Empire Szechuan

I used to love this place and had been going here for many years since they opened up in 1998. I’ve always had good service here in all the years, maybe because I was a regular customer of theirs? Even so, delicious General Tso’s chicken with white rice, nice and spicy. Very good lo mein, fried rice here too. Unfortunately I went to place my order this evening and the lady on the phone informed me that their lease was up, so Empire Schezwan is now closed, but they are now co-​operating with Sake, also a very good asian fusion restaurant I recommend.

I’ve only been here twice, but from what I remember, the Plum Duck is AMAZING and if I go there again, I hope they still have it. The only reason why I didn’t give more stars was because of the last time I went there, when our waitress chased my father and I as we were leaving, pretty much begging for more money because she didn’t think he gave her a good enough tip. To be fair, this was a few years back, so maybe things have improved. All I know is that behavior like that tends to leave a bad taste in people’s mouths.

Went to Empire Szechuan recently for a quick dinner on a Friday night. The empty dining room should have been my first clue. The odor (wet dog?) in the dining room was disgusting, and the food was worse. There was an earlier comment saying that the staff looks like they’ve given up, that they just stand there and stare at you. That was EAXCTLY my experience. Never again, if it was the last restaurant on earth.

We made reservations for a table of 11 for New Years Eve, 5 of us showed up 10 minutes early, the host told us that they were very busy but he would allow us to go to the table (it was set and ready for us). Waitress took our drink orders and 30 minutes later delivered them.
Our dinner order took over an hour to arrive; 1 dinner was missing and 1 dinner was totally wrong. When the last 2 dinners arrived after everyone else was finished.
We were very disappointed. We will not be going back.

Very disappointing! The food was delivered cold and went back to be reheated in the «microwave». Unfortunately, the food was still cold. The waitress did not clear the used dishes. Nor did she come back to check if everything was to our satisfaction.
If we could give zero stars, we would.
They ruined my Jewish Christmas tradition.

I ate there quite a few times, there food is ok at best, some of their sushi was ok but after my last experience (this goes back a couple years but needed to be shared) I will never go there again. I had taken my parents out for mothers day, after eating I paid with my card and left a 20% cash tip on the table. We leave get in our car then some guy comes running out of the restaurant at us comes knocks on the window. roll down the window, the guy’s holding the bill and goes «you didnt leave a tip!» I had to tell him the tip was in cash on the table. needless to say i was embarrassed by this absolute horrible customer service and I will never go back.

I would give this place zero stars if I could! I never thought Chinese food could be bad, until I had lunch at this place, and decided to go again and eat elsewhere! They serve food like you get at food courts! Dry and tasteless, like it had been sitting there for hours and hours! Ugh!
Can’t you even prepare a fresh fried rice?

Food nothing special. For take out the staff seemed pissed we didn’t order loads of things. It’s all about their profitability not customer satisfaction or quality.

I’ve always liked this restaurant. It’s the best chinese around the area. All the food I’ve had there is good. I’m not one to be picky, though.

I like this place, I’m surprised there are so many bad reviews. I’ve only tried the sushi and a few appetizers here, but I’ve really enjoyed everything I’ve had. The fish is some of the freshest I’ve ever tasted, and the service is always consistently satisfactory. The only downsides are it’s far away, and a bit pricey.

Gave them 4 stars for being the better Chinese /​sushi restaurant in the area — take out only. Downgraded to a 3 for poor service because I finally ate in. It wasn’t good: Three tables on a Tuesday night and I had to hunt the server down. Never checked on us once. Never offered dessert.

I first ate at Empire Szechuan about a year ago, and my last meal there was last Friday. In between, I gave them the benefit of the doubt. They were in the midst of a remodeling the first time I went, and the dining room was so cold that I had to keep my coat on. If I could have eaten with gloves on, I would have put on gloves, too. The very high vaulted ceiling captures all the heat, in spite of a few puny ceiling fans that just don’t have the oomph to push the heat back down to the diners. The new (?) windows are very drafty, and if it were my home, I’d get the contractor back in to reinstall them with the correct amount of insulation in the framing.
If you can get lucky and get a seat in one of the 2 or 3 tables that are away from the windows and away from the cold air vents, then you get to order food. If and when you can get the attention of a waitperson. The hot and sour soup has always been good, but after that it’s a crapshoot. On this last visit, our main dishes finally arrived tepid and quickly cooled off further under the assault of the cold air vents and the drafty windows. Dishes that were supposed to be hot-​spicy, were nearly tasteless. When we complained to the waitress, she giggled and rushed off «to tell the chef.» After a long wait, she came back to leave a check and take our leftovers – of which there was a lot – to be wrapped to go. The check was for the full amount of our meal, absolutely no comp whatsoever. As we departed, the manager came out to tut-​tut, shake his head, and tell us that they would take better care of us «next time.» We didn’t stop to explain to him that there would not be a next time.
If you must go, at least wait until the warm weather returns. If you must go in the winter, be prepared to keep your coat on.
Me, never again.

Went here for the first time last Friday evening. The menu was extensive, but we ended up deciding on ordering the «Love Boat» sushi option ($ 42.00 if I remember correctly for two people). The sushi was bountiful, incredibly fresh, and absolutely delicious. There was so much food, we ended up taking our leftovers home. The staff were very kind and courteous as well. I would definitely go back again to sample some of their other offerings.

We got takeout from here last weekend after being on a search for decent chinese. It was really good. I had shrimp LoMein and an eggroll. My fiancé had tangerine chicken and pork fried rice. It was all very good. The woman at the counter was a bit rude and its alittle pricey $ 35 for takeout. But, it was delicious. Definently would go back.

food was ok, waitress was friendly, prices were pretty steep for average chinese fare. the hostess was a miserable beast — a terrible first and last impression.

My husband and I get take out from here often however, this place offers sit-​down service and also has a sushi bar. The staff is friendly and the atmosphere is very nice. The food is good but a bit pricier than other chinese restaurants. We recently decided to try table service. After about 15 minutes at the table and no service I thought that perhaps I should pull out my cellphone and call in an order. The total dinner time took about 2 hrs — much too long for chinese food — even with appetizers. We like the food and will continue to dine here, but we will reserve going in for table service for a night that we have a little extra time — just in case there is a repeat performance.

Your average CT Chinese restaurant in terms of the food. The atmosphere and good service makes it a little better. It’s a big space, and I like how it’s decorated. It feels really warm and welcoming.
They also do Japanese food. They have a nice sushi bar where you can hang out and enjoy your udon noodles and sushi in peace. Basically the go-​to place in the area for Chinese takeout along with Golden Palace in Watertown.

Only been here once for take-​out but found the food to be better than your average Chinese take-​out. Staff was very friendly. Price was above average. When it comes to Chinese food, my usual take is chicken and snow peas, fried dumplings, wonton soup — that kind of stuff. I thought they did a better job than most places which justified a slightly higher than average price. I’d definitely do take-​out with them again.

Unfortunately the friendly staff and the atmosphere were the only good parts of this experience for me.
I’m not from the area but I don’t see why the prices would have to be so high for this food. Aside from the price, the food just wasn’t good at all. I had to load up my dish with spicy mustard and soy sauce just to make it decent. I wouldn’t go again, I think I’d rather get something from a box in the grocery store than eat from here.

1) Really expensive. $ 11 pad thai lunch special. $ 5 for a vegetable maki.
2) Bland food. corn starch is not a spice, people
3) Very friendly staff. The server (Cathy I think) was very helpful and made sure there was no chicken broth or oyster sauce in our vegetarian dishes. She anticipated our questions and made sure we were happy.
#2 I expect out in the middle of connecticut. #3 goes a long way. #1 is too much of a hurdle. Even with the fancy décor.