Penny’s Noodle Shop

Used the online menu to order. Big discrepancy when I picked up the food. Went from 6.75 to 9.00 plus 1 dollar for chicken. So it’s 13 for the Pad Thai dish with a soda and you don’t even get enough food. Taste just like regular Pad Thai nothing special to make up for the price. Check and fix your online menu prices. High prices, OK food (not worth the price), and the old man was also rude who took my payment because I had 2 separate orders. Not going back, not referring anyone to try. Sorry.

My wife and I have been eating at Penny’s since the mid 1990’s before we got married, at the location on Sheridan in the Wrigleyville area of Chicago. I can’t get enough of the Beef Pad Se Eu (sweet flat wide noodles, broccoli and beef with the hot sauce thrown on to taste). When we moved to the suburbs, we would jump in the car and head down to their location on Diversey, which may no longer be there. The point is we would travel down to the city for the noodles. When Penny’s opened up in Oak Park, we were elated, it was a closer drive and I was born and lived in Oak Park in the 1970’s so it was nice to go back to a familiar environment.
The food is the same as the other locations, service is decent enough. The only unpleasant experience is from the owner. Maybe it’s his unenthusiastic hum-​drum personality that turns me off. We’ve been eating at this Penny’s in Oak Park since they opened, may be 10+ years? So the guy knows who we are, but avoids greeting us when we walk in, let alone speaking to us or asking us how we’re doing, you know, since we’ve been eating there for 10+ years. Each and every time, it’s the same treatment. It’s not hostile or bad treatment, but an indifferent treatment can be just as unpleasant. The food is still good enough for us to continue eating at Penny’s, but not in Oak Park, we’ll be heading out to the city again for Penny’s.

Penny’s is definitely becoming my go-​to place for takeout. The food is consistently good and the prices are more than reasonable. The thing that makes Penny’s stand out more than the other local Asian places in the area is that their food isn’t dripping with grease and the meat looks and IS edible. Some favorites are the hot pepper noodle and pepper beef.

Although I love this place, and I always liked the food here, it’s unfortunate what we witnessed the other day while dining. We sat down, ate, paid, and where getting ready to go and as I looked down a mouse ran past our table. Me being deathly afraid of mice and rats, stayed frozen and asked my friend sitting next to me, if that was a mouse? When she turned around, the mouse ran into the kitchen. Eeek!!! We didn’t make a seen, we quietly told the hostess who said she would mention it to the manager who was not there.
The next day I called to talk to a manager because I really wanted to speak to a manager that night. He told me he wasn’t informed about any mouse the day before and was actually rude to me. He told me that in 11 years of them being open they never had a mouse in there. I explained to him that I was just letting him know what happen and that I wanted nothing more than to inform him. When I told him that I spoke to the hostess he said «oh forget her, she can’t tell the difference between a cat or a rat». I then hung up the phone because I figured there is not much more I could have said from there. Used to love Pennys, however rodents and rude management not so much.

Pad thai was weird tasting and the chicken was super dry. I love cilantro but I think they added too much. I’ll give their other stuff a try but i wouldn’t get pad thai again.

Their pad thai is awesome! Pretty sure anything on the menu is going to be good. Thai iced tea is a definite must. Will come back.

The potstickers (I think they were referred to as Japanese Goyza on the menu) were blah and my Pad Se Ew was as well. It needed more sauce and less oil.
I have such fond memories of this place, actually the Chicago location on Diversey, from many many (18) years ago. It was the first time I ever tried Pad Se Ew. So either they made it better back then or my inexperience with Asian food made it seem tastier than it really was.
In any case, I did enjoy my husband’s Pad Thai so I’d probably come back for that since I’m really picky and they have one of the better Pad Thai dishes I’ve had.

Great food reasonably priced. Ordered spring rolls and pepper rice with chicken. Delicious. All of it! Was really impressed with a dish my co worker ordered! The shrimp soup. I will be back to have that and sample more of the menu!

This place is so delicious! We’ve ordered several times now and each time we’ve been very pleased. The food always tastes very fresh too. Def one of my favorite places in OP.

They get only one star because I paid to park and there is a sign on the door saying closed and there are people inside working. How are you closed but i can see people working?! When will I get my $ 1.20 back that i paid? Very disappointing now I wonder if this happens often or just an occasional thing. I called and they stated they are doing maintenance until 5:30pm. They also put a sign out facing the parking lot informing they are closed. A little to late now I already paid to park.

This is honestly my favorite restaurant. I liked their Facebook page just so I can see the pictures of the food they upload when I’m away at school. My mouth literally begins to drool looking at those perfect Thai spring rolls and my stomach growls when I see a noodle dish (my favorite is the hot pepper noodle with tofu). I’ve tried almost every vegetarian dish on the menu and can honestly say I’ve never been dissatisfied. The food is amazing but only because the chefs make that food with love. I go there so frequently that almost all the staff waves at me or says hello. That’s such a nice feeling and just makes the experience 100X better.
So if you like great food (seriously amazing) and friendly staff then this is the place for you!

Love the pineapple fried rice– food comes out quick if you are hungry– small place-​very neighborhood friendly & open late

My absolute favorite Thai place of all time. I have been coming here for over 10 years. The food is fresh and the service is friendly and consistent! And it’s Oak Park! My favorite things to eat here are Pad thai with tofu or chicken or beef! They are all great. The crispy rolls are so delicious that we ordered up to 3 orders for a family of four. The kids love the edamame but we try to order for pick up to keep costs down and make our own edamame at home. But if we are at the restaurant the kids have to have the edamame (it keeps them busy and quiet). They have a good selection of beer and wine and a small parking lot that usually has a space or two available. You have to check this place out if you are in Oak Park. I know there are other Penny’s (believe me I have tried them all) but this one is the best one. Almost forgot… very spacious restaurant and family/​kid friendly but they really need a diaper changer in the bathroom. Maybe they’ll get one. ;-)

Personally, I think the Penny’s on Damen is better.
Ordered delivery & the food arrived later than the quoted time and it wasn’t as hot as it should have been. Yes, I’m lazy. I like my food delivered. That’s why I am lenient on the food temperature thing, but in this case, my food was almost chilled and it shouldn’t have been.
Penny’s was a staple when we lived in the city. I was hoping it would continue to be when we moved west. I am not convinced, but I will give it another shot… after I try other places.

I am not sure why this place has such bad reviews. I frequented penny’s when I was in college and I have never been disappointed. In all fairness, I really only have had 4 things from their menu, but the hot pepper noodle with beef is amazing! I thought the pad se eue was a little on the sweet side, but it was still good! I have also tried some kind of fried veggie rolls that were delicious and a fried pork or beef dumpling. The soy sauce that comes with the dumplings is sooo good!!! I think they make it in house!
I will continue to come to penny’s just to get the hot pepper noodle dish!

I have to say, I haven’t been to Penny Noodles in years. Before I moved to the suburbs, I was a regular at the two Chicago locations. I always liked that the food was always «americanized» but still good. I pretty much always ordered the pad si ew so I have a distinct memory of how it tasted. This was my first time at the Oak Park location, which did not have the same recipe as the Penny Noodle I had years ago at the Chicago locations. The pad si ew I remembered was a little drier, had thicker noodles, and a sweeter taste than the average pad si ew at other traditional locations. Not that I didn’t like the pad si ew, but it was not what I was expecting. It tasted more like authentic pad si ew which threw me off guard. It was good, I was SO HAPPY they had Chinese broccoli and accommodated me by putting all Chinese broccoli in my dish.
The Thai ice coffee was just how I remembered it! Perfection!
Just wish they had the more «americanized» dishes like I used to have for when I’m not in the mood for traditional Thai food which can sometimes be too greasy.

This place isn’t Thai/​Japanese/​Chinese food, it’s food made by people with names like «Penny» who season noodles the way they think «Asian» food should taste because of the 4 times they ate at Panda Express in their life and then call it «Asian Cuisine».
I’ve ordered a few things here, and here’s the review.
Ramen — A bunch of low quality wheat noodles in salt water with 4 slices of water chestnut and 5 tiny mushroom caps.
Pad Thai — Cheap noodles sweetened with what tastes like sweet and sour sauce.
Veggie Bowl — A bunch of cheap frozen vegetables tossed in a bowl with that cheap tasting sweet and sour sauce slathered all over it.
It’s like when you go over to meat & potatoes uncle’s house and he butchers an attempt to cook you «Asian» food from a recipe he found on
.
This place is pure disappointment. However, if you’re into tasteless processed food, this place might be for you — but maybe not even then. You could get exactly the same thing at in Wal-Mart’s «international food» section for $ 20 less.

Saw the sign on the door for Mochi ice cream and I immediately knew we were eating here.
The Oak Park location has a calm and inviting Mom n’ Pop vibe, which I hear is a lot different than the bustling atmospheres of the Wicker Park/​Lincoln Park locations. I had the Red Curry rice plate (see attached picture) and it was exactly what I was hoping it would be. The dish was labeled «spicy» which had me worried, but in my opinion it wasn’t very spicy at all. The coconut milk gave it a creamy sweet flavor and it basically had the quintessential (though, probably unauthentic) taste of what you think of when you hear the words, «Thai Curry.»
Based on my experiences alone I would give the food 5 stars, however my accompanying friends didn’t share my enthusiasm for the food. One opted for the Spicy Basil vermicelli bowl, which in her words was «just OK» while the other for Thai Fried Rice with chicken, which in my opinion just looked like any other fried rice.
I topped in off with a Thai Iced coffee which was nothing spectacular but did the trick.
In midst of all the rousing hoots we were having I forgot to order a Mochi ice cream (although I don’t remember the server asking if we wanted anything else!) so I will have to come back again soon to satisfy my sweet tooth.

I’m generally a fan of Pennys.
It’s a cute little place with some really nice options for food. Only thing that gets me sometimes is the portion sizes for the price you pay for a meal. For 8 dollars, the amount of noodles should be a good portion. It really varies who is in the kitchen at the time of your meal, sometimes they’re stingy and sometimes they’re generous. Although, for 6 or 7 dollars, you can get a huuuuuge soup that will definitely be more than you can eat. It really depends on the meal you choose.
I’ve never had a problem with their service. Everyone is always friendly and prompt.
This is a really nice place for a change of pace. Best part about Pennys is when they say something is spicy on the menu, it actually is spicy. What a nice change of pace. :)

For some reason when I first heard about Penny’s, I thought it would be just like Noodles and Co.– NOPE! It’s an Asian noodle shop!
The floor plan is super open and on top of having awesome food, they have real Asian beer and sodas (and their American counterparts). Anyplace that serves Sriracha on that level gets a four star from me. They have awesome crab rangoons and Pad Thai!