Panda Express: How a Family Built an American Chinese Food Empire

Panda Express has become a familiar name across the country, but the story behind the restaurant chain is a family affair that started with a single Southern California restaurant.

Today, Panda Express has more than 2,500 locations, making it the largest Asian restaurant chain in the United States. At the center of it all are co-founders Andrew and Peggy Cherng, who have been married for 51 years.

The couple runs the company from its corporate headquarters, which reflects their Asian heritage. Their journey began in the 1970s when Andrew opened the Panda Inn, a sit-down restaurant, with his chef father.

At first, business was anything but booming.

“I felt like I was going to be very successful, and it turned out to be very wrong,” Andrew Cherng said.

When asked what was difficult, his answer was simple: “There’s no customers.”

Rather than give up, Cherng continued working to build the business. An opportunity eventually came when a regular customer suggested opening a location at a local mall.

The Cherngs took the leap, and Peggy joined the business. Their working relationship became just as important as their marriage.

Peggy says they are always focused on figuring out what they can do better. Andrew offered a more playful description of their division of responsibilities: “She lets me do whatever I do, and then she takes care of the rest.”

Four years after opening that first mall location, Panda Express struck gold — or, more accurately, orange.

Orange Chicken became the chain’s signature dish after Panda Express chef Andy Kao created the recipe in 1987. The dish was inspired by a classic citrus-flavored dish from China’s Hunan province and became a phenomenon in American Chinese food.

In 2025 alone, Panda Express sold 148 million pounds of Orange Chicken.

The Cherngs make no apologies for the food being distinctly American Chinese.

“I don’t know what authenticity is,” Andrew said, adding that customers ultimately decide what they want to eat.

Peggy says the company describes itself as “American Chinese food.”

Affordability is also a priority as consumers continue to watch their spending. Andrew says the company tries to raise prices carefully while maintaining portion sizes.

The company’s family philosophy extends beyond the Cherng family. All three of Andrew and Peggy’s children work for Panda Express, and the founders say they also measure success by how the company improves the lives of its employees.

Andrew said the company tracks how many managers earn $100,000 and whether they are able to buy homes.

Panda Express says 63% of its managers are homeowners, with a median age of 34.

For Peggy, helping employees achieve their own American dream is part of the company’s mission.

More than four decades after the first Panda Express location opened, the brand has expanded into malls, airports and college campuses nationwide.

What began as one family restaurant has helped create a new category of quick-service American Chinese food — one that Andrew says can now be found “everywhere.”

Explore: NBCPalmSprings.com, where we are connecting the Valley.