If the help at Panda Panda in Highland Park moved like their mascot namesake, customers might have to wait a bit for their food. Worry not.
On a recent Saturday night, the restaurant was a beehive of activity with waiters, busboys and manager Rose Wu moving at a speed just short of a jog.
But don`t get the impression that your meal will be rushed. It is not. The service stops short of pushy but stands at the precipice with an alert, helpful staff.
This is the fourth restaurant for owner Peter Lo, Wu`s father, and the one he opened after an abortive retirement seven years ago, reported Wu, explaining that her father, born in mainland China, speaks little English.
In 1985, Peter Lo tried retirement after he sold his restaurant at 6144 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago and moved to San Diego. ”Dad was 62, but he and Mom didn`t enjoy retirement. They missed my two brothers and me. They were calling home every day,” recalled Wu, the only Lo child active in the business.
So the Los returned to the Chicago area and returned to what they do best. ”They found this lovely town of Highland Park for their restaurant,”
Wu said. ”But the people of Highland Park are very demanding and wouldn`t try us at first. After a while, though, thanks to word of mouth, the business started picking up.”
The Szechwan restaurant features an extensive menu with such appetizers as beef satay and crabmeat rangoon and a choice of 10 soups. More than 100 entrees tempt the palate at prices ranging from $6.50 for vegetable fried rice to $24 for the Peking duck, which requires 24-hour booking.
The menu also offers a ”Grand tour of ancient China,” for $12.95 per person, for a minimum of two palates.
The decor is a bit of art deco balanced with bamboo (for the ubiquitous Panda wall hangings) and some obligatory floor plants. As in other Oriental restaurants, the Panda Panda warns the Occidental with an asterisk that the fare might be too spicy hot.
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Panda Panda Szechwan Restaurant, 1825 2nd St., Highland Park, is open from 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Call 708-432-9470.
