Chef Ping — Restaurant in Elk Grove Township

Chef Ping: A Dinner Adventure We Didn’t Ask For Date: Friday 9/5/25

We rolled into Chef Ping’s parking lot a little after 5 pm and thought we’d accidentally arrived at a Taylor Swift concert — that’s how packed it was. We got a little receipt-paper ticket like we were waiting at a deli counter, and after 20 minutes our number was finally called.

At the table, hot tea was waiting for us. Nice touch… except my cup had either dirt, grease, or a relic from Pompeii inside. Our server then stormed up with the enthusiasm of a DMV employee and barked, “You want drink?” We said yes, and she followed up with, “Appetizer?” We went with steamed pot stickers. She replied, “20 minute.” We thought she was scolding us with a time limit, but no — apparently that’s how long they take.

While we were waiting, our server carried on an intense friendship with the booth behind us, ignoring us like we were in an invisibility cloak. After 15 minutes she finally came back with the world’s friendliest greeting: “You want order?” We did. Beef & mushrooms, General Tso’s chicken, veggie egg rolls.

The pot stickers showed up first — solid. Then the food runner (MVP of the night) gave us refills because our server was still bonding with her new besties. Around this time, a big table nearby started blasting traditional Chinese music on their phone, basically turning the place into an unsolicited dinner theater.

The food came out. Beef & mushrooms? Great. Veggie egg rolls? Highly recommend. General Tso’s? Started off amazing… but then turned into a Vegas magic trick. One second: chicken. Next second: nothing but breading the size of hockey pucks with about 0.002 ounces of chicken inside.

Our server reappeared just as we were almost finished, gave us boxes we didn’t need (because why take leftovers that could double as paperweights), and we paid the bill.

You’d think that’s where the story ends. Oh no. Two hours later my stomach staged a full rebellion. I felt like I’d swallowed a bowling ball, and let’s just say… the General Tso evacuated his troops very quickly.

Final Verdict: Chef Ping gave us a night to remember — mostly because my digestive system won’t let me forget it. Packed parking lot, questionable service, surprise dinner concert, disappearing chicken act, and a stomachache grand finale. Zero stars for the aftermath, five stars for the comedy material. We will...

5/31/17 - Today, I had a bad experience at this establishment. The food was decent. My mother and I attended this place on a recommendation. We ordered Chow Mein, Pad Thai Chicken, and Szechuan Beef. An older gentleman was serving us. Dinner experience was okay although it took 15 mins to refill my water each time it emptied. As we were about to leave, I told the waiter to pack the half uneaten Szechaun Beef and Pad Thai. As I waited for my food to be packed, the waiter gives to-go food to the next table over. Immediately they rush out of the restaurant. As my mother and I waited, we paid the bill and gave a 15% tip. Well, 15 mins passed after we paid and still no left over food packaged and to go. We ask the waiter where is our food and he says "I thought I gave it to you already". He then goes away to check and comes back and says "Sorry, sorry, sorry" while expecting us to leave without our fully paid food which we didn't even get to finish or take home. My mother got upset and told the waiter to either give us a discount on the food we ate because we didn't even finish it all or we'll talk to the manager. The waiter continues to apologize and tells us "Next time, next time!" I don't understand what he meant by next time? Next time what? Free food? Next time you'll actually deliver my paid food left overs to the right table? Then the waiter tells me "Why didn't you tell me?!" Why would I have to tell you where to bring food. For all I know, the table next to us had left overs and they asked for it to go. I don't know what in the box. So after the waiter tries to put blame on me for not pointing out that I should have told him the food he was giving to the next table was ours, he says "Ok, ok, I'll pay for it". He grabs a $10 dollar bill and gives it to my mother. At this point I'm not sure what to say but we were pretty upset. The waiter didn't deserve the 15% tip on the $41.87 bill I gave to him. In short, the waiter gave half my szechaun beef and pad thai chicken to someone else , tried to make us leave without our food, then tried to blame us for his mistake. This is the FIRST and LAST time I would eat at this place. I DO NOT recommend Chef Ping's restaurant after this...

Great place to go for a nice lunch. The place is always packed and there was a little wait but they do a great job of not making you wait too long. The lunch combo’s are an egg roll, soup (either egg drop or wonton) , fried wontons, rice and your entree accompanied by a hot pot of oolong tea. Price is still great considering inflation and rising prices. Kung pao chicken and Hunan chicken on the lunch menu were very tasty and not overly spicy, oily or sauced. All food came out quickly and was piping hot. Server Cathy was very friendly and made sure we had everything we needed.

———— We tried this place for the first time as we have always gone to another top billing place for the last 10 years. I was pleasantly surprised with their service, quality of food and flavors! Everything came to the table quickly and hot! I like how they have the chili oil and dipping sauce already on the table for your meal. We ordered several dishes including fish, beef, shrimp and the rice with pineapple. Everything delicious. One thing that made me decide this would be our new go to Chinese place was the way the owners treat their staff. We got there almost after lunch on Saturday. As we finished our meal I could see the kitchen workers slowly coming out in the dining hall to have their meal on their break. I really appreciate that the owner thinks enough of the employees and treats them like human beings and lets them eat in a cultured manner. For this reason alone, I’m sold on this place. Usually, kitchen workers at other places have to resort to eating at that one table or booth in the very back where no one can see them. They make our food and work hard in these kitchens and it’s a very good example of how restaurant staff should be treated. I applaud the owners for this! Food was great and atmosphere...