Top 13 Chinese Food Restaurant Chains

The sweet, sour, acidic, and spicy sauces that are used in Chinese food are irresistible to many people, making Chinese food one of the most popular take-outs in the United States.

Traditional Chinese foods have become more well-known in the United States as a result of Chinese immigrants’ practice of combining their dishes with American components, such as wheat noodles and cream cheese, to produce a completely new cuisine. 

American Chinese food is probably one of the most popular options for dining out or ordering in, even though it may not strictly stick to traditional Chinese cooking methods. 

With so many Chinese food chain restaurants all over the USA, picking the best one to eat at or order from can be a pretty tough decision.

That’s why we have made this list of the top 15 greatest Chinese food restaurant chains, so you can make the right choice for your food needs. 

Each of these restaurants offers a unique take on the traditional dishes that you enjoy eating the most.

In addition, a good number of these restaurants offer a lively environment in addition to the delectable food that they serve, making your dining experience even more exciting. 

Find your next favorite Chinese restaurant here!

1. P.F. Chang’s

P.F. Chang’s serves Chinese cuisine with an American influence and is extremely popular all around the country.

The restaurant offers an extensive menu that combines traditional Chinese ingredients and ways of preparation with typical Americanized Chinese take-out products. 

P.F. Chang’s boasts a wonderful indoor eating setting, complete with soft lighting and a full bar, which is one of the many reasons why it is so popular.

It is more expensive than many of the other chains that are on our list because it is a more upscale and modern dining experience. 

It is a great venue for families, work friends, and large parties to get together and enjoy good food and a hip atmosphere that is complete with great background music and modern décor.

However, it is this upscale and modern dining experience that makes it more expensive.

Because the menu is so broad, you could dine at P.F. Chang’s for a whole week without ever ordering the same item again.

This allows you to step outside of your comfort zone and try something new rather than sticking to what you know will work. 

Whatever you decide to get, you can rest assured that it will be delicious and possibly your next favorite meal. 

2. Pei Wei

P.F. Chang established Pei Wei in the year 2000 as an Asian American fast-food casual restaurant to provide customers with upscale fast food in a more modern dining atmosphere. 

In the end, Pei Wei broke away from P.F. Chang’s chain and established itself as a standalone business in 2017. At the moment, they operate 119 sites all over the world.

Their menu includes dishes that are often seen in Asian American restaurants, such as pad thai, teriyaki chicken, coconut curry, and even a Polynesian poke bowl.

Their food draws inspiration from both Chinese and Southeast Asian cuisines. 

The meals at Pei Wei are known for their emphasis on fresh vegetables and overall high level of cleanliness.

Even if the protein is the primary draw, it will still be packed with a variety of veggies.

In addition to the meaty dishes, they have a large selection of vegetarian dishes, such as Thai Dynamite Tofu and Teriyaki Tofu, in addition to a variety of vegetable stir-fries.

3. Bd’s Mongolian Grill

Bd’s Mongolian Grill was established in 1992 in the state of Michigan.

It has the innovative concept of preparing Mongolian barbeque stir-fried in an open kitchen so that customers can see their food being prepared.

There are around 25 Bd’s locations in the United States currently. 

At Bd’s, there is a section where more than 80 different ingredients are laid out for customers to look at before making their selections for their stir-fry.

After that, talented chefs will prepare it artistically, turning your meal into an exciting performance for you to enjoy. 

Not only do they provide stir-fries that are created fresh to order, but in addition to that, there is a soup and salad bar that features a large selection of delectable soups and a range of crisp vegetables.

If that isn’t enough, they also have a substantial selection of appetizers and sweets to choose from.

At this time, there are 25 Bd’s locations in the United States.

4. Pick Up Styx

Since its creation in 1989 in the state of California, Pick Up Styx has expanded to become a very successful business that spans more than 70 locations in the United States. 

On the menu, they provide a wide variety of meatless and vegan alternatives, as well as a salad option for the main course that has ingredients that are fresh, varied, and substantial.

This is pretty rare for chain restaurants. 

In addition, as is characteristic of the way of life in California, they have a whole part of the menu devoted to Asian Fit, which has low-calorie and nutritious foods that are clearly labeled with the number of calories they include as well as the nutrients they contain. 

Pick Up Styx serves arguably the most delicious fried wontons available on the market, so if you love this dish, this is defiantly the restaurant for you. 

5. Chinese Gourmet Express

Your delicious, high-quality cuisine will be available within a few minutes after you place your order at Chinese Gourmet Express, and the portions are far larger than you would expect from a restaurant with this name. 

A combination meal may be purchased for $7.50, and it includes a generous helping of rice or Chow Mein, as well as two other meals from which the customer can choose.

If you are looking for a Chinese restaurant that is very good for money, you can’t go wrong with visiting Chinese Gourmet Express. 

The United States is home to more than 50 sites of the Chinese Gourmet Express chain restaurant. 

For chain restaurant happy hour deals, you might want to explore options at places like Applebee’s or TGI Fridays, which often have great deals on drinks and appetizers during their happy hours.

6. HuHot Mongolian Grill

Another restaurant that allows you to customize your rice and noodle stir-fry by picking all of the items that go into it is HuHot. 

HuHot Mongolian Grill is an excellent venue for lunch and dinner that you can go to regularly since it offers a wide variety of options and enables you to create any combination you can think of.

In addition to the increased number of veggies, they offer a total of 24 unique sauces to pick from. 

The different types of fish and seafood, along with chicken, meatballs, beef, and hog sausage, are all examples of proteins on their menu. 

There are over 70 sites throughout 18 states at this time.

7. Panda Express

Panda Express (see also ‘18 Of The Tastiest Items On The Panda Express Menu‘) opened its first restaurant in California in 1983.

Since then, the chain has expanded to more than 21,000 locations throughout the country and generates an astounding $3 billion in yearly revenue.

All of this makes Panda Express the most popular and profitable Chinese food chain restaurant in the USA. 

If you have never visited this popular restaurant, you are really missing out!

Their Orange Chicken is their most popular offering, and it features a variety of flavors.

The tanginess and sweetness of the citrus, the savory chicken flavor, spicy chiles, and crunchy glazed skin are a perfectly delicious combination.

This dish is so popular that Panda Express sells over 100 million pounds of the chicken every year!

Orange Chicken is an original dish developed by Panda Express; it is not traditionally served in Chinese cuisine.

Although other restaurants have attempted to replicate it, they are unable to live up to its standards. 

You can expect to discover all of the traditional dishes that are popular in American Chinese restaurants, such as egg rolls and Kung Pao chicken. 

The fact that the cuisine at Panda Express is not only wonderful but also reasonably priced is largely responsible for the restaurant’s meteoric rise and popularity. 

If you’re a fan of Panda Express and want to recreate some of their flavors at home, you might want to explore Panda Express copycat recipes.

8. Mark Pi’s

Mark Pi’s is a South Korean restaurant in Chicago that first opened its doors in 2008 and was named after its proprietor, a South Korean man who was born to Chinese parents. 

The owner had already garnered a reputation for his exceptional noodle-making abilities, earning him the title of “fastest noodle maker” according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

As a result, the noodle dishes at Mark Pi’s, particularly the Lo Mein, come highly recommended by anyone who has had the chance to try them. 

Their menu features all of the crowd-pleasing Chinese American take-out meals, but you may personalize your order by selecting the type of protein you want to include.

You have the option of selecting chicken, beef, shrimp, tofu, or veggies as your main ingredient. 

Along with this, they provide a buffet with a set price that is available at all times, although we suggest that you place your order from the regular menu.

9. Din Tai Fung

Din Tai Fung is a more reliable source of traditional Chinese cuisine because the restaurant chain was established in Taiwan in 1958 and has since expanded to approximately a dozen locations in the Western United States. 

Din Tai Fung’s food presentation is on another level, with the Asian cuisine being brightly colored and appetizing.

The excellent look of their food is matched by its equally superb flavor.

We would recommend ordering a variety of items off of their menu so that you and your family or friends can experience even more exciting tastes and colors together.  

The meals are both lovely and delectable, but if you are used to the American style of Chinese food, you may be quite surprised as to what you get in this restaurant.

This is because Din Tai Fung focuses on making authentic Asian dishes, rather than what Americans are used to when it comes to these dishes. 

The additional cost is more than justified given the exceptional quality of this authentic, gourmet Chinese cuisine.

10. Leann Chin

Leann Chin, the business that first opened its doors in 1980, was named after its multi-talented female founder.

Leann Chin is a Chinese immigrant who moved to the Midwest with her family in the 1950s. 

Leann Chin used the traditional Chinese recipes and culinary expertise that her family had passed down to her to popularize Chinese cuisine, first among her group of friends and then as a successful restaurant chain in the Midwest.

At the moment, Leeann Chin operates over 50 sites, the majority of which can be found in the Midwest of the United States.

Although the menu is limited in size, it has all of the most well-known Chinese foods that customers seek when they order takeout.

11. Mama Fu’s

Mama Fu’s, a chain of restaurants known mostly for its southern Chinese cuisine, adds a touch of the south’s distinct flavor to the American Chinese food they serve.

They even provide a macaroni and cheese side dish as an option. 

Even if their cuisine is a little bit fatty, it is still excellent, and they provide selections that are better for you if you want a healthier meal.

For example, they provide the alternative of substituting rice for cauliflower rice, which they refer to as “riced cauliflower.”

They are also able to flawlessly combine the culinary and flavor profiles of southern cuisine with those of Chinese takeout food.

The Jalapeno Brisket Fried Rice, also known as the “taste of Texas,” is the meal that exhibits this fusion style of cooking the best. 

Given that all of their stores, except for one, are located in Texas, we have no doubt that this trademark item is going to be a hit.

12. Mr. Chow

You probably don’t think of chain restaurants (see also ‘The Greatest Chain Restaurant Desserts You Need To Try!‘), or maybe even Chinese food, when you think of good dining, however, Mr. Chow is as elegant as it gets.

It is also the most expensive restaurant on our list, but the ambiance of a fine dining establishment and the quality of the food more than make up for the additional expense.

The first Mr. Chow restaurant opened in London in 1968, and the chain swiftly expanded to other major cities across the United States, including New York, Miami, Beverly Hills, and Las Vegas. 

You might argue that Mr. Chow introduced the United States to the wonderful and complex flavors that can be found in Chinese cuisine.

13. Manchu Wok

Dr. Jack Lew established Manchu Wok in Ontario, Canada, in 1980. Manchu Wok Inc. is a Canadian-based Chinese fast food restaurant business (see also ‘8 Fast Food Restaurants That Serve The Best Soup‘).

There are thirteen sites of Manchu Wok in the United States. 

Given the restaurant’s name, the menu does not feature any traditional Manchurian dishes, focusing instead on American Chinese and Canadian Chinese cuisine.

This fast food restaurant is most frequently seen in shopping malls and airports.

On the menu are meals such as sesame chicken, beef and broccoli, sweet and sour pork, and lo mein noodles.

Frequently Asked Questions

What City In The USA Has The Best Chinese Food?

According to one survey by FoodyData, the city that has the best Chinese food in the whole of the USA is Seattle.

53% of the Chinese restaurants in the state have been given a rating of 4/5 or higher. 

What Is The Oldest Chinese Food Restaurant In The USA?

The oldest Chinese food restaurant in the USA that is still in operation is Pekin Noodle Parlor.

This restaurant can be found in Butte, Montana. 

What Chinese Food Was Invented In The USA?

A lot of Chinese food that Americans consider to be “Chinese” was actually created in the USA, usually by Chinese immigrants.

The most famous dish that was created in the USA is Chop Suey.

The name of this meal translated roughly into “leftovers” in Chinese.