei Wei is Chinese/Asian fast food, but it is a step up from Panda. They have all kinds of great dishes in all kinds of combinations. The food is made to your preference. You can get any entre in rice or noodles with your choice of chicken, steak, shrimp or tofu, spicy or mild, steamed or fried, regular size or small. The small is actually pretty good sized. I usually get noodles with tofu and vegetables. The tofu is cooked very attractively in thin strips and is pretty good. They also have the new beverage machines that have a multitude of flavors and combinations of soda. The service is usually very quick and the staff is friendly.
Christopher R.
Rating des Ortes: 4 New York, NY
Excellent Asian Fusion Cuisine. This might be located in a Walmart Mini Mall entrance but the food is anything but MINI. Today(3rd visit) I had the Dan Dan Bowl with minced chicken $ 9. YUMMY ! This is the type of food served in Asian Fusion restaurants in NYC for $ 20 and higher a plate. If you are in the neighborhood I highly recommend this place.
Nick C.
Rating des Ortes: 5 La Jolla, San Diego, CA
Friendly customer service. They were not perturbed that we came in right before they were closing. They had our food out to us in what seemed like no time at all. I would suggest this meal to anyone. I favor the pad Thai noodles and the lettuce wraps.
Tony G.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Encinitas, San Diego, CA
Chicken Dan Dan for lunch take out today. Walked in at time given and food was ready to go. Good portion and good food. Will be back for lunch again.
Todd H.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Encinitas, CA
Ordered lettuce wraps, love them, recommend them… But just found raw chicken on my plate. :( They promptly replaced the dish and the server apologized. Check your dish. If it happened once, it can happen again. We will be back again. Just will be little more cautious.
Kaitlyn W.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Carlsbad, CA
Went here for dinner last night with my boyfriend and I hadn’t been here in a while! it’s easy to Oder but the lady that took our order was very nice to my bf and kind of rude to me. Weird… The food was pretty good and the won ton soup really stuck out to me. The soup was great with little wontons and it had a spicy kind of flavor! Very good. The only problems I had here was that my boyfriends food sat in the window for about 10 minutes before it was served to him AND there were about 6 fruit flies flying around my head the entireee dinner. Sooo unappealing! The food was great, they just have to tighten up their service!
Mark S.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Del Mar, CA
I like Pei Wei. Decent entrees and a good hot and sour soup. I like that you can get extra veggies in the entrees. But what is with this location’s management? The last five or six times our soup and appetizers arrived after our entrees so my entrée got cold while I ate my appetizer/soup. According to yesterday’s server, there are separate appetizer and entrée lines and I guess no coordination. I’ve complained each time and it keeps happening — every time.
Tami L.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Carlsbad, CA
Just had me some Pei Wei for dinner. It’s been a while since I’ve eaten here but for what it is, ‘let’s call it fast food Asian’ it’s okay. Keep that in mind. Don’t come here and expect this is going to compare to your favorite Chinese or Asian Infused restaurant. It’s Asian, it’s fast it’s Asian fast food. A notch way above the in-grocery store chain I won’t mention here. Fast. Fresh. Tasty.
David C.
Rating des Ortes: 3 San Diego, CA
I had the Thai Dynamite which I was a bit worried that it was too spicy because of the siracha sauce. It really wasn’t that spicy actually at all and seemed less than medium level. Pei Wei is cheap Asian, but the current 3 star review is about right. It is fresh and made to order which is nice, but the quality just isn’t there. The menu has a lot of exciting choices, but I got the feeling from my experience they could all let me down. For what it is, a quick dinner under $ 10 it isn’t bad. Just don’t expect it to be great!
Sarah t.
Rating des Ortes: 3 San Diego, CA
Chicken lettuce wraps are awesome! Service has been inconsistent, depends on whose working I guess… the interior is nice, relaxing and warm. Take out can take a while, perhaps call ahead?!
Hanna C.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Orange County, CA
We waited 40 minutes for 2 entrees because they forgot the second entrée. We had to explain to multiple people that we didn’t get the second order and the manager just gave us a really foul attitude about it. I asked if they could just nuke mine since it had gotten cold while we waited for the second entrée and she seemed put off by the request. In the end, she asked the cooks to remake mine. We ordered two sweet and sour chickens and a hot and sour soup. Soup was ok, way more gelatinous and salty than most Chinese restaurants(but then again this isn’t really Chinese, I guess). The chicken was breaded thin and while the meat was tender, it was nothing that would bring me back again.
Jodi A.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Del Mar, CA
I had not been here in a while and was pleasantly surprised to see a few newer items on their menu. I was in the mood for a lighter lunch but was a starving fiancé there were options that fit both these requests! The food is good here just not amazing. Definitely a solid choice for a meal especially if you work up an appetite shopping nearby. It is quick and easy and seems to be pretty fresh. I was disappointed with the hot and sour soup as it was heavier and saltier than I had hoped. I did however love the vietnamese chicken salad wraps which were wrapped in rice paper and served with sweet chili and peanut dipping sauce. My fiancé had the Mongolian beef and we liked the options to sub out the rice for noodles for .99c. We also tried their new wasabi crunchy spicy tuna roll. It was tasty and not bad at all considering this is not a sushi place and not even a Japanese.
Dave L.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Encinitas, CA
I agree with some of the other reviews regarding the ‘overly sauced’ food. Some Unilocalers suggest getting your food prepared in a more healthy style and I think this is worth a try. The chicken lettuce wraps were poor to fair. Iceberg lettuce was nice and crisp but the«minced chicken» as labeled seemed like it had more sauce than chicken. I may try again with a lite sauce request.
Julianne B.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Carlsbad, CA
I really love Pei Wei. Love the concept of ordering, getting a number then having them bring you your food. You don’t officially have a designated server, although they are walking around to get you what you want. I never feel rushed to complete my meal, don’t have to wait for the check etc. .. and don’t HAVE to tip. Many times I do though. The food’s been awesome each time I’ve gone. Love the lettuce wraps and salads. Love the soda machine — it’s the fun one with all the flavors and touch screen. Thank you Pei Wei!
Grace B.
Rating des Ortes: 2 San Diego, CA
So came here with a couple of friends not remembering too much of my last visit to this place… and again it was not the greatest meal I have had… I tried the Pei Wei Spicy Chicken combo with steamed rice and added tofu and a spring roll. The chicken was ok. the tofu was not. I did enjoy the spring roll, but that lasted 4 bites. I like my rice wet and sticky and this rice is a long grain and dry. So, I’d like to like this place more, but I don’t. I’d give it one star, but the service has always been stellar so it’s hard knock this place down too much. Meh.