Rice Garden

I know eating some greasy Chinese food probably shouldn’t be part of the diet these days. But sometimes, you feel like crap or you’re not having a good day, and the only thing that can make you feel a tad bit better is some greasy, ghetto Chinese food. Somehow, this place actually exists as part of DTLA’s lunch time food establishments!
Personally, I’m always a chow mein guy (not too bad here). BBQ chicken and BBQ pork cost $ 1 more each, which is kinda stupid but whatever it is what it is. At least they are pretty good. Plus I’ve had the fried fish and beef broccoli here and both were decent enough to satisfy the job. Portion size is usually not an issue, although of course you will pay a tad more just because it’s downtown.
Staff is pretty friendly and they keep things moving very quickly.
Pretty happy this place is around for lunch time food options, but it’s probably best for me if I don’t come here too often heh.

This establishment is located at the lower level of City National Plaza in DTLA. It’s one of the few restaurants that is actually serving lunch at 10am. Everywhere else is either closed or still serving breakfast. The food is ok, nothing really stands out and separates them from Panda Express. The only thing I like about this place over Panda is that there orange chicken is always crispy. A lot of the times, when I get this at Panda, it’s soggy or semi-​crispy. You have your normal orange chicken, mushroom chicken, broccoli chicken, bbq pork & chicken and a few other Friday only specials.
What I don’t like about this place is that they nickel and dime you an extra $ 1 for the bbq pork or chicken. Other than that, it’s not a bad choice. The food is consistent. One thing, don’t order the egg drop soup. It just taste like pepper water/​soup. There was no taste, very bland. Consistency is there, but not taste.

Food is still being served burned… tsk tsk tsk

Came here for lunch and tried the chow mien and orange chicken. It was the best I’ve had but wasn’t the worst either.
There’s always a lunch line but servers are fast and courteous.
That why is called fast food!

Decent chinese food near my job. Have tried it again after so many years not having it and their orange chicken is still good.
Noodles are great, the fried rice, Yea I will skip that at all costs.
Staff is friendly and attentive.
Expect to pay a few bucks then your usual chinese fast food restaurant since it is in downtown.
Line can get very long during lunch hour.
Cash & Credit Card accepted.
Btw, always ask for a fork, last two times I was about to dig in and guess what, no utensil.

Good orange chicken

First time there. The food was great. It was really fast and freshly put out consistently. I’ll definitely be back to try their bbq pork and chicken.

How can anyone give this place more than 1 star? Is the food ever fresh? Do they tell you that the teriyaki chicken is $ 1 extra? This is like a bad Panda Express located in an underground food court. Great location, bad service and food is anything but «fresh». The only reason I gave it a star was because they stayed open 2 hours after everyone else does (5PM instead of 3PM).

While I absolutely love Panda, this comes to a close first on my list of fast food. Get a combo item or one item for $ 5.00 with a choice of white or brown rice. Yum! Arrive early, before the lunch rush, but even if you don’t the line is quick. I come here if I want a cheap healthy $ 2.00 hot and sour soup. A portion of soup is at least two cups and can be filling. I come here when I am also low on cash since I can get more for my buck here than at Central Library’s Panda installment.
Everything on the menu is good and taste fresh. They are always bringing out new trays of food. The cashiers are helpful in choosing items. My favorite is the beef and broccoli. The broccoli isn’t overcooked and meat is very tender and not as chewy as some places. The chow mein here is additionally pretty good. If you want condiments make sure you ask for them because they are not initially offered.
Tip: Grab a free cup of water by the cashier, they always have them ready.

Ghetto Chinese Food Sumpremus Galorus!!!
if you are a (an unfortunate) fan of the ghetto chinese food genre, this place is bomb. Ghetto Chinese Food is best described as $ 1 Chinese Food or for the new-​gen, think of a greasier, dirtier, nastier, saltier, oilier version of panda express.
I have a preference for ghetto chinese food that serves the fat noodles (chow mein), which means i would not be a fan of the Taiwanese noodles here or Angel Hair pasta at ciba italia joints.
It is safe to say, the chow mein here is the only food i will be eating from here and out. The food is kind of disgusting in the sense… When you are finished eating and see all the crap that dripped off… (whether it is manteca, oil, fried grease, etc.), it is freaking gross. But the chow mein is good enough.
Orange chicken was overly breaded.
Teriyaki Chicken is not that bad.
Brocolli beef or brocolli was basically flavorless.
BBQ Pork had decent salty flavor but provided that nasty food coma sensation called «being a fatass.»
ohhh and the fried rice… It’s disgusting. I used a crap load of water downed siracha and even asked Saffron for their green sauce…
Rice Garden is über economical. The value is great.

Not the best, not the worse but hey, there’s only a few choices for quick cafeteria style Chinese in DtLA. Panda Express located inside Los Angeles Public Library. Food is stagnant at times since not many know it exist. The other option is treking down to 7^th & Fig for New Moon. My other option is Rice Garden located under City National Bank.
The good thing here is that during lunch the traffic moves along fast and as dishes are close to gone, they’re being replaced with a hot batch.
The fried rice is basic and tasteless with soy sauce rice with limited veggies. Noodles fat and nothing special. They carry similar dishes as Panda Express. Nothing special. I come here for tbe bbq pork. Sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s flavorless. I like the parts with the crispy caramelized edges.
$ 5.25 for a one item. Add a buck (read the fine print) for bbq. MSG included.

Always come here to satisfy my greasy Asian cravings. In comparison to Panda Express, I would say Rice Garden is a bit more authentic.
For the main dish, you have the option of chow mein, fried rice, or regular rice. I personally like the chow mein over the rice. The noodles are a bit over cooked, making it mushy, but it is still better than the dry fried rice.
The sides dishes is the reason I come here over Panda Express. The teriyaki chicken and the BBQ pork is «restaurant quality.» It cost a little extra to choose these two sides, but it is worth getting occasionally. I also like the orange chicken here more than Panda. The pieces of chicken tend to be bigger and have more meat.
If you work near here, I would give this place a try. You won’t find better Chinese food in this area of town unless you go to Grand Central Market.

Lunch options are plenty in DTLA, but not too many of them are suited toward someone not in the custom of wearing one. With that said, Rice Garden is among those places that’s always in the running for my favorite game, «where am I getting lunch from today?»
It’s easy to see why they get comparisons to Panda Express. Of all the other one-​off Chinese foods spots I’ve seen, this is about the only other one (aside from that PF Chang mini joint) that cares about branding. Any hoo, it’s hard to burn rice, but the ingredients are certainly on par if not better than the fare at Panda. A two combo plate will set you back a hair under $ 7 and that sits well with me.
I haven’t read other people’s reviews, but I did see some a few 2’s and a couple 3 star reviews. The place is all business to me. Priced slightly above being dangerously cheap but culinary enough to coerce me out of making my own lunch. Rice Garden (they do offer brown rice fyi) is just A-​OK with me.
NOTE: reception is almost non existent in that food court, but there is a muted TV you can gawk at…