Empire Steak House

I came here for the final day of Restaurant Week winter 2016. The experience was just OK. Food was extra salty. A bit slow in service but our waiter was kind. We were seated right away after we announced our reservation. Front door area is tiny and can get crowded easily but as you walk in, it’s a bigger restaurant than it looks. We sat at a comfortable side table and thank goodness we did because it was chaos in the aisles with wait staff going back and forth.
Oysters — were okay at first but left a fishy after taste. Not as fresh as I hoped. Looked like it had good potential though.
Mixed green salad — not bad but heavily doused in dressing
Lamb chops — salty. Asked for medium well but came out to medium rare and medium
Carrot cake — nice, hearty thick piece of cake. It looks like a scoop of vanilla ice cream but it’s really whipped cream. It was good though.
Tiramisu — decent but heavily drenched on the bottom
Chocolate mousse cake — nice texture. Love the crumb layer on the bottom.
Overall, it was just okay. Disappointed that the lamb didn’t come out the temperature I was hoping for and the extra saltiness made it hard to eat.

I give this place a solid 3.5, but thanks to the Unilocal system it rounds up to 4 stars!
It would be good to preface by saying, this isn’t Peter Luger. But in terms of a holistic experience relative to the great lunch prices, I still recommend this place for any of my fellow meatheads who simply enjoy a decent cut of steak.
I’ve been to the original location, so I was eager to give the new branch a try. Restaurant Week was a good opportunity to do so, so I checked out their well-​priced $ 25 three-​course meal option. Despite the low price point, the menu offering was pretty solid. I tried the canadian bacon — and it was well-​prepared and not different to what you’d get say at Wolfgang’s or PL.
The sirloin was rather tasty. As expected it wasn’t huge, but it was still decent enough to be satisfying. The cut of meat wasn’t amazing in terms of quality compared to the top-​notch joints, but it was still good enough and well worth the price. The chocolate mousse dessert was actually quite tasty and the heavy whipped cream was a great compliment.
I also got to try the caesar salad, which was tasty as well.
The service here was decent and the place was packed, no doubt helped by the great price point offered during Restaurant Week. However, based on my overall experience I’d definitely come back since they also have a great $ 30 three-​course option outside of RW during lunchtime.
In short, I was happy with my experience. Just make sure you don’t walk in here expecting Peter Luger.

Came here with a friend for restaurant week and we had a good time.
She was running late so I waited at he bar for her and had a glass of wine. I must say it was the most expensive glass of wine I’ve ever purchased, $ 14. I was at bit surprised for a glass of Resiling. However, it was an important lesson on how to order wine for dinner.
So we ordered appetizers, the thick bacon and the calamari. For the entrees we both got steak. There were many to choose from. I forget which cut I got but it was delicious. They were served with mashed potatoes. We ordered a bottle of white wine from the restaurant menu for $ 40, much better deal than buying it by the glass. For dessert I got the cheesecake which was also pretty good. By the end I was stuffed and happy.
The ambiance of this place is very romantic and more on the fancy end. Someone you come on a date or special occasion. Not your regular night out as it is pricey.

My husband and I had a reservation and were greeted by a friendly hostess who took our name and then asked us to take a seat at the bar while our table was prepared. We waited about a half hour before we were seated; this was because the hostess had forgotten about us as we watched about 3 other parties walk in, wait, and be seated before us which was disappointing.
Once seated there was some confusion as one waiter brought us water, another bread, a 3^rd came to take our order and we hadn’t even seen the menu yet, but finally a 4^th waiter came by which seemed to be «ours» for the night & we finally placed our orders.
Food and wine was excellent! We enjoyed the Canadian bacon and tomato & cheese appetizers, for dinner we had the NY sirloin and the rib eye which were both cooked to our liking with vegetable and mashed potato sides, finally we finished with both the carrot cake and tiramisu which were also excellent. We took advantage of the restaurant week deal and although had a rough start were very happy with our meal!

Me and my friend came for restaurant week on a Friday night.
Pros: The calamari was delicious and fresh and the food came out very quickly. This was also my first time trying creamed spinach and I loved it! We also ordered a bottle of Pinot Noir which was great. Overall it was very affordable to dine here during restaurant week.
Cons: The service was horrible. I had made reservations and still had to wait 40 min to be seated and that was after I complained. We felt rushed during the whole meal since they would clear your plate very quickly and the host (a tall guy) would make gestures to the servers about us having to hurry. The last straw was when we were moved to another table so that the host could accommodate another large party and promised us another cup of wine for the trouble and then never brought it. We were there for about 1 and 40 min and half of that time I felt very uncomfortable.
Overall I believe that if maybe you are there paying full price you might receive better service.

Went for Restaurant week dinner which is my first visit to Empire. I Arrived very early for a 630pm reservation. Hostess try to offer us a high top in the bar area which is tables reserved for walk ins. I asked for a table in the dining room which she said would take a minute and to wait in the bar area. While waiting in the bar area the waiter working that area checked on us several times. After about 25 mins he said he’ll remind the hostess that we were waiting. She forgot about us because she came right away to seat us and apologized profusely. Granted i could’ve reminded reminded her myself but good places wouldn’t forget. Food was ok. Had the bacon which was too salty. The ceasar salad was average. The steaks, broccoli and mashed were pretty good. Deserts which was carrot cake and chocolate mousse pie didn’t taste fresh. Carrot cake was a little stale and mousse cake came out of a fridge. They reminded me of deserts you get in a diner which tells me they were not made in house but bought from somewhere else. Lastly the bread was stale. Stale bread always makes me suspicious of quality control. The waiter was very friendly but he did forget my soda which he took off the bill. In short the service was a little off but not awful and food was ok. With so many top notch steak restaurants in NYC this shouldn’t be the first choice.

Restaurant week choice of 2016 with family ended up with 3 out of 4 of us getting sick. The restaurant décor seemed high class and fancy. Restaurant is next door to hotel. This place is loud and packed so not ideal for a date. It was hard to have a quiet conversation. Waiters at first seemed great but then took forever to come back to check up. Served cold bread and butter first to snack on but how are you suppose to spread cold butter on cold bread? As I stayed I noticed all the waiters aprons were filthy. I ordered a sirloin medium well and it was serve to me medium done. How is it a steakhouse when you can’t even do steak well? All entrees are served with mash potatoes and like 3 pieces of broccoli. Everything seemed like it was cooked and soaked in butter. The only good things about this place is the manager walks around and checks up on tables, the sizzling bacon and the okay dessert but doesn’t make up for getting an upset stomach for more than 24 hours. Place is definitely a skip!

I went there for restaurant week yesterday with my girlfriend during lunch time. I really wish I could give just half star.
I ordered the Filet Mignon and my girlfriend had salmon. Both dishes were SO SO salty.seriously.
And our waiter tried to take away dishes we were still working on. like so many times. I got so pissed off. what kind of service is that? And price was so so so overrated.
This is my honest opinion and I’m not that tricky customer
It’s okay I just will not go back there for good. What a valuable experience :)

This is the first time I have been here and I must say that it was a great experience. I came for my birthday celebration and the food was amazing. The appetizers, tomato and mozzarella, the calamari… exquisite The New York sirloin… Magnifique. Service… astounding. Would definitely come here again.

Came here for restaurant week but just can’t bring myself to go back to try their regular menu.
Décor: About a half a star went here. It’s warm, VERY cozy, but kind of looks like a mess. There are huge bottles between the booths that look like they could fall at any moment.
Service: I must have gotten bumped by waiters rushing at least 7 – 8 times. And no joke, they took away my salad plate as I was still eating it. Like my fork had lettuce on it and I was chewing. They were rushing to serve us the steak round. And the waiter forgot about one of our side of creamed spinach.
Price: SO OVERPRICED for what you get.
Food: I do not know what came out on my plate with my filet? I think it was a chunk of fat that they thought I might want to eat? They served it with steamed broccoli and some mashed potatoes. Didn’t mind the sides, just felt a little HS steak plate to me with your well balanced meal. Actually the little sized are the reason for the second star half.
Special Notes: Nothing here.

Had lunch there yesterday for restaurant week. It was a good set of choices, food was good, and service very good. I had the Filet Mignon and my colleagues had the NY Sirloin. Generous serving sizes, tasty, and nice mash potatoes & nicely cooked broccoli. I also loved dessert choices — the choc mousse cake with homemade whip cream was delicious!

I’ve been here twice. The waiters are very friendly and hospitable. The menu last night for restaurant week was great and very pocket friendly. For a starter I had the fried calamari. For the entrée I had the filet mignon and for dessert chocolate mousse cake. 38 bucks…

We were here for New Year’s Eve dinner and while the food was decent, the ambiance was really off as was the service. They hired tribute singers that blasted music right next to our table, making the entire meal uncomfortable and difficult to have a conversation. They desperately need to figure out a different set up. Also, the staff here had to be flagged down for every little thing. On the plus side, they were not sticklers about the reservation time and were able to accommodate us despite the delay caused by the barricades.

Another great choice for steak in Manhattan. I’ve avoided this place as it adjoins Hilton Garden Inn and several really good steak houses in easy walking distance. Bar menu offers 8-​ounce filet with 2 sides for $ 26, deal in the city maybe. I opted for the 16 ounce which was as good as you can get, served perfectly as ordered, sides excellent. Sautéed mushrooms above average. Like so many NYC steak houses, Empire has their own proprietary bottled steak sauce and so sugary it’s not for my steak. Hard to beat Smith & Wollenski’s or Peter Luger’s steak sauces. You won’t find Empire steak sauce at Kroger anytime soon. All-​in-​all Empire is excellent product at city prices, great service and presentation. I’d eat here again especially in nice weather with the open bar and tables open to 54^th Street.

Probably the friendliest, most attentive staff I’ve ever had at a restaurant. The manager (Luigi) is incredible and stopped by my table to make sure everything was perfect.
I dined by myself tonight and when I said «dinner for one» they actually acted excited :)
Also the music is WONDERFUL and makes you feel like you’re in a movie. «As Time Goes By», Sinatra, Buble… So classy and such a great atmosphere.
Can’t wait to come back.

During restaurant week, I love to try out steakhouses. I came here with a couple of friends for dinner on a Friday night. Service here is really amazing, the servers paid a lot of attention to our needs, and they were pleasant to deal with. I ordered the Canadian bacon for an appetizer, filet mignon for my entrée, and carrot cake for dessert. I loved the Canadian bacon, it was very thick and so delicious. The filet mignon was good, but nothing special, the cook was a little more well done than I would have liked. It was my first time having carrot cake and it tasted really good!

Had a friend’s bridal shower here. Wouldn’t think of this place of all the restaurants out there, but glad we did !
It was a group of 10 girls and during restaurant week. Food was amazing, most of us had the filet mignon — mine was perfectly cooked and they brought us a sampler of tiramisu, cheesecake, carrot cake, whipped cream, etc.
The staff were great as well. Two of us arrived early to set up the private room. They showed us the room and we got to work. The staff was very helpful and kept checking on us to see if we needed anything.
Might have been because it was quieter today. we had the room for a couple hours and didn’t feel rushed at all.
I would recommend this place for any type of occasion in the private room. I have done so much research for bridal and baby showers and always come up with the same typical restaurants such as Alice tea cup and the jane. I’m sure they’re great restaurants, but if you would like something different this is the place

We went here for Restaurant Week dinner and had a great time! The food is very traditional but prepared well. There are really no frills, flourishes, or fancypants touches, which is fine and expected, but they could probably work on, like, throwing a garnish here or there.
I had the filet mingon and it was cooked perfectly. Sometimes restaurants seem hesitant to give you a truly medium rare steak, but this was still pink and a teeny bit bloody in the middle and made all my carnivore dreams come true. My boyfriend’s rib eye was similarly quite tasty, and the bottle of house Malbec we split was delicious.
A couple downsides: The tomatoes in the tomato/​mozzarella starter were mealy and not flavorful. And, like others have alluded to, the service was a bit forced — our courses kept coming out one of top of the other when we weren’t ready for them, and we definitely got the feeling that they wanted the table clear after dessert, so we had to more or less chug the half bottle of wine remaining. (I should add that this was at 7PM on a Tuesday and the place was not crowded at all.)
The cheesecake was a very yummy finish, though, with tons and tons of fresh whipped cream. Overall, I probably won’t be back just given the sort of humdrum nature of it, and how expensive it is off RW, but it was a nice experience.

Can’t go wrong with a steak house for restaurant week
I had the filet mignon and it was probably the best that I have had in a very long time.
I also had the thick cut bacon slice. It was good but I prefer Peter Luger’s.
The chocolate mousse was delicious with the chocolate cookie crust and whipped cream, which also reminded me of Luger’s.
This place was good, but I just kept thinking Peter Luger
p. s. Calamari was so fresh! Cooked to perfection.

So there’s two locations of Empire Steak House now, I think. This one is located inside a hotel. I think Empire serves a buffet breakfast to some tenants of the hotel in the mornings.
I came here for a private event (awards breakfast) with some colleagues, so my experience may differ from others. We had a private room in the back (nothing special or fancy — literally just a room with a table and chairs.
I ordered steak and eggs (medium rare and over easy) — the steak was well seasoned and actually cooked medium rare, which for some reason I wasn’t expecting, probably due to a bad experience with steak at a different award lunch somewhere else. I was impressed. My waiter apparently didn’t know what eggs over easy was, and said «sunny side up?» which I suppose is pretty much the same thing anyways. The red potatoes on the side were standard, though I did notice that I got about ¹⁄₃ the portion of potatoes that my coworkers got. The food was good and the steak decent, but nothing I’d call home about.
Based on this breakfast, I can assume that their lunch and dinner is decent as well. Service was good, probably since we had our own private party.