Panda Express is opening on Monday in 1901 Marketplace, with a soft launch for students beginning Wednesday through Friday from 2:00 – 3:30 p.m, according to the Director of Campus Dining Jess Dozier.
Campus Dining officials expect up to 1,300 to 1,500 orders per day once the venue is fully open, which would make it the busiest Panda Express venue in the CSU system, Dozier wrote in an email to Mustang News.
This could put the fast-food chain on par with — or even more popular than — campus heavyweight Chick-Fil-A, whose revenue soared to among the top five locations in the nation, according to Dozier. Because Panda Express’ food is slightly faster to prepare, it may be able to outpace Chick-Fil-A’s numbers and alleviate some of the pressure by providing another student-voted option.
Sociology junior Vianey Cardoso transferred from working at Red Radish to her new job at Panda Express. Beyond work, Cardoso said she is an avid Panda Express customer herself.
“It’s the one thing I will eat off-campus, so I’m excited that it’s here,” Cardoso said.
To accommodate the sheer volume of students, Cardoso said the staff will take orders outside so the line will be ready once customers reach the front. So far the workers are studying up on the menu and portion sizes so they can “dive in” once the site opens up.
Kinesiology junior Allan Gomez was hired at Panda Express three weeks ago, and is immersed in training for the grand opening with Cardoso. He transferred to Panda Express from working at Chick-Fil-A in pursuit of better management and increased pay.
“It’s been a rough start, but we’re finally starting our training,” Gomez said.
Before the soft launch later this week, there a pre-soft launch where Campus Dining employees ordered food from Panda to provide the workers with the necessary adjustment period before being inundated with hungry customers, Gomez said.
According to Dozier, The launch comes after construction and staffing delays that prevented Panda Express from opening alongside the rest of 1901 Marketplace in winter quarter. Rather than operating as a franchise of Panda Express, the branch’s ownership transferred to Cal Poly Campus Dining, allowing it to hire more student workers and ease its way into operation.
Gomez said that the opening of Panda Express will “take away the stress” from Chick-Fil-A. He is personally most excited to bring the classics like Orange Chicken Teriyaki so people will have access to the staple foods they already know they like.
The menu and pricing will be the same as any other Panda Express, Dozier said. He added that he knows the Orange Chicken and the Chow Mein will be the most popular items.
“Everything we have tested has been amazing,” Dozier wrote in the email.
The full menu and more information about Panda Express can be found at its website.