Doha | P.F. Chang’s, What Happened To You?

Before I start this blog post, let me just say that I’ve been a huge fan of P.F. Chang’s since it opened in Dubai. The house that I lived in there was just next to Mall of the Emirates where their restaurant is located and I don’t think one month will pass without me having a meal or two in that restaurant. I love everything about it but of course, the food is what made me keep coming back for more. My favorite dishes are the Mongolian beef, chicken lettuce wraps and of course the famous dynamite shrimps – I have ordered it numerous times that one of the waiter already knows what I will have even before I sit down.

When they finally opened their branch in Villagio here in Doha, I was of course ecstatic but didn’t visit right away as I know how it will be swarmed by people who are all wanting to have a taste of it. It was the exact same case when it first opened in Dubai so I decided to wait until the hype for it is over before I try it. Last week was that day, I just came from a 2-hour workout in Aspire and I was super hungry and decided to finally try out P.F. Chang’s. Yes, I do know that it’s not the smartest decision specially after working out but I was hungry.

The restaurant was empty as it was still too early, there were only a few tables occupied when I arrived which soon became a bit busier. Having craved for dynamite shrimps for the longest time, of course I ordered it as an appetizer. I couldn’t order the Mongolian beef though as I was dining alone so I opted to have Singapore street noodles instead – a dish I’ve never tried from P.F. Chang’s before.

Dynamite shrimps finally came and I immediately gobbled a few pieces of it right after snapchatting about it. I think I ate 3 pcs one after the other as I was very hungry. It was only when I finally satisfied that hunger pang and began to eat it slowly did I realize that something was wrong in the dish – the shrimps weren’t fully cooked and the batter wasn’t very crispy. I think the cook took it out of the cooking oil too early. :p

I was still a bit hungry when the Singapore street noodles arrived which looked appetizing but at first taste, there was such a strong flavor of soy sauce in it which overpowered all the other flavors that it was supposed to have. In fact, the noodles at the bottom of the plate were swimming in soy sauce. Now I haven’t had this dish from P.F. Chang’s before, maybe this is how they do it but it’s definitely not the kind of Singapore noodles I’ve had in some other places – specifically, in Singapore itself. I know P.F. Chang’s isn’t really an authentic Asian restaurant as it offers an Americanized version of Asian dishes but even then, I don’t think I would like to eat anything swimming in soy sauce.

To say that I was disappointed was an understatement because I have waited for such a long time to try it out. My excitement for it wasn’t satisfied at all and I’m hoping that I just caught them during a bad day and that it’s not the norm for this outlet. Service was great though, from the moment I arrived until the time I left – they were attentive, quick and friendly. I will give it a try again soon, hopefully then it will be better.

QR48 Dynamite Shrimps
QR54 Singapore Street Noodles
QR11 1 small bottle of water

P.F. Chang’s
Villagio Mall
Tel No. 44528541

This is NOT a sponsored post.