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Categories: Chinese, Asian Fusion [Edit]
Neighborhood: Lakeview
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I have been curious about this place since I used to live right there but have never tried it so we finally just ordered pick up. We got two vegetable dishes and some vegetable dumplings. We got a veggie lo mein type dish and a kung pao tofu and eggplant dish. The kung pao was definitely the better of the two--it had some kick and more interesting vegetables in it. The other dish just had some green beans, broccoli and snow peas--it was good but just didnt really have that pazaaaaaaaz. The dumplings were good but maybe a more creative sauce would have been good.
It was average, and I am glad that I finally tried it--however, when Joy's is right down the street from this place--it may be hard to choose Ping Pong over it...
One thing that I did notice--they have great outdoor seating. The space seemed nice too, the hostess was nice and the lighting in there was kind of cool and funky. I mean, it is in a great area on Broadway so that is good for people watching.
I would have given Ping Pong 5 stars a couple years ago, but things have changed. The staff is no longer friendly. They are rude, arrogant and rarely even smile. "Oh, we work in a cool Chinese trendy restaurant! We are soooo cool!!!" Get over yourself. Seriously.
Secondly, I'm 29 and love loud music....but not when I'm trying to have dinner conversation. The music is WAY too loud.
The food is great in my opinion. I think Dee's is much better, but this is much better than any greasy, gristly Chinese in the Boystown area. The lettuce cups, Ping Pong Chicken are great. The potstickers suck as they are more like baos than potstickers.
Sitting outside is nice in the summer. Love the mimimalist decor, but I do think it's not a great spot for a first date, as there is nothing to really talk about when it comes to the surroundings. It's all so minimal.
This place rocks. I ordered the Shanghai curry noodles and my friend ordered the Spicy scallops. The curry noodles were quite good...geez I ate them all and not only because I was hungry. And my friends scallops were awesome. They give you a great portion of scallops too that taste super fresh. I would come back here in a heartbeat.
I found the service to be friendly and efficient...no complaints here.
I love love this place! Absolutely adorable atmosphere. A block away from my apartment. The nicest waiter I've ever had.
Not to mention they have martini's called "gossip girl", "Sex in the city" and "golden Girl".
Ping pong you are clever clever and delicious too!
Yummy.
The lady dreams about their calamari, and I have to admit, it's pretty good. Lightly breaded, slightly fried, little spicy, tasty enough to make me smack my lips in tasty desire. :) Their pad thai is decent too as is their seaweed salad. Lychee cocktail is pretty yummy and for some reason knocked me flat.
Service is always pleasant, but I've always gone later and during the week when it's not so busy.
Due to the fact I'm spoiled by BYOBs in my neighborhood, I hate the fact they have a $5 corkage fee. Yes, I'm cheap. Another downside, Ping Pong's bar like atmosphere. It's a little loud, and I wish I could have a romantic dinner here since my gf likes their calamari so much (due to her birdlike appetite, that's all she orders). However, I kind of feel like I'm in a sit down version of Hydrate.....ish.
I've been meaning to go here for some time. I finally did and I probably won't go back. I've had much better take out food for a hell of a lot less money. The servers are too cool for school and their calamari needs some serious sauce. Don't fuck up calamari. Ever. The portions are big, but who cares when all the food your eating doesn't taste that great. Thank God I was really hungry and had 3 glasses of Pinot Noir. It's the only thing that saved my meal. Oh, and the music is too loud. And there's obnoxious projections on the wall. If I wanted to eat Thai food at Hydrate, I could probably get away with it, thanks though Ping Pong. Don't put chocolate on your fortune cookies. You suck.
This place does not take reservations, so when I decided to go with a friend on a Saturday night at 7pm, I was a little scared we wouldn't be able to find seating. However, it was perfectly fine, and I was told Ping Pong doesn't get busy until around 8pm. I've walked by this place numerous times and each time I think "ooh, I need to go there". Well, I'm glad I did! I'm assuming the minimalist wall decor is meant to enhance one's dinner conversation, but I bet it can also enhance the silence and awkwardness of a first date. However, if you're going with old friends or people you really 'click' with, it shouldn't be a problem.
Ping Pong is BYOB ($5 corkage fee for wine, but I was also charged for brining in a six pack of mike's hard lemonade) but also boasts a full bar with signature martinis. The staff are friendly and cool and contribute to the very chic hip atmosphere of Ping Pong. But don't think this place is all about the scene! The food here was AMAZING! Here's a list of what we had:
-lettuce cups
-fish tacos
-garlic mussels
-red snapper
The fish tacos was the only so-so dish of the evening. But that doesn't mean it wasn't a good dish. It just means, I'm Mexican and I should've known better. We were so stuffed by the end of our meal, we couldn't even consider getting desert. Next time, however, its on....
2.5 stars. It was just an okay meal and with so many restaurants around town, I would only go back if necessary. First of all, what is with the loud music? I didn't understand why they had to play clubbing music while I was trying to eat my Chinese food. And, they were playing these projectors on the walls with colored striped lines. I realize they are trying to be trendy but it is a small Asian restaurant in Boystown... I went there on a weeknight just walking by. Am I just that old and out-of-date that I didn't enjoy that?
But besides the environment, the food itself was just mediocre as well. We ordered the summer rolls, similar to a Vietnamese spring roll but with some different ingredients. The rice paper skin seemed too thick and the noodles inside were too mushy. Otherwise, I liked it b/c I do like my spring rolls! Then we had the penang chicken curry and the hong kong wide noodles. The curry had a nice flavor to it... pretty spicy. It wasn't the best I have had but it was good. The noodles had an okay flavor but the noodles seemed overcooked and the beef had a weird texture. Not a fan, really. I also had a watermelon martini, which tasted like lip balm. Oh, and prices overall were a little high. I mean, $12-14 for regular Thai food? I can go to a "less trendy" place and get it for $8.
Oh, yeah... I almost forgot to mention my favorite thing... the only thing that I really enjoyed were the homemade taro chips that came out when we sat down. Those were quite yummy!
Maybe I ordered the wrong things... not sure... but I don't think I need to go back and try.
I've been to this place only a couple of times. On the first, my dining companion found glass in his food. Yes. Glass.
Years later, the second time I went was last winter. Service was MUCH better, and the food was as as I remembered: fine. And I don't mean fine, like, "THAT BOY IS FINE!" but fine like, "How's your day?" "Fine."
i've never experienced rude service at ping pong - they're just not overtly friendly. and yes, there's some gender bending going on here, but hey - you're in boystown. all of this is easy to look past once you realize how good their food is.
first things first, if you don't order the crab rangoon, you're missing out. do not pass go, do not collect $200 - order the rangoon. beyond that, i've tried a variety of items off the menu (not only is it huge, it's seasonal,) and everything has been super delicious. and cheap. and in a huge portion. what's not to like? plus, it's a BYOB ($5 corkage fee - i don't blame them since they have a full bar.) the only thing i have to gripe about this place is that they don't take reservations.
but the little ping pong paddles that carry your chocolate fortune cookie and the bill - too cute. oh, one more thing - go to the bathroom while you're here. the music is always cranked to the nth degree and there's mirrors on all the walls. never thought i'd feel like the star of a music video while taking a whiz.
I went to Ping Pong last week after hearing great things from a few friends about the food. My expectations were high when we got there.
We started with the crab rangoon and edamame which were both delicious. The edamame seemed like it was infused with salt, so the flavor was great! The crab rangoon was a little heavy on the cream cheese, but I loved it.
We started running into problems when the main dishes arrived. All four of our dishes had chicken [green curry, sesame chicken, pad thai, and red curry]. Except for the green curry, all of the chicken was a bit dry. Both of the currys were good, but were very simple and didn't have much to them.
I don't think we would have been as disappointed if the food wasn't so expensive. For what you get, it was not really worth the money. Overall, the food was just OK and was much too expensive for what you get.
I don't think I'll return to Ping Pong. It wasn't the worst ever, but it didn't provide much to reel me back in.
The atmosphere was a little ridiculous. While the minimalist decor was pleasing, they were blasting techno music so loudly that we could not hear each other speak, and the waitress was completely unable to hear our orders the first time around. We get it, we're in Boystown. That doesn't mean dinner has to feel like a rave. And it was only 6pm on a Saturday. Not exactly my preferred dining ambiance.
The food was mediocre at best. The chef seemed to be very heavy handed with the sauces. I also felt it was totally overpriced for what you got.
The one redeeming quality was the evening's drink special, a watermelon martini. While I feared it would taste like a Jolly Rancher, it actually tasted exactly like fresh watermelon. Very, very good!!
The best thing about this place is playing "Guess Your Server's Chromosome Pairings" while waiting for average food served with awe inducing snotty attitude under an umbrella of music so loud your balls bounce on the chair on which you're perched. Boystown is a bastion of culinary mediocrity and in following suit this place does not disappoint.
Get the watermelon martini if its still there. Its super tasty. It was so great to sit and relax in the Chicago breeze. I had a late lunch so my boyfriend and I split an entree and got two appetizers for dinner. The food wasn't spectacular but still satisfying. Our waiter was friendly which is why I'm giving this place for start. The spring rolls were with the peanut sauce. It wasn't authentic, but still tasty. The coconut shrimp with Thai sweet and sour sauce totally hit the spot, but the bulgogi could have been better. It actually tasted more like mongolian beef from chinese take out, but I do have to admit, they put more effort into the presentation of their dishes.
I did look over and the guy at the table next to me had this amazing mouthwatering fish and ginger dish. I know what I'm ordering next time.
I love the flamboyant scene of boys town where anything goes. This place definitely has a great scene even if the food falls short a little. And of course, Pingpong... thats Thai for porn show. :P
I love Ping Pong. The service is great, the food is fantastic, and they are always busy but the wait is never too long. My favorite is a dish with broccoli, beef, and sesame. SO delicious. Their appetizers are also great, we try to eat a different one each time we go. Make sure you check out their drink list though. Some of the names are a bit girly for my fiance's taste, but he sure does love the taste! They also come nicely garnished. Other best part?! IT'S BYOB! Who can beat that??
I have done a non-scientific study and decided that whenever I go out with friends I always order the best drink.
I think it's because most people want to taste a crap-load of alcohol, while I want to taste sweet sugary goodness on my tongue.
While enjoying a perfectly sweetened mango martini (almost the price of a whole meal, mind you) three of us ordered three separate dishes to split. Each one was mind-blowingly filled with flavor.'
Honestly, I can't even remember what we ordered, but I'm thinking three out of three is pretty good. It's a little on the pricey side, but you do get large portions, and word of advice, it's BYOB.
Prepare to strain your voice a little - lack of walls and plants make the place awfully noisy.
These guys also own Wakamono just across the street, which too is fabulous.
We first went to Ping Pong several months ago, and I have never eaten in a restaurant that was SO LOUD. The music was turned up way too high, and it had such a heavy beat that there were literally times I couldn't hear the waitress. I ended up ordering an extra drink because I nodded with out knowing what she said. The atmosphere was laughable.
But, I have to say that I had enjoyed the food the first time we ate it. So a few nights ago, we decided to order take-out so we could enjoy the meal without the pounding headaches we got sitting in the dining room. I ordered the same sesame scallops that I had enjoyed the first time we went, and my friend ordered Mongolian beef.
Maybe we caught a good chef the the first time, or maybe we caught them on an off-night this time, but it was...not good. The beef was on par with any decent Chinese take-out, but we would have expected more for the price. The scallops were drowning in sesame seeds. You couldn't taste anything else in the dish at all. I couldn't finish it.
The food isn't awful, but it's not good, and not what I would expect for the price. The atmosphere in the restaurant is not acceptable. I won't be eating here again, and I won't be ordering out. I think Ping Pong and I are done.
I'm not too sure what is going on here... is it a club? is it a restaurant? is it just annoying? It's so loud you cannot hear yourself think, and the videos on the wall are trippy...and not in a good way. I know it's an area where *potentially* there can be a lot of cracked out people dining, but when you need to yell to hear each other, and there's an extremely long wait for just decent food, I would rather dine elsewhere. You go to the club after you eat. Bringing the club to the restaurant.... is just tacky. The food is decent as long as you like being served by servers with no personality that look like they sprayed on their faces. Oh, and gird your loins, seems like people here like to play tranny? gay? straight? bi? or hot mess? here.
v. enthusiastic staff. as true sales people, they love to love their products. fun game, how many adj can you use to describe... rice? GO!
i generally dislike asian fusion restaurants as they are mostly over-priced and poorly imitate asian restaurants, masked by a nice decor.
pingpong was much of the same. the food wasn't half-bad, but it wasn't amazing.
I absolutely adore Ping Pong.
The food isn't terribly inventive, but it is consistently good. I almost always order the Beijing Vegetarian, and I love the flavor of the smoked tofu. The brown rice that you can sub for white rice is nice and chewy, just the way that it should be.
As much as I enjoy the food, my favorite part is the martini menu. Ping Pong offers a variety of delicious martinis -- including the standard saketini and plum wine one can expect at a Pan Asian restaurant, but also including a tasty lychee variety, among others -- that are served by a friendly bartender and (almost always) garnished with real flowers. The flowers really make my evening. It's always hard to restrain myself from putting them in my hair -- and, as you can see from one of my photos, I can't always resist.
The decor has undergone some changes over the years, and although I was sad to see them paint over the wall that I had written my name on, I was glad to bid adieu to the huge bison head that used to loom overhead.
Trendy scenery and loud music and beautiful people does not make for good food. I keep trying to give this place a try as all my friends are all about it, but every time I'm there it is not good.
I got the shrimp pad thai-- how can you mess up regular old pad thai? Come on now. Oh you can... If it's deathly cold when it comes to your table.
Also, they charge a corkage fee now for their BYOB. Such a scam. Don't be BYOB then because it ruins the point.
"Meh" is a perfect term for this place. Only go there if you want to be seen, not if you want to get good food.
This place used to be good, not anymore, the portions are small and the staff is rude. It is way over rated and I will not go back. I am not sure what happened but this place seriously has seen better days. The music is crazy loud on top of rude service and average food. Their only saving grace is the calamari.
The disproportionate amount of high ratings that this restaurant has received definitely reasserts my initial reaction: Ping Pong's main clientele is made up of people who really enjoy oversalted, oversauced faux-Asian food.
The best part of the meal was the taro chips that you receive before your meal.
I tried asking my waiter to help make suggestions to help me find a dish, because I really couldn't navigate through the mishmash of options. He tried being helpful, but was not very assertive. I narrowed down my choices to the dishes featuring 'crispy noodles' thinking that they would be some form of rice noodle that was fried in some way.
Much to my surprise, my plate came with sauce-drenched beef plopped on a bed of fried vermicelli. It was pointless. The noodles didn't add anything. Not texture. Not taste. They were so thin that within seconds they were goopy with all the excess sauce that accompanied my meal.
I think that the road better traveled would be to order two appetizers for the same price as their over-priced entrees.
It is right on Broadway and fabulous...
I really like this place.
They have awesome seitan and tofu dishes and excellent stir fry. The drinks are moderately priced (It is Lakeview). The wait staff is dressed mod. The options are plentiful. The interior music is hip and festive. The sidewalk seating is great in the summer, as well as the large interior window seats (windows are usually open). The best part is the big pre-meal salty potato~esque snacks, which are awesome!!!!
What else can I say...Ping Pong is cool. The restaurant is good too!
It pains me to see so many people gushing over Ping Pong. I suspect they don't have my memory.
Perhaps 1 star is overly harsh, but you see I remember what Ping Pong used to be. It has gone from one of my favorite restaurants in the city to a place I'd have to be drugged to set foot in. Ping Pong's fall from grace has broken my heart, and earned it my first ever 1 star rating.
Ping Pong was once a cozy little spot with excellent food, a fun atmosphere and decent (well...hit or miss) service that was reasonably friendly. I've watched over the years as prices climbed, portions shrunk and service deteriorated. Ping Pong is but a shadow of its former self. I don't begrudge them the space they added on. I begrudge the decreased value and quality of the food. I begrudge the haughty attitude of the douchey, androgynous staff.
I remember when the sesame chicken was a full plate of succulent hunks of chicken with substantial amounts of broccoli and a big bowl of rice. Now it seems to be a small pile of minuscule pieces of popcorn chicken with a couple broccoli florets and a bowl of rice somewhat bigger than a shot glass. Oh, and it now costs 5 dollars more.
There are better places to go for Asian cuisine where you won't get sneered at or ignored, where your ears won't be shattered by the volume of the music, where the wait will be shorter and where the food will be better while still being cheaper. Unless your soul purpose for going out to eat is to "see and be seen" in which case you and Ping Pong deserve each other.
Damn you Ping Pong... I learned to use chopsticks for you!
Where to begin... I'm a bit torn about this place. The food is really good: not GREAT, but good. Not expensive. The place is super clean, very well decorated, and everyone that works there was relatively attractive: you know, the important stuff.
I went on a Friday night, and it must have been some sort of weird "girls night out" extravaganza, because 1/2 the place was large parties of girls: hair all did up, balloons, photo ops and various lady-shenanigans.
The music was so loud, that by the end of my meal I was horse from shouting across the table at my friends. Turn down the hits, and you would get another star... maybe even two.
This place was pretty good. I went here on a Tuesday night with a friend of mine. The martinis here are super good. I got the pear martini, while she got the sex in the city. I loved mine because it came with fresh slices of pear in it, and it's perfect for spring.
The chips they give you when you sit down are good. They are thick, slightly salty and herb-y. We ordered the Wasabi fries, which are french fries with seasoning on them, and they come with a dip. It was great, very addictive.
I ordered the ping pong roll and crab rangoon for my meal. The ping pong roll was pretty good, hot and a bit big. It comes with 6 pieces. I have had better crab rangoon. This crab rangoon was a bit hard to eat, and it was just...missing something. I wish I had gotten the fish tacos or the sashimi dip instead. Oh well, next time.
The chocolate covered fortune cookies are a nice treat to end the night. I like the music selection here, and it's a cool, funky decor. I'll definitely go back and try some other things next time.
So we went here on a Friday night, and although we got seated right away, our server took forever to come greet us. Having just got back from Europe and experiencing the slowest service on the face of the earth, I didn't mind.
To make up for that, my martini (the High Mountain) was AWESOME. The lettuce cups were my least favorite thing that we had... I make better ones at home. My salt and pepper shrimp was a 10, my boyfriend's beef stuff was an 8.5, and the food came out in a very timely manner.
A little expensive, but a good place to go
This place used to be much (MUCH!) better 5-6 years ago. Not sure what happened. The expanded space is beautiful, but the food is definitely not as good as I remember. I used to always get the bulgogi. The meat doesn't seem to be grilled like it used to be and it's swimming in a brown sauce. Husband gets the Spicy! (which he still likes). I don't know, but it's lost something. Just meh.
NOT for delivery, I discovered. Holy hixinjiàng (hoison) sauce ! WAY too expensive for what you get... and for the food to arrive cold (it's not even that cold outside today) is unacceptable. I ordered an order of Orange Chicken (just ok), the PingPong Chicken (slightly better), and for myself, the Cashew Tofu (blah and extra blah cashews that were drenched), with rice + spring rolls and dumplings. $59.35 + tip!
Now, if the food had been amazing and not cold, then totally worth it. But it wasn't. Clearly, they weren't too busy, because the food arrived in less than 45 minutes, so what's the deal I say ? No deal. No slice, no chop, no block, side drive, or lob. Never again. Get a grip Ping Pong, your drop shot is suffering.
Boring. That's how I would describe the food. It's not bad, it's just not that memorable. The prices are pretty high considering the mediocrity of the food. Don't come here on weekends unless you are prepared to wait and wait. Tables are tiny and very close together, so prepare to get friendly with your neighbors...that is, if you can hear them. The music is REALLY loud! Conversation is nearly impossible! The place also has that "ooh we're an ultra-chic, trendy restaurant" vibe that I hate. Summary: mediocre food is not helped by long waits, high prices, and obnoxious atmosphere.
I LOVE the food here but cannot STAND the music. It's definitely trendy. I appreciate that while the decor is a bit sterile, they decorate it with some nice flowers and occasional projections on the wall (which, sometimes, are strange - like Golden Girls).
Anyway, they make the best Buddhist Delight I've ever had. The cocktails are tasty too - but they'll cost you!
Since living in Uptown and going to the Belmont/Broadway area frequently, I have always wanted to eat at this place. From the outside, it looks like the place to be with its very modern appeal. From the clean white walls, to the modern furniture, to the large windows, loud music, and trendy crowd, it was very tempting to go in.
I went there with someone last night and his first experience at Pingpong was not a good one. However, he was willing to try it out again.
Everything ordered was actually good. From the chips that come out once you are seated, to the Salt and Pepper Calamari, to the General Tso's Chicken, to the Penang Chicken.
We both were very happy with the choices made.
My complaints are that they catere to younger crowds and really isn't a date place. If you are looking for an intimate setting where it is peaceful then Pingpong isn't the place to be. Even in the washroom the music is blaring. But oh well. And the service was a bit slow but it was a Friday night and very crowded.
The food was good and I am willing to go back again!!
My brother took me to Ping Pong an described it in one word : Gaysian
True.
It's funky and well decorated, and all of the people that work there are well groomed. They even have chocolate fortune cookies.
The crab rangoon and other appetizers were delicious so I was excited for my entree. I ordered some spicy beef dish and it was beautiful, but when I tried to eat it I actually had to spit it in my napkin because it was inedibly spicy...and I love spicy food. I mixed in as much rice as I could to cut down on the spiciness but I only made it through half the dish and everyone out to dinner with us that tried my meal agreed with me about it being way too hot.
Oh, and they have a weird corking policy for BYOB.
Fried calamari and crab rangoon for starters? All I needed was The Little Mermaid playing on the walls to make my seafood experience complete!
I always pass Ping Pong, and I finally got a chance to try it. The space is very cozy and minimalist-ic, but the food is quite the opposite (opposite of the latter).
Their menu covers the basics with Chinese/Thai food with chicken, beef, tofu, seafood. I can never pass up good Asian cuisine so choosing an entrée will always be difficult for me, but luckily the starters and Kung Pao chicken I landed with were fabulous!
The service was quite prompt and as I was forewarned by previous reviews, I could sense a little bit of pretentiousness from our waiter, but it's something you have to learn to worth with, not against. The presentation of the calamari and crab rangoon was really clean and colorful and just tasty in general. The entrees came shortly after, and they were large!
Once again, nothing too froufrou, just good cuisine that you keep eating and eating and eating, or until they give you the option for a doggy bag.
All that said, I will DEF be coming back here.
I wish they had a ping pong table and balls to accompany their paddles, but I think that would be a little messy!
Super trendy and fun. This place is basically like being in a club that serves food. There was extremely loud trance music playing when we went, and my husband couldn't hear a word I was saying. I loved it though. LOL.
The food is really good- I'm not even generally into chinese-esque food, but I liked what I ordered (something called beijing vegetarian) which was basically a stir-fry with smoked tofu (that I swore was meat at first bite)- We also got green tea martinis which were pricey, but good. We were confused however since we had ordered the same drink, yet mine was a lot stronger and tasted nothing like green tea... and my husband's seemed to just be flavoring. Oops?
No complaints over this bizare error, but it might irk some- haha... no one wants to pay 10 dollars for a glass of flavored syrup, afterall.
Still, everything is presented is a fun way and there is also outside seating- which is impossible to snag... but is obtainable if you don't mind waiting. :) Worth checking out... it may surprise you. :)
I've never left here feeling really full or satisfied, but I have left here feeling really drunk. The drinks are great, but overall, I think this place is way too $$ and it's trying to be too pretentious. Or maybe it's just the bitchy Queens we get waiting on us every time that make it seem that way. But seriously, maybe you should tuck a little less tighter and that will help. Sheesh!! Take a Xanax or something first...it's just food for pete's sake!
If you do decide to brave the bitches, have the singapore noodles. It's almost worth the abrasiveness. Or better yet, just order take-out!
I love the yu xiang eggplant and pork. I've had it twice and both times, the dish was just delicious. What I particularly loved about it was that, in spite of the very tasty and slightly spicy sauce, you could still taste the flavors of each individual ingredient (the succulent, tender pork, the juicy and plump eggplant, the crisp, mellow bamboo shoots...). The parts all came together to create a harmonious dish. The hot and sour soup was yummy, too.
I think it's really hard for any restaurant to get everything right. With that in mind, I do not really recommend the pad thai. I tried my friend's and was not impressed. Pad thai is actually quite difficult to make correctly, and those who make it well know what they're doing. The pad thai here wasn't bad, it just wasn't that great.
The wait staff are attentive and friendly. I'll definitely be going back for more. :)
Pong is unequivocally the worst dining experience I've ever had. My girlfriend suggested this place as she had been here numerous times prior and only had good things to say.
We arrived and our server glared at me when I attempted to order my drink. On my second attempt, the server "shushed" me and by the 4th attempt I finally had my drink. As my girlfriend looked over at me basically apologizing and insinuating we could leave if I wanted, I decided to see if the food would triumph over the service.
I was wrong, but the night turned laughable. When our entrees arrived we realized that the table next to us had received our entrees and us theirs. We promptly brought this to the attention of the server. The server truly went above and beyond to fix his/her error; switched the plates in front of us. At least walk these back to the kitchen and allow me to believe it was resolved back there.
I made sure to let the manager know how disappointed and at times offended I was. His response was cavalier and basically led me to believe Ping would rather not have my girlfriend or I as patrons ever again.
If you like a sleek atmosphere, dance music, good people watching and delicious modern takes on Thai food then skip on over to Ping Pong. This is a great place to enjoy a spunky drink and attempt to decide what you'd like to eat on the tremendous menu (yes there are 2 sides to the menu so don't just drool over the first side you see!)
I loved my golden drink -- I don't know what was in it other than lots of ginger and vodka but I loved it. The taro chips they give you at the table could be appetizer enough, but definitely try some of the greens for a "healthy start to your meal" -- seaweed salad or the green beans side. I ordered the red curry chicken and couldn't believe how HUGE the bowl was. I think the curry was some of the best I've had in a long while...the portion was so big I ate it for 2 days after.
Come to Ping Pong with a date or a group of friends. I wouldn't bring kids or older family that doesn't appreciate a good dance party.
Yelp Specials!
Neighborhood: North Center
All-U-Can-Eat-Sushi
Neighborhood: Near West Side
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Sushi Bars
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Italian
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Thai
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Thai
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Sandwiches
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