For years this building was the location of Lo's Blossom, one of the few bright spots in the east side Chinese restaurant scene. Lo sold the restaurant to a new owner who kept the name for a while, then changed it to Pandas Garden. It is just as well that the name was changed because I do not think the food is anything like it was before.

One of the first changes I noticed at Pandas Garden was dropping some of the more interesting and exotic menu items such as the "Hong Kong Sidewalk Cuisine." Now I think there is little available other than the standard items served in just about any American style Chinese restaurant. Lunch specials are served and they are not too bad, but the food is not very exciting.

The Hunan Vegetables I tried were not as good as at Peking Garden or Pei Ting's. Since I have had bad MSG experiences at Peking Garden I would say Pandas Garden might be a better choice, but being the lesser of two evils is not much of a recommendation. I haven't tried other items but there does not seem to be much reason to do so.

Lunch specials and items from the dinner menu are cooked individually without MSG if desired, but I just wish the flavor were there to go along with it. Since my visit Pandas Garden has joined the crowd in offering a lunch buffet. This is probably just another sign that it never was a very authentic Chinese restaurant to begin with.