Pei Wei serves meals for lunch and dinner.
Pei Wei was founded in 200 by P. F. Chang’s China Bistro (PFCB), an American casual dining restaurant serving Asian-American fusion cuisine that chose to create Pei Wei to also have a hand in the fast-casual restaurant industry by serving Asian food that is quick-to-serve while the parent company focuses on competing in the full-service industry. The business was initially named Pei Wei Asian Diner, and would later change its name to Pei Wei Asian Kitchen.
Fueled by an already-established restaurant in the business, Pei Wei was capable of growing at incredible speeds and opening more than 100 different locations after just 6 years in the business.
During the mid-late 2010s, the company underwent significant changes, which included rebranding and a greater focus on healthy foods, and opened a restaurant, the Pei Wei Test Kitchen, just to experiment with new items and get fast feedback.
And in late 2017, they underwent another massive change when the company separated itself from P. F. Chang’s China Bistro, which caused their name change from Diner to Kitchen, and resulted in heavy rebranding once again, changing their logo to that of a tiger and relocated their headquarters from Scottsdale, Arizona (where their first location was at) to Irving, Texas.
You can find out more about Pei Wei through their official website here.
Which Countries Have a Pei Wei Restaurant?
Pei Wei has restaurants in the United States, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. They have over 100 locations, most of which are in the US, with many locations in Arizona, Texas, California, and Florida, among other states.
They also had three locations in Mexico, and eleven locations in South Korea, but they closed all of their restaurants in both countries.
What is Different About Pei Wei?
Pei Wei is a bit different from most fast-casual diners because they have an open kitchen where you can observe the cooks working their craft. So if you’re at one of their restaurants, you don’t have to just sit and boringly wait for your food to come, and you can instead watch their experienced cooks working the fire.
And by working the fire, I mean it literally. You’ll usually see some cooks creating tall flames on their works during the process. So you’re not just getting some delicious Asian food, you’re getting entertained too!
And their products are also a big advantage of Pei Wei’s with whole cuts of chicken and grass-fed steaks (which provide not only a healthier life to cattle, but it also makes your steak more nutritious, it’s a win-win).
Is Pei Wei Spicy?
Many of their meals are mildly spicy, and if you want to stay away from the heat (or if you want to do the opposite and dive into the spiciness), you can do it by choosing the right items on their menu.
If you want to crank up the heat, the Spicy Korean BBQ Steak is a great choice with its spicy gochujang sauce, red bell peppers, onions, scallions, garlic, and of course, their grass-fed steak. Their Spicy Drunk Noodles are another great option for spice lovers with its chili paste and the savory, sweet, and spicy sauce to give some kick to the dish’s white meat chicken, rice noodles, red bell peppers, onions, scallions, and garlic.
Other spicy meals include the Firecracker Tofu, the Spicy General Tso’s Chicken, and the Firecracker Chicken.
You’ll find a wide variety of Asian meals and meals with ingredients commonly used in Asian cuisines on their menu. This includes different noodle dishes, different shrimp, beef, and chicken dishes, egg rolls, dumplings, wontons, and lots of white rice in their dishes.
Some of the traditional Pan Asian meals you can hope to find on their menu are the Dan Dan Noodles, Mongolian Chicken, Orange Chicken, Spicy General Tso’s Chicken, Teriyaki Chicken, Chicken Pad Thai, Chicken Lo Mein, and more.
But some of the items that shine the most on their menu are some of their least known ones, like their Thai Donuts which are deep-fried balls dusted with sugar and Saigon cinnamon and served with sweetened condensed milk to dip your Thai Donuts in that creates an explosion of flavors – a crunchy exterior, soft interior, the aroma of the cinnamon, and the sweetness from the condensed milk all make for a phenomenal dessert item everyone should try at least once when ordering from Pei Wei.
How Do I Order Food at Pei Wei?
You can order in person at one of their beautiful open kitchen restaurants, or you can use either their website or their official app to place your order and select your choice of pickup or delivery.
Does Pei Wei Cater to Vegetarians?
Kind of. Most of their dishes are not vegetarian-friendly, but they do have a few. The Firecracker Tofu, Teriyaki Tofu, Thai Dynamite Tofu, Thai Donuts, and Vegetable Spring Rolls are some of their vegetarian items.
Yes, albeit it is a limited one since all of their children's meals are chicken-based. The children's category in their menu is called “Kids Wei” and offers Chicken Lo Mein, Honey-Seared Chicken, House Special Chicken, Orange Chicken, and Teriyaki Chicken.
What Are Pei Wei’s Opening Hours?
Pei Wei typically opens at 11 am and closes at 9 pm (10 pm on Fridays and Saturdays). Make sure to check on your local Pei Wei for their specific hours since they can vary from region to region.
Is Pei Wei Healthy?
Mostly yes! Most of their meals are not high fat and contain a variety of highly nutritious vegetables – like Beef & Broccoli, Chicken Fried Rice, and the Asian Chopped Chicken Salad, which are all low fat, low calorie, meals with high nutritional value due to the vegetables and high-quality ingredients included in the dishes.
Can I Cook Pei Wei at Home?
You can try to cook Pei Wei at home by using your own cooking skill to create dishes that are similar to theirs, but they do not offer any use at home products or ingredients.