P. F. Chang's China Bistro

I hope no one gets up in arms about what I’m about to say. Chinese-American food is probably my least favorite, widely popular (restaurants everywhere) ethnic cuisine. Chinese-American food is not offensive; it’s just that I prefer spicier, more in-depth seasoning. I’ve never eaten “real” Chinese food, and don’t know if I ever will without traveling to China, so I can’t comment on that front.

So, why did I dine at P. F. Chang’s, a Chinese-American chain in the suburbs? Because when I drive past the place, the smell permeating the air is phenomenal. I also have a friend that is a server there who vouches for their food, and added that they have many vegetarian dishes. Plus, I wasn’t hanging in restaurant-rich Philly that night.

I was impressed with P. F. Chang’s before I even stepped in the door. As I often do, I checked the restaurant’s web site to see if there is anything on their menu I can eat. P.F. Chang’s web menu is exceptional. They are up front about the ingredients and nutritional information for every dish on the menu, and make it very easy to access this information. They clearly emphasize that their vegetarian oyster sauce contains no animal products, and they even have a gluten-free menu and an athletic training menu. This is something that, apparently, a lot of national chains do, and I like it. I do understand that this information is absurd to expect from independent restaurants, as they have a much smaller budget, and flexibility as to what comes out of the kitchen.

The wait for a table at P. F. Chang’s sans reservation on a Friday night is not pretty. Our thirty minute wait was more like a fifty minute wait, but out in the suburbs there’s always a Pier 1 and Borders next door in which to while your time away. I also compulsively check all horse statues for anatomical correctness, but only a mere two seconds were spent confirming that P. F. Chang’s overbearing statue was not molded correctly.

Once in, we sat in our friend’s section and took all ordering cues from him. We started with a mighty good mixed drink (a separate post coming on that one), pan-fried vegetarian dumplings (only 40 more calories and 4 more grams of fat than steamed), and vegetarian lettuce wraps for appetizers. The dumplings were like most dumplings at most Chinese-American joints – filled with a mash of various vegetables, mushrooms, and seasonings –not at all bad, but nothing out of the ordinary.

The lettuce wraps were the star of the appetizers. Small cubes of fried silken tofu seasoned with Chinese Five Spice, mint and lime came with four large lettuce leaves in which you spoon as much or as little of the filling on top, and wrap up. A soy and vinegar dipping sauce accompanied the dish. The lettuce wraps were the star because the seasoning had punch, and normally squishy silken tofu was crisp and enjoyable due to the fact that the tofu cubes were small, so had a greater crispy fried surface to squishy center ratio. I’ve never enjoyed silken tofu (outside of dessert applications) more than at P. F. Chang’s. Our friend said that many people order this large sized appetizer at lunch as a main, and I can see why.

Our friend’s most recommended vegetarian entrée is the stir-fried Japanese eggplant in a chili pepper sauce. The tender eggplant melts in your mouth, and while the description “chili pepper sauce” makes you think “hot,” the sauce is more garlicky, and has a depth of flavor that makes me happy.

We decided to go with the Singapore Street Noodles with curry sauce, a dish recommended by our friend but not listed as vegetarian. A quick check with the chef, and we had tofu substituted for shrimp and chicken that normally comes with the dish. I always make the mistake of envisioning Thai coconut curries when I see curry on a Chinese-American menu, and am disappointingly awakened when the dish arrives with a curry that tastes like generic curry seasoning from a spice jar. P. F. Chang’s Singapore Street Noodles are such a curry, but one of the better Chinese-American curries I’ve had. In fact, I went straight for the noodles the next morning for breakfast (we had plenty of leftovers).

Even though I regularly discount Chinese-American cuisine, I would definitely choose to dine at P. F. Chang’s over other national chains that populate the suburbs. The food we had at P. F. Chang’s was good, and there are an impressive amount of vegetarian options – many more options than say…Chili’s or Applebee’s.

Other top vegetarian recommendations from our friend: Sichuan green beans, and vegetarian ma po tofu.

P. F. Chang's China Bistro, PA locations and NJ locations.