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    China by the Sea

    2.9 (53 reviews)
    ModerateChinese
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    Boneless BBQ ribs
    Nicholas H.

    A solid choice for food in Boothbay Harbor. Ambiance: classic American Chinese restaurant decor, clean tables, comfortable seats. Service: very friendly, fast, and genuinely cared about why I didn't find the meal perfect. Food: We had boneless ribs, teriyaki beef, pork fried rice, and gai poo lo mein. The ribs were well cooked, not overly sweet, with a slight smoky flavor too. The teriyaki beef also was delicious, and solid sections of meat. The fried rice benefited from a touch of soy sauce at the table, but that's better than coming out too salty. I was about ready to declare this a perfect meal, but then I found that the lo mein is made with spaghetti noodles. You could tell the noodles had been prepared entirely separately from the rest of the dish as they had no flavor. This marred an otherwise desirable dish, with good size chunks of lobster, shrimp, beef, and chicken fingers all mixed with vegetables and sauce. Overall, I'm still confident in this restaurant and would recommend them.

    Crab Rangoons
    Sue L.

    I am so glad we decided to eat here before reading any reviews! This was the best Chinese food we have had in quite some time! The egg rolls were fresh and delicious. The crab Rangoon were crisp, creamy, and had a taste of crab. The Sweet n Sour Chicken was crisp, perfectly cooked and the sauce was a great mix of sweet and sour. The Cashew shrimp was very fresh and delicious! Our waitress was very nice and friendly. We will go back.

    Squint, and you'll see the chicken
    Kris T.

    I really wanted to like this place. I'd heard some positive things, but had failed to check rating on Yelp. My mistake. Keeping this short and to the point. Let me start with what I liked: -The sauce wasn't too salty, yet it was flavorful. This concludes what I liked. Yikes. The rest: -1 star: $14 Hon Sue Gai - no soup, no fried rice, nada. For that price, I want a side, like most places would give. Veg size was OK, chicken, less so. -1 star: Vegetables were old, discolored (especially broccoli) and tasted "off" (ESPECIALLY broccoli). I am used to saying, "well, at least the vegetables were fresh", when eating poor Chinese food. I could not retreat to that mantra here. It was nice that they are willing to exclude things one doesn't like (mushrooms): not every place can and will do that. Still... -1 star: see pic, not only were the chicken fingers scanty in quantity, the actual amount of chicken in each finger was smaller than a AAA battery. I actually laughed, rather than get upset or disappointed. It reminded me of when Apu went to an airport Quick-E-Mart, saw the inflated prices and said, "You magnificent bastard, I salute you!" The sheer chutzpah to put out a product like this! Well, judge for yourself. I always seem to say that this is the last Chinese I will try. Here we go again.

    Wonton soup

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    2 months ago

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    21 days ago

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    1 year ago

    Had the Shanghai lobster and some beef chow fun. It was delicious, would go back to try the Chinese focused dishes.

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    3 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    3 years ago

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    4 years ago

    Middle of the road fast food Chinese, in my opinion not good not bad the service was friendly and fast!

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    3 years ago

    The food was okay, overall did not seem very authentic and the waitstaff was not very attentive or kind

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    3 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    4 years ago

    The Chinese food honestly sucks wonton was greasy and pad see ew was bad vomited after came back home goodbye forever!

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    3 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    9 years ago

    This is one of the worst meals I have had in years. The rice tasted old, everything was over cooked. Just awful.

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    9 years ago

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    Empire Chinese Kitchen - Hot & sour soup, vegetarian

    Empire Chinese Kitchen

    4.3(749 reviews)
    34.6 miArts District, Old Port, West End
    $$

    If you're looking for delicious and authentic dim sum in Portland, Empire Chinese Kitchen is…read moredefinitely worth a visit! It may not be tucked away in a traditional Chinatown, but the food absolutely delivers. The restaurant was very clean, and the service was fantastic from the moment I walked in. I tried the Peking duck bao, crystal shrimp dumplings, hot and sour soup, beef chow foon, and everything was delicious. The bao was soft and pillowy with flavorful duck inside, and the crystal shrimp dumplings were delicate, fresh, and packed with flavor. I love finding places that serve authentic Asian cuisine, and Empire Chinese Kitchen was a great find. There's street parking available nearby, and whether you're already a dim sum fan or looking to try something different while in Portland, I'd definitely recommend stopping in. Authentic, yummy, friendly service, and a place I'll gladly visit again!

    Empire Chinese Kitchen was an exceptional surprise on our travel day from one coastal town to our…read morenext stay. Upon our arrival , we were seated immediately and welcomed by our friendly server, Conner. Our family always welcomes the opportunity to try a new dim sum restaurant. Our order included the Lobster Rangoons, Eggplant, Bacon Fried Rice, Kung Pao Chicken, Soup Dumplings, Steamed Pork Dumplings and Shrimp Har Gow. All items were incredible. Empire Chinese Kitchen delivers in all areas with exceptional service, quality food and a nice casual atmosphere.

    Photos
    Empire Chinese Kitchen - Bar view

    Bar view

    Empire Chinese Kitchen - Lobster rangoon

    Lobster rangoon

    Empire Chinese Kitchen

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    China by the Sea - chinese - Updated September 2026

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