I have only done takeout and I have loved every dish I have eaten!! Pastrami egg rolls! Walnut honey shrimp! Garlic string beans.

Empire welcomed our party of seven and seated us without a reservation, which was a great start to our night! We ate, laughed, and had an amazing time. The beans are a must-try, and those bao buns were absolutely delicious. Super happy with our experience--great food, great vibes, and we left feeling both stuffed and refreshed. Highly recommend!

One of my favorite spots. Not pictured were the drool worth dumplings. Curry style noodle was unexpectedly a hit. The hot and sour soup is to die for. Not even great things to stay. Comfy ambience. Clean and friendly atmosphere. Great for sharing.

I've been here several times -- for work lunches and with friends -- and I'd say the food here is solid. Not great, not bad, just solid. Somewhere in between a 3.5-4 stars for me. Empire is an Asian-fusion spot, with stylish decor and efficient service. There are small plate options to share, and also larger entrees if each diner wants to order their own thing. I've tried a bunch of things on their menu at this point, and I'd say the best is still their green beans, which is also their best-known dish. It's blistered, garlicky, and delicious. As for the rest: the flavor profiles often lean too salty or too sweet for me. The lobster rangoon is pretty good, and everything else is just fine. The bacon fried rice is alright, but there is no wok hei or any extra flavor pizzazz that I couldn't conjure up at home. The eggplant and the curry udon were both too sweet for me, and even the string beans are on the cusp of being too salty. Prices are on the higher side. One big plus is that this place is relatively vegan- and vegetarian-friendly: they do a good job of marking which dishes are vegan or vegetarian on the menu. Otherwise, I'd say stop by if you're in the area and looking for a solid lunch spot. But I can't say I understand the hype -- I've heard the wait times can approach or exceed an hour during the summer months.

You go to Portland, ME for lobstah...Right?? Wrong!!! - - You go to Portland for Empire Chinese Kitchen!!! Incredible food. Hands down the best meal we had in Portland. We got a little of everything and I wanted to keep ordering, but had to wave the white flag. Don't miss out on this place.

Great dim sum! I was recommended this restaurant while visiting Portland and it was great! Every dish was very fresh and flavorful. The standouts were the Bok Choy, chicken potstickers and Chinese eggplant. I wish I tried the bao buns, they looked very yummy. Our waitress was helpful with her recommendations and the space was clean and open. Would go back!

We came here as a larger group and had dinner family style. There was kind of a wait, we had about a 60 min wait. Servers were nice and food started to come out pretty quickly after we ordered. Unfortunately our table did not have a lot of space to hold the food, but the kitchen and staff did good at trying to stagger it so we could get through most of the food before new dishes came out. Sometimes it took a little while for someone to pick up the empty dishes, so they kind of sat at my end of the table until we could wave someone down to take it away. We ordered a bunch of different things, and it was good. I especially like honey walnut shrimp so it was a treat to have! Their shrimp was battered and fried well and the coating/sauce was good. Also, the garlic green beans were very good. The prices were pretty reasonable for the dishes that we got. So I definitely would come back!

We ended up at the Pride Parade yesterday (happy accident!) and the husband was HANGRY. We popped into Empire (our first visit!) and were stoked. They sat us at the window so we could watch the parade - and we ordered some bits and bobs to share. We are currently obsessed with the soup dumplings and the braised beef Bao. The spring rolls are some of the best I've ever put in my mouth, deliciously crispy, clean flavors. I'm already counting down the minutes til we can go back!

Oh my goodness, is this place incredible! This is the highest quality Chinese restaurant I have been to in New England. I came here with 3 other friends on a Friday night. The wait for a table was around 1 hour 45 minutes - we almost left, but were so thankful we didn't because it was SO worth the wait! We all came in starving, and ordered pretty much everything on the menu (...not joking!) Every menu item we got was made fresh and delicious. My favorite were the broad noodles and the garlic green beans. I definitely suggest getting a few plates to share with others, so you can get a little bit of everything! The cocktails were also delicious. The staff were so friendly and had a great sense of humor. We put in multiple orders of food at different times, and they were always so attentive and accommodating. Be aware, the kitchen closes 15 minutes before closing... so make sure you get your orders in! This is definitely a new favorite and will now be a "must stop" restaurant on our list for our future trips to Portland!