Messy's first experience with Golden Empress Garden occurred a little while ago when Picky was out of town. Having received about a million copies of Golden Empress' menu in that packet of mostly useless coupons that comes in the mail, Messy decided it was time to give it a try. Messy has not had good luck with Chinese restaurants in Philly so far. Only the ones that are vegetarian-only have satisfied her. Unfortunately, those ones haven't entirely satisfied Picky.
Golden Empress offers a full vegetarian menu as well as a full carnivorous menu. Overwhelmed by all the options, Messy went with the stand-by vegetarian General Tso's chicken. In order to qualify for delivery, Messy added an order of scallion pancakes and the people over at Golden Empress threw in a huge bag of fortune cookies — there were probably about eight in there. Messy managed to turn this order into four meals. Everything was good: the General Tso's were a little dough-y, not very spicy but strangely addictive and the scallion pancakes were just greasy enough to be delicious.
After Messy's first successful encounter with Golden Empress, the two of us decided to try another round of takeout. This time Messy went with the vegetarian sesame chicken, which was tasty and very similar to the vegetarian General Tso's in texture and lack of spiciness. Picky went with the regular General Tso's (his favorite Americanized Chinese dish) and also received nice healthy portion. Since Messy had warned him to order it extra spicy, it came out just right. It was nice and crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, with a good amount of sauce on the plate for extra dipping and mixing in with the rice. (Picky dislikes a scantily sauced dish!) The portion was enough for three solid meals, but Picky overstuffed himself and only managed to stretch it into two.
After these two pleasant experiences, we decided to head to Golden Empress for a sit-down meal. The interior is tiny, and kind of dingy, but the service and the food were delightful. We were treated to crispy noodles and Chinese pickle salad. Messy ordered the vegetarian pineapple duck, which was a very different consistency from the vegetarian chicken dishes. It was layer-y, kind of like a fake meat baklava. It was good, but a little too sweet for Messy. Picky, who sticks with a good thing once he finds it, had the General Tso's once more.
Messy's opinion changed slightly during the a sit-down meal. Actually, the sit down meal was fine, it was the bathroom that was particularly. . . um, unsavory. But if you do stick around for a sit-down meal, you'll be treated to some in-house comedy. From what we gather to be the owner or co-owner of the establishment, we were treated to constant banter with what seemed to be regulars to the Garden.
Aside from the bathroom, we have just one tiny complaint: the take out menu indicates that both duck sauce and hot mustard are 40 cents extra. This actually isn't the first time we've seen this here, and we have to wonder if this a Philadelphia thing. Neither of us has ever had to pay extra for duck sauce in our home states of Connecticut and New York.
Messy ***
Picky *** 1/2
The final word: Get take-out.
Golden Empress Garden
610 South 5th St
Philadelphia, PA 19147
(215) 627-7666
M – Th: 11:00 am – 11:00 pm
F – Sa: 11:00 am – Midnight
Su: 11:30 am – 10:30 pm
I've never been charged for duck sauce, soy sauce, or hot mustard. I usually get so many of those packets that I throw them away.
Try Lee How Fook. It's my go to in Chinatown.
I actually like the Bean Curd Homestyle at Golden Empress Garden. The tofu is always fried just right, with a light sauce and crisp vegetables. Another one i like is the Vegetarian Ham with Greens. We always specify Chinese broccoli but it's also good with asparagus or "mixed greens." BTW i love your site!
I just moved to Chinatown not too long ago and have had zerooo success with food I like. I'll check this place out and avoid the bathroom.
Thanks!
I enjoy this website too. I think we should take up a collection so they can go out to dine more frequently!
my favorite is lakeside on 9th street between race and spring. you have to order the stuff posted on the wall, and not on the menu…
I love Golden Empress Garden! I don't live near enough to get delivery so I've always eaten there. The setting isn't too impressive but I always get excellent service from Sam. I love the bean curd with seasonal greens- mmm mmm good!
I'm a huge fan of Golden Empress Garden. I've only dined-in and, yes, the first time I entered, I was pretty underwhelmed by the decor but the food is delicious and plentiful and the service is always friendly. I've had items from both the non-vegetarian and vegetarian menus and have enjoyed both. My favorites are the moo shu and the wonton soup. I also love the fried noodles and pickle salad.
Great blog!
I think I have to retract some of my love for Golden Empress Garden. My faux General Tso's last night was really quite soggy. I think much I prefer the sweet crunchiness of Singapore's fake General Tso's (which, if I recall correctly, comes with broccoli, instead of the few sliced peppers you get at Golden Empress).