Having grown up in the same house for most of my life, I have become acquainted with almost every restaurant in East Cobb County. Since my family does not cook very often either, I have also become familiar with most of the fast food places and pizza joints. After a couple of visits, many of these of places start to become tiresome and boring to eat at. However, if there was one thing in my childhood that could lighten up a dreary evening, it was when my dad came through the front door carrying two large paper bags filled with many white little boxes stuffed full with delicious Chinese takeout. No matter how many nights I’ve had Chinese takeout, I have never tired of it. Around East Cobb, Empress of China II is known as the premier Chinese takeout place. For this review, I decided to go into the heart of the takeout business in order to see how they performed as a sit down restaurant.
Tucked away in the corner of a strip mall off Johnson Ferry Road is a distinctive Chinese restaurant called Empress of China II. Although not completely noticeable from the street, Empress of China II has very sybaritic decoration, which starts with the outside. The juxtaposition of Empress of China II and its neighbors (which include a Petsmart and a tanning salon) creates a feeling that one is slowly traveling to the Far East. This same feeling transforms the front door of the restaurant into a portal that leads directly to China. The portal sticks outs from the other more mundane eateries which inhabit the same mall. After my journey through the portal, I was taken aback at the length the owners of the Empress II went through to create a certain atmosphere. The carpeting features red, gold, and yellow designs which closely resemble the patterns that are ornamented on ancient Chinese robes. Dancing dragons adorn the support structures and molding. Large fish tanks and huge tapestries and paintings bedeck the walls to make the space of the restaurant memorable. One wall features a stork perched next to a huge waterfall overlooking a meadow while another features a stampede of wild horses galloping across the Gobi Desert. Some might the decoration too overwhelming and overdone but I found the transformative experience of the atmosphere to be a positive one.
The service at Empress of China II was very reliable. Our table’s drinks arrived with a minute of placing the order. The food was served very quickly as well. I had tea and water to drink and I don’t think I ever saw the bottom of either cup as both were refilled almost constantly. There was always a waiter or waitress in sight in case there are any problems. However, the quick service most likely stems from the fact that the waiters and waitresses are frequently looking for something to do. This is because every time I have gone to Empress of China II, the place is mostly empty. This may have been because I went at off-peak times or it could have been that they never reach full capacity. The emptiness does somewhat affect the mood of the meal, as it makes it easier for other patrons to listen in on your conversation and it seems as if the waiters are hovering over your table. Nevertheless, I would rather have an empty room with prompt service than a crowded room with no service.
The menu is what you would expect at a typical Chinese restaurant in terms of familiarity and accessibility. There is a lunch menu separated by the main meat of the dish (fowl, seafood, beef, pork, etc.) and by the noodle type as well. The dinner menu is much larger than the lunch menu (lunch service ends at 2:30 pm). Dinner includes almost everything from lunch as well as a variety of appetizers, soups, and house specialties. Empress of China II also meals called “Empress Dinners”, which include specialty dinners meant for large groups (the largest Empress Dinner is a meal that serves ten). Empress of China II is by no means an expensive restaurant either, with most meals for under $15 per person and some good deals in the Empress Dinners that run about $14 per person. Empress II’s prices are competitive to the many other Chinese restaurant businesses in the area.
The food, simply put, is delicious and the portions are huge. My group ended up ordering all different dishes and then proceeding to exchange portions of each other’s meals throughout the night. The first dish I tried was the chin-shan scallop, which was nestled with the usual corn and broccoli. As the plate was set on the table, a cloud of heat enveloped the dish. The arrangement of the food and the site of the scallops are certainly impressive. The scallops themselves are tasteful, with consistently piquant flavor and smooth texture.
Next up came one of China’s signature national dishes, the Peking duck. Empress II’s version of Henry Kissinger’s favorite meal was one of the better ones I had ever had. The lightly browned duck is served with shrimp crackers, which are used to add an instrument of crunch to the dish. Also present are Mandarin pancakes, thin wrappers made from wheat flour. The crisp shrimp crackers complement the somewhat clammy pancakes. The savory taste of the Peking duck helped create an overall delectably full flavored dish.
Thirdly I tried the sesame chicken. The dish involves battered chicken that is deep-fried and topped with translucent sauce composed of corn starch, sugar, and chicken broth. Atop all of this are sprinkled sesame seeds. The sesame chicken was simpler and did not exhibit as much clutter on the plate as the other dishes. The portion was so large that it looked like a mountain range of chicken, with the sesame seeds as the snow capped peaks and valleys of cavernous broccoli and waterfalls of sauce. The sesame chicken is much leaner than the Peking duck. It also has a much cleaner and more even taste than the duck. However, the Peking duck still reigns champion in the amount of the flavor present in the dish.
Lastly I ate some of the Shanghai soup dumplings that can be ordered with some accompanying shrimp and chive dumplings. The Shanghai soup dumplings were filled with both pork and fish, which created a bracing tartness that runs counter to the normal cloying taste that can be ordered at many of the typical fast-food and takeout Chinese restaurants. The fish in the dumplings was just as tender as all the other meat present during the meal.
If you are going to eat at the Empress of China II, prepare to take some home with you (this is not always a bad thing). However, our waitress seemed somewhat surprised by the amount of food leftover on our table. Overall, Empress of China II has a lot going for it. The decorations and atmosphere are appropriate for the foods served, the service is quick and polite, and the meals are hearty and enjoyable. If you are ever in the East Cobb area with an appetite for Chinese, I would definitely recommend Empress of China II as the place the go.
Empress of China II
★★★★★
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