Every drink seems to come in a hollowed-out piece of fruit with dry ice. YES PLEASE. Great for groups -- I think the tables seat a billion people each and everything is really easy to share. The food is good, especially the spicy salmon bites, and the service is very capable. The lounge area is good for an after-dinner drink. It's like Pan-Asian Hooters. read more

Upon entering on a rainy Tuesday night my friend and I thought, "oooh, nice, we can bring the gang here!". We sat at the bar and slowly started to take it all in....there is a lot to take in. As our eyes got accustomed to the dim lighting we saw 2 large bars, a lot of vignette seating, waitresses in black corsets, EDM cranking over head, huh....and started to look at the menu. The prices are high, especially since Chinatown is in walking distance over the bridge. We saw food come out, it looked good, but $14 for 6 dumplings is silly. Are they magic dumplings? $9 for sweet n' sour soup? Is it a vat of soup? We had 2 drinks, slightly above average pricing for the neighborhood, they were sweet drinks too. We decided it was a really expensive and titillating P.F. Changs. BUT, it is perfect for large groups, it is in the middle of conference-ville. It's an entertaining, and stimulating venue. Again, it's huge space, the rent must be crazy high. I hope they do well. We'll go to Chinatown for food. read more

Went there for a dinner date and I can say I would go back again. Upon arrival, our table was ready within 5 minutes. The waitress was very sweet. The service, music, atmosphere was great. Food was delicious. My favorite was the lobster ragoon. The drinks were just to die for. Perfectly made and strong. However, this place is a bit pricey. I am definitely planning to go back! read more

Empire - Crab and lobster ragoon, scallop and bacon, Shrimp bites...mmmm - Lounges Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Food and service are terrible. Drinks were disgusting too. I got the painkiller, my friend got a martini and my other friend got a mai tai. We are all bartenders ad typically would never send back a drink but the painkiller and the mai tai were just straight up juice, while the martini tasted like isopropyl alcohol. It was too sweet to drink. We mentioned something to the waitress and she took them off but was pretty rude to us afterwards for the rest of the time. We ordered 3 plates of sushi and general gaos chicken and it was out within 5 minutes of ordering it which is alarmingly fast and tells me it's premade. Over priced, would probably only come back to get a beer at the bar. read more

As other Yelpers have mentioned, this place is deceivingly HUGE! My cousin and I came here for drinks/apps the other day, as he likes this place, and we walked in and sat at the bar. I asked where the rest room was, and I essentially had to go past the open kitchen (which is a cool concept), a bunch of tables, a large private party room, down a hallway, and towards the back of the restaurant was the restroom. The place is large. This restaurant is also super dark - I believe they want to set a trendy, yet romantic/intimate vibe in the place, and they do a decent job at it. There's no music, so people's voices carry and bounce off the walls, but it's nothing you wouldn't expect. As for the service, we sat at the bar and our bartender was attentive - albeit, it was a cold and rainy December Wednesday evening. I ordered a gin gimlet martini, which was delicious, and then had a Sapporo after, while my cousin ordered Sapporo's from the beginning. We ordered some of the bar bites and they were OK, nothing worth getting probably again. There were two vegetarian options - broccoli tempura and this noodle dish. The noodles were decent - long noodles and reminded a lot of Singapore noodles. They were, however, extremely bland and a bit dry, so I had to drench them in the Sriracha hot sauce the bartender gave me when I asked for hot sauce. The broccoli tempura was also very bland - dipped it in the sriracha and then the sauce we got with it, and it tasted better. Overall, a decent place for drinks and I'm sure they have good dinner food as the restaurant side was pretty busy. read more

I came for a birthday thing on a Saturday night, for the "lounge" only. Disclaimer: you can only "lounge" if you pay for a table, otherwise you'll be standing squeezed in close to other people having drinks spilled on you, like any old bar. It was an upscale atmosphere, its a nice space. The lounge part isn't super big. The bartenders were nice and attentive, the drinks were strong/good. I didn't see any dancing happening, it was pretty crowded, but they were playing music. If you're looking for a more upscale drinking experience mixed with a club-ish feel, I liked this place. I wouldn't do it every weekend, but once in awhile I think it would be a fun place to come again. A good spot to avoid the drunk bro's and college kids, so that was a plus! Food smelled good too, I didn't eat here though read more

HUGE restaurant that was extremely overwhelming when we walked in. Went for drinks after work and there was just a small crowd. We decided to take a table near the bar and were greeted (10 minutes later) by a friendly waitress who I was surprised could breathe based on the corset she was wearing. Not just her...all of the bartenders. I'm not usually one to comment on uniforms but I genuinely felt bad for these girls that were having their "goods" shoved into their throats. But, if it was comfy for them, then doesn't bother me! Drinks were good. Sushi was good. Nothing extroadinary, but it's convenient. read more

Top notch service and fantastic food. Management is clearly leading by example. We had a situation where a highchair was not available and the manager went to another restaurant to borrow a highchair. It was at our table in under 5 minutes. Strongly recommend the sushi cupcakes and the scallion pancakes. The pad thai is also best in seaport. Noise level is high overall, so if you are noise sensitive, you should ask for a quieter section. P.S. the pineapple mai tai is served in a pineapple. read more

Came to Empire on New Year's Eve for a 10pm dinner reservation. Tucked in between quiet corporate buildings, Empire was so deceptively large and lively! The space is amazing- a lounge in the front, an open kitchen and a huge dining room floor. There was a great DJ spinning top 40 and house which created a Vegas vibe, reminded me a lot of Tao. The crowd was definitely on the professional side- looked mostly late 20's and 30's. If you're looking for a quiet or casual night, Empire probably won't be your scene. My better half and I both are gluten free - the gf menu is expansive. Prices are high, and the food is worth it. We ordered edamame, two sushi rolls (beef and veggie), and two mains (street noodles and Pad Thai). The beef sushi was incredible. So were the street noodles. We have had better pad Thai at local takeout restaurants. We drank peach Mai Tais- just enough to get us dancing in the lounge after the new year's countdown. Would definitely come back as a treat or a night out! read more

The food, the service and the wine was fantastic! We went here on Saturday with some friends and we had the best time! The food was amazing. I had the striped bass and my husband had the 12oz steak. It was amazing! We will definitely be back! read more

Came here with a large group on a Saturday night. Around 12:30am. The line wasn't too long and we got in relatively quickly. The restaurant part was mostly empty but the bar/lounge area was so packed we could barely move. Once we made it to the bar, we got a bartenders attention pretty quickly and the drinks were good. Reasonably priced. The DJ was great playing crowd favorites of today. I wish there had been more of a dance floor area instead of just standing around in a stuffed crowd, but what can you do. read more

The fried rice i really enjoyed and the interior design of the place but the sushi rolls here lack flavor and are somehow cooked weird.

Absolutely excellent. Kaelan was our server and he couldn't have been better. We had drinks, appetizers, and a variety of dinner plates (salad, sushi, pork, beef, noodle). Everything had great taste and the ambiance made it even better. I was very pleased with this experience and it is in a great location. Happy to have visited! read more

Empire - Sashimi roll - Lounges Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

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If you come in here with the right mindset (i.e. you're coming for Asian FUSION food and paying $$$ for the service/ambiance/experience/cocktails. Don't come here thinking you're getting overpriced asian food you could get at Chinatown cuz then, just go to Chinatown!), then you'll be sure to have a good time. Flavors of the food (mainly sushi) were in general quite impressive, the cocktails were super strong, service was fast/friendly/professional, decor was cool and just a little over the top (Like 3 feet tall Mao ze dong lamps) and atmosphere was lively, chic, and perfect for many occasions. Girl dates, romantic dates, group outings, socials...you name it. As for food: (We agreed to stick with sushi and forgo any dishes we could get at Chinatown...;) ) - Poke appetizer - yes $19 is steep, but the big fresh chunks of sashimi grade tuna, marinated in a well-balanced tangy, sweet Asian soy sesame sauce was recipe for success. The textures were wonderful where the tuna meat was balanced with fresh sprouts, crunchy crushed glazed peanuts, and seaweed. - Lobster salad futo roll - my favorite maki of the evening. Large, fresh, sweet chunks of lobster lightly dressed in yuzu mayo and wrapped simply with seaweed. Just simple and delicious. - Sokeye and mango roll- This one was probably our least favorite of the evening. The fish was tasteless as it was drenched beneath the overly sweet mango sauce. The sushi was almost a dessert...leftovers remained. We were underwhelmed. - Smoked salmon nigiri - really delicious. The perfect bite-sized nigiri didn't come with too much rice. The small dab of mayo (aka lemon aioli) and bonito flakes really enhanced the flavors of the smoked salmon. Again, fresh and flavorful! - 2 other rolls I forgot the names to, but both were delicious. Had their own flavors and I would definitely order again! Cocktails - in 1 word, STRONG. I thought the Opium dream was strong...and then I tasted the black widow martini. Not my cup of tea, but if you like the taste of alcohol, you'll probably like their martinis' To me, the biggest downside is probably the fact that it's a little out of the way. When we left at 2am, it was a teeny bit hard to flag down a cab out at the Seaport district. However, if you wanna bring a date here so you can talk for hours in a lounge-like atmosphere, Empire would be a great place to do it. Oh, and it might also be harder for your date to escape if she/he didn't drive. ;) read more

Attended the Spring menu open house party last night. This venue is incredible. There is nothing like it in Boston. If you have a large event for 200+ I think this would be an excellent location. I love how the screens open up to make smaller rooms connect into one large space. The wine and beer selections were nice. The coctails were alright, nothing life-changing. The sushi was incredible. Everything tasted so fresh and delicious. I also loved how they brought around samples of their appetizers to compliment the sushi. The beef skewers were juicy and perfectly seasoned. The pork wasn't too fatty or greasy. Overall I give the food 4 stars and the ambiance 5 stars. Drinks 3 stars and we even out at a nice 4 star average. Overall I would come back here with a big group or plan a private event/ party here. You just need the right crowd. Of course you can get cheaper asian food elsewhere in Boston, but not with this kind of atmosphere. read more

My wife and I loved Empire! The food, atmosphere and service was amazing!!! Can't wait to return

tl;dr: absolutely terrible service came with a large group for a birthday. we had a reservation and got stuck in traffic so we called the restaurant and they were pretty rude about us needing to be there within the 15 minute window - I understand have the time frame but we left very early and still ran into traffic there was nothing we could do - but that's not so serious. I know there were a few hiccups on our end but I don't think it's deserving of what happens next: about half of us go to the bathroom after checking in and we return to the table to about 3/10 glasses full of water - i found that odd but whatever. we wait about 5-10 minutes for the server, Thomas M, to come - he notices 3 empty seats and asks if we're waiting on people. I say yes we are but we would like to put in drinks please. then he disappears for at least FIFTY minutes. we asked several servers in the area if they knew when he was coming. He finally takes the first round of orders as we were there for "Endless Empire". On the first round there is a shellfish allergy on a fried rice order and we let the server know. The rice has shrimp - we find out after he's already ate it. We let the server know and he apologizes. On the second round the other shellfish allergy also opts for the Fried Rice. I ask the server to please make sure hers does not have shrimp. Someone else runs the food that isn't the server and as there were multiple fried rice orders I asked which one is the allergy and she says "i don't know it's all regular" - red flag! - we look at them and notice one doesn't seem to have shrimp and we gave it the one with the allergy. This ended up having shrimp again after eating. The second time around we should've checked more thoroughly for the shrimp but regardless this shouldn't have happened twice. Once is a mistake - twice is absolutely careless. When I said something to the server he apologized to ME not the ones who had the allergy. A manager never came to the table to apologize either. we just got one free meal - when it really should've been two - considering it happened twice. However we just wanted to leave and be over with it. We had brought a cake for the birthday we were celebrating but ended up just taking it home because it was not worth it at all. I also found it odd that he only IDed one person in the group - maybe it was to make fun as it was her birthday. not sure what happened there. The food was actually pretty good but I mean simply not worth it considering everything else. Everyone else in the restaurant seemed perfectly fine and getting great attention. At one point we even wondered if it had to do with race. Definitely won't be dining here again. read more

Great experience! The decor is upscale and chic. Alejandro was our server and was fantastic. Even as we sang the Lady GaGa song to him.... Empire House roll was wonderful, so was the sweet bun something appetizer. We didn't order any noodles, but the table beside us did and it looked amazing. We had several rolls and all of the were great. Very fresh. Will be back for sure! read more

Rudest manager ever, I used to love this place but the lack of professionalism from their staff is ridiculous.

We went around 11 on a Friday night for drinks. There was no line, and we had no problems with the dress code (neither of us were wearing sneakers). There is a lot of seating, even without bottle service, which was nice. There was also an attentive waitress who came for our orders when we were sitting at the center bar. The drinks were fine. Nothing too special, but not bad. Pricing was standard for Boston cocktails. There were way more guys than girls. Many men in their 30s or 40s. The weird part was the size. This place is HUGE. Which means no line and seating, which is nice... but it's actually awkward to have a space that big without enough people to fill it. This wasn't helped by the fact that the lounge area was continuous with the restaurant area, which was brightly lit and nearly empty at 11pm. They really need a divider of some sort there. The music was medicore house. There was a DJ booth, but no DJ when we were there. It would be a good choice for large groups. But between the iffy drinks, the weird atmosphere and the sugar daddy vibe, I won't be going back. read more

I had really high hopes for restaurant. A friend of mine had been before and expressed that she had a great experience with work colleagues. Unfortunately, I can speak to tonight's dinner in the sentiment. Upon arrival the decor was the first element I noticed. The colors are well thought out and provide a nice a ambiance. Sadly, the same can't be said for the bartender uniforms. From the looks of it, there was one bartender servicing the entire restaurant in an ill-fitted corset, while the rest of the staff (servers, food-runners, etc.) wore black collared shirts. Not sure if the corset was a uniform but certainly looked like it, as it matched well with colors of the decor. If it was a uniform, I'm not sure why the establishment degrades the bartender, but that's a separate conversation. In terms of food, I ordered the chicken stir-fry. I figured it's a simple enough dish and with the right herbs and spices could be out of the world. I was so disappointed. My dish had absolutely no flavor. I've ordered Chinese takeout with more flavor for a quarter of the price. To call the service underwhelming would be a compliment. Our server mistakenly put in 2 app, instead of one and then tried impose the 2 app on us, after we told the food-runner we didn't order it. Not really a big deal in my book but unpleasant nonetheless. What really got under my skin was the lack of care and follow up. We waited over 15 mins before asking about our drink order and the server said the bar is backed up. At that point our app was already out and getting cold. The restaurant was no where near busy and the bar was completely empty. When we finally got our drinks they were warm (even though they had ice) and tasted awful. I wouldn't even be able to label them cocktails. I don't think they were mixed in any sort of way, had a sad looking presentation, and tasted like cheap Hawaiian Punch. I concluded our server just forgot to put in the order. Lastly, we asked for chili sauce in hopes of adding some sort of favor to our meals and it was seriously like a mission to mars. We had to ask 3 different people who work there (including our server) and 20 minutes later we finally had chili sauce. Don't waste your time and save your self the frustration by skipping this place all together. read more

Great place to chill and lounge with friends. Not a place you want to start with or end up at. Somewhere in between maybe. Food is not excellent and drink are Ok. Overall pretty meh. But love the ambience and the staff. read more

Had a nice night out with our travelzoo voucher. Tried several of the special maki and liked 4/5 of them. The fish and chips one was fun and the mango salmon one didn't do it for us. The best one was the blackened Snapper with pineapple, pickled okra and hot peppers. So many flavors in that roll - we learned it was originally called the "five flavor roll". Do yourself a favor and roll the dice on dessert. We got the new coconut Twinkie and it was awesome. Kudos to our server Rob who was very outgoing and helpful the whole night. read more

Empire - Fish n chips Maki - Lounges Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Empire was gorgeous. The decor is fabulous. the staff was very nice. The food was beyond delicious. My waitress was super cute and i love the vibe of this place in general. read more

Empire - Lounges Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Two stars but only for the food. The server was okay but the main complaint is against management. We had an issue where they refused to serve a 27 year old at our table an alcoholic beverage due to him transferring over the license to a new state. This person had the papers and old license but it wasn't good enough. Serving for 8 years and this is the first I've heard of this rule. Anyways. We drop it and move on. However, the management team was circling around our table and staring at us from a distance. And as soon as we got up to leave, they sat in booth on their phones! We felt like criminals in there. It was very rude and when questions were asked they got defensive. Especially since the table behind wasn't ID'd and they were younger than us. I don't mind being ID'd given my age but to circle our table the ENTIRE time we were eating and standing off in a dark corner watching us was just unbelievably rude. I would recommend takeout before ever staying to dine in. read more

Been here a few times after work. I was compelled to write a review, but the last visit this past weekend was too awesome not to. Came in with my companion and sat at the bar. We were immediately greeted by Nancy the bartender. I told her about my companion's peanut allergy. To our surprise for a place this busy and loud, we actually got the service and help we needed. Nancy was genuinely mindful and cared about helping us with the menu, even though she was obviously super busy doing acrobats behind the bar. She assured us and put emphasis in making sure we would be safe with our food and drink order. We would definitely come back and sit at the bar next time. read more

Came to have several rounds of drinks, left after one Macallan. This woman 'Kim' has no business being in the service industry, let alone be a manager in it. When it comes to knowing how to treat and speak to a customer, this woman is truly clueless. Not to mention her clear attitude problem, not sure who she thinks she is. Its no wonder this restaurant has gone downhill recently. Its unfortunate for the GREAT server we had. Shes working for a real bimbo. read more

I really liked the food we eat: calamari (probably the best calamari i have eaten in the US, with a tempura frying touch), lobster cupcakes (I liked mine, one of my friends said that his had too much dough and too little lobster), the Singapore noodles (I think the ones I had at the Red Lantern were better), some sushi. Things I didn't like: too crowded and loud music. Probably people like it. read more

Loved the sushi, cocktails and ambience. Excellent service! A very lively place. Didn't see a lot of folks dance the last time I was there, but the lounge area is still great to hang out with friends and drinks! read more

We came in on a Friday night it was super packed and pretty hard to get to the bar especially since everybody was babysitting the bar front and it was really crowded lol. There were no barstools because they removed it for more space. I enjoyed the drinks we had here since it was our first spot we wanted to stay but the crowd was to crowded it was like no where to even breathe you can't enjoy yourself when your pushed up against 7 other people. The drinks were good. Red berry martini I put the orange piece on it and the straw in it comes with a cherry inside as well it was sweet and delicious and we also drank Hennessy and cola read more

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I came here for my cousins graduation dinner, great atmosphere, but that's where it ends. The chicken dumplings tasted burnt, the pad Thai tasted mediocre. The salt and pepper calamari was ok and dessert was the best thing on their menu. The Shanghai mud pie was very rich in flavor, seriously can't go wrong. As for the lounge, it was a bit too cramped and the space was smaller than expected. read more

On Monday night, I went in with a group of six to try out the unlimited sushi for $29. I'm a huge sucker for Sushi and for $29 it was a no brainer. We arrived around 8:30 and we got seated in the lounge area because we had 2 extra people. The lounge area is definitely better suited for dancing instead of group conversation. We asked to be seated on the restaurant side but they couldn't move us, even though their were multiple open tables. The unlimited sushi option restricts you to a special menu that's mostly made up of Maki rolls and a few in house in creations. It was clear the in house creations were designed to get you full off the ride. The fish quality was mediocre but did not taste bad. In all fairness I didn't try out their other food and I'm hoping their other entrees would be better. read more

The best asian cuisine i have had in ahwile. There staff are extremely professional and have great customer service. One more thing, they have a pretty looking staff, they can be the next Restaurant Top Models i swear!!! read more

Delicious food and enormous portions, plus a clubby/loungey atmosphere. Great for groups and celebrations! (Order the fishbowl drinks -- they're amazing, and they come in a half-watermelon!) read more

Never take a large party here!!! I cannot say enough negative things about the way this restaurant handled our large party. I booked a reservation for 14 people for dinner and had people come from out of town for a moving away dinner. We had such a negative experience that we got up and left this restaurant and took our party elsewhere. From the beginning the manager, Dan, was rude over the phone and not accommodating towards any requests. However, we have been to empire before many times and wanted to go there anyway despite his overall rude demeanor, since we have been there many times before and really enjoyed their large format $86 cocktail. We grabbed some drinks at the bar and waited to be seated. Once we were seated the waitress said she needed to check our IDs- so we all gave our IDs. She then said that anyone from out of state needed to provide backup cards with your name on them. Sure, no problem! As the NYC crew in our group presented their IDs and backup the waitress decided to take their IDs to scan them. Again, no problem. One of our friends from NYC's ID wouldn't scan - a large red X came through which means that the card's scanning chip is broken. The manager came over and rudely and aggressively told him that the cannot serve him due to his ID not scanning. Our friend offered up 6 forms of backup ID with his name, and we even asked if he could run it through the local PD so that he could drink. Also, he was already drinking a beer that he was served at the bar.m by the bartender. Not only was the manager not willing to try to solve this problem with us, he also handled it in an extremely rude manner. Our group is all 28-34 years old and very easy going, so after realizing that he wasn't willing to try to find a solution we said okay fine, he wouldn't drink and we would stay enjoy our dinner. I then ordered two large cocktails for the table, at which point the manager said he wouldn't serve those to our entire party due to the one ID not scanning. Again, the manner in which all of this was communicated by the manager was extremely rude and unapologetic. At this point we decided we wanted to spend our money somewhere where they actually wanted our business and where we weren't being spoken to in a rude and disrespectful manner. We walked down the street and went to a different restaurant and the food was amazing! They also made us several large cocktails and we had zero issues with our IDs scanning and we absolutely had an amazing experience with the manager and the server! When you plan a large event and have people come in to town, the worst thing possible is to come across a rude staff and a negative experience. This could've ruined our entire night had our group not been so easy going. They lost out on not only the $3K we ended up spending but also all of our collective business. I will never dine here again due to the way the manager handled this entire experience. It wasn't about one 26 year old not being able to drink, it was about the way in which we were treated in this situation. read more

I came here for a special occasion with a big group of people. I can't speak for anyone else, but I can give a review of my own experience. Personally, I ordered a sushi roll and it was awful. The roll was not fresh and honestly, it was not very appetizing at all. My boyfriend ordered chicken (a safe bet) and complained to me that pieces of the chicken were undercooked. That statement speaks for itself. For a $20 sushi roll, I expected high quality ingredients and for a $30 entree, I expected cooked chicken lol Save your money and go somewhere else. Lots of places with good drinks and food nearby, this is not one of them. read more

fusion asian but not a particular place for sushi lovers, and is more a club on weekends: the music is blasted so loud it is prohibits any conversation while dining - when we asked to turn down the deafening music , we were simply told that this is what they do every weekend for ambiance - to be clear, this was at 6pm read more

Firstly, the food is good. Awesome bibimbap. But... The staff is super aloof and miserable. My leftovers were tossed onto the table by a passing waiter and there was barely anyone in the restaurant so I doubt it was from being too busy. The whole place just reeks of being too cool for itself. read more

Had dinner there last night with wife and kids while visiting Boston. It was fairly quite for a Sunday night, but a Super cool atmosphere. The place is huge. I'm sure the bar scene is awesome on the right nights. Food was good (8 out of 10) almost great. We had several different sushi rolls, hot and sour soup, edamame. Some things they tried to get a little too cute with such as the edamame...it had a cream sauce with nuts and shishito peppers etc. some items are meant to be to simple and clean, like soy beans. Steam em, salt em and serve em...why all the drama? This was the theme for most of the dishes. A little too much flair, but with all that said I would go back if in the area looking for sushi/Asian combo restaurant. The service was great and drinks were good. For the money, my fam left satisfied. read more

Empire NEVER dissapoints! From the accomodations on reserving to the smiley proffesional staff. Then, the food, drinks and ambiance is 10 Stars Awesome!! Portions are hwfty. House fried rice, Mango Salmon, Pad Thsi and sppetizers to die gor!! read more