I ordered the same meal at Panda Express and P.F. Chang's. The fast-food chain had my favorite dish in nearly every category.

At Panda Express, I could choose between a plate with a side and one, two, or three entrées. All the mains were also available à la carte, which I appreciated.

I ordered vegetable fried rice as my side with honey-sesame chicken and beef and broccoli as my two entrées. I also added an order of two spring rolls and a fountain drink.

My total was $15 before tax and tip.

When I first ordered, the employee informed me that I'd have to wait a few minutes until the beef dish was ready.

I ended up waiting about 15 minutes, but another employee gave me a complimentary box of honey-walnut shrimp — which is actually one of my favorite dishes from the chain.

When I got to P.F. Chang's, I realized it only sells shareable, family-style dishes. But for a fair comparison, I ordered spring rolls, sesame chicken, beef and broccoli, and a side of vegetable fried rice.

My total was $54 before tax and tip. But the portions were way bigger, which is worth factoring into the price difference.

Although I got large bowls of sesame chicken and beef and broccoli, my side of fried rice was a bit small.

I asked for an extra plate to form a dish that was similar in size to the one I got from Panda Express instead of picking at each bowl separately. This made eating my meal much easier.

I'd never had the spring rolls from Panda Express, and I was pleasantly surprised.

They weren't too greasy or overdone, and the interior was packed with flavorful spring noodles, cabbage, and carrots.

The only downside was not having any dipping sauce, but that might've been because I didn't specifically ask for it.

My order of spring rolls came with three rolls sliced in half, which made the plate a bit messy. The filling spilled out when I'd dip them into the included sweet-and-sour sauce.

I enjoyed the appetizer's flavor, but the exterior tasted a bit greasier than I usually like.

The fried rice from Panda Express is very simple, just eggs, peas, carrots, and green onions. But I think that also makes it pretty versatile.

No matter what entrée I get from the chain, the fried rice always mixes well with it.

At first glance, my fried rice from P.F. Chang's looked good.

But as I started scooping it onto my plate, I realized that some of it wasn't completely fried or seasoned. I noticed sections of plain white rice in the bowl.

This caused inconsistency in the dish's texture and flavor.

Panda Express' honey-sesame chicken is mixed with yellow bell peppers and green beans.

The sauce is a little sweeter than I'm used to with this dish, but I enjoyed it. The chicken was packed with flavor and the vegetables were cooked to perfection.

P.F. Chang's sesame chicken is cooked with bell peppers, broccoli, onions, and a lot of thick sauce.

The restaurant won in this department, mainly because of how much sauce there was. It was even better when I mixed it with the fried rice for extra flavor.

There was also a good ratio of chicken to vegetables, making the dish well-balanced.

After tasting it, I didn't mind that I had to wait for a fresh batch of beef and broccoli at Panda Express.

The beef was tender and slathered in a great, gingery sauce, and the soft broccoli paired well with the meat.

The entrée was definitely the star of my entire meal at the fast-food chain.

I had high hopes for P.F. Chang's beef and broccoli because of how delicious Panda Express' was.

But unfortunately, some of the thin pieces of beef seemed overdone and were a bit hard to chew.

The flavor was nice and packed with garlic, but I didn't really enjoy the dish overall.

Although P.F. Chang's sesame chicken blew me away, I didn't find myself extremely satisfied with the rest of my meal. Plus, the winning dish cost more than my entire meal at the competitor.

Panda Express sold fresh, tasty food for an unbeatable price.

If I were going out for a big family dinner or birthday gathering, I might return to P.F. Chang's. But if I'm just craving quick and cheap Asian-inspired cuisine, Panda Express is my first choice.