Papajin

I've been ordering from Papajin for 12 years and for the last few years(since they started serving sushi) they've become arrogant and have raised their prices to a silly level. The delivery man is condescending and gives me a dirty look when his tip isn't above $5.00. Has anyone else experienced this ???????????

Papajin
1551 N. Milwaukee Ave.
773-384-9638 (reservations)
773-384-9600 (delivery)

I have been ordering here for a while as well - about 10 years and it still remains my favorite American style Chinese place for take-out (or eat in). I have experienced some of what you claim but maybe not to the degree you have. Their prices have gone up and their service has gone down, in my opinion. The people answering the phones are not the nicest and at one time, I thought they were pleasant. Delivery times have increased to about an hour on average - it used to be about 30 minutes. As for the delivery guy, I really can care less if he gets mad about the tip. I always include one - usually $3 or so and there is a delivery charge on top of that.

These problems have not entirely dissuaded me from ordering from there but my frequency has dropped in the past couple of years.

For people not familiar with Papajin; they do have better than average American style Chinese food. Their ingredients seem fresh and of a higher quality than most. Their dishes seem less oily and salty than many others I've had as well. They claim no MSG and I guess that's a good thing. When you order lemon chicken, you'll get large slices of white meat chicken, when you order a shrimp stir fry, you'll get a generous portion of large shrimp (if these are things you are after). The prices may be higher than some but I feel the quality is still much better than most.

I've also been ordering from Eat First 1289 n. Milwaukee 773-227-8899 and they have always bent over backwards to give great service and a style of chinese food that is closer to authentic than Papajin has evolved to. They also deliver within 30-40 minutes and without an attitude. I've cooked Chinese & Thai food for years(30) and of course neither of these are Lao Sze Chuan ( 2172 S. archer 312-326-5040 ) but Eat First is , to me , preferable to Papajin's yuppie asian style. I've also been quite impressed with Manee Thai 1546-48 w. chicago 312-733-3339 which I prefer to Butterfly in the hood.

After Almost Two Decades, Papajin Closes In Wicker Park

http://chicago.eater.com/2015/9/15/9330 ... icker-park