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    Empire

    3.3 (946 reviews)
    Open 11:00 am - 2:00 AM (Next day)
    Updated 2 weeks ago

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    Empire Reservations

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    EMPIRE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Trendy
    Live music
    Moderate noise

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    Recommended Reviews - Empire

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    Reviews With Photos

    Yardbird Chicken Sandwich with side salad
    Karen S.

    We had lunch at Empire. We sat upstairs on the roof in the enclosed greenhouse area. It was 20 degrees outside but we were roasting in the sun. I probably would not choose a sun table again for that reason. They have a nice selection of local brews on tap. I had the Yardbird Chicken Sandwich with a side salad. The chicken was dipped in a buttermilk broth and cooked perfectly. The sauce on the chicken was sooo good. I ended up cutting it up because it was super messy and fell apart when I tried to lift it. The pretzel roll was just okay. Their menu is pretty limited - burgers, sandwiches, a few salads and they did have fish tacos. I would go back.

    George G.

    Empire has a great atmosphere, especially if you can grab a spot on the rooftop. I visited on a sunny day and really enjoyed the view overlooking the river. I ordered the "Jane," which is a pretty standard burger with lettuce, tomato, and cheese. It was good overall and cooked well, but it wasn't anything especially memorable or the best burger I've had. One thing that surprised me was how limited the menu was considering how large the restaurant is. I expected a bit more variety. Overall, Empire is worth visiting for the atmosphere and rooftop experience, but the food itself was solid rather than outstanding.

    Food Menu
    Randy P.

    Delicious burger option in downtown Naperville. We ordered a variety of bugers and it was all delicious. I recommend the doughnuts as it was nice and hot with the delicious cream dip. The ambience on the weekends is fantastic. The restaurant was very busy with our wait time about 20 minutes. Thanks

    Drinks for 3
    Matt W.

    Always fun! Beautiful night to be up top (Sep 16) and easy to get a seat at the bar. Great beer selection, great cocktails, and great service! I don't need anything else to have an awesome night (and YES, get the donuts- even if to "go" - they are spectacular).

    Audra M.

    We recently spent the day in Naperville and decided to hit a few places for small bites in order to try a few intriguing menu items. One place we wanted to try was Empire, for their "burger cigars." They are an angus and pimento cheese spring roll, which are very tasty. Also, our server treated us well. The interior is pretty cool, and the outdoor seating (I could see from outside) seemed neat. My two-star review comes from other issues with my time at Empire. I went to the restroom before eating, and in the accessible stall, huge drops of water were coming from a partially taped up pipe above the commode. It was extremely gross. They really should have done a better tape job and checked on it to see if the dripping was happening. When our burger cigars were served, the sauce, which I had requested to be on the side, was not on the side. The bottom of the three stacked "cigars" did not have much sauce on it, so I opted to just scrape off the minimal sauce instead of bringing it up to my server. The water served at the table was warm, not even a tad chilled, and the air-conditioning was either not on or not set at a comfortable temp. The textured water bottles served at the table are shaped much like wine bottles, so I wonder how well they are sanitized due to something else I witnessed. I watched a table being cleared. The table setup in the restaurant is they have appetizer plates already set up in the middle with napkin-wrapped silverware on top of them before patrons are seated. The person clearing the table left the unused small appetizer plates left there from the last guests. When the table was sprayed and wiped down, the guy held the plates in one hand and wiped the table down with a rag with the other hand. I feel it is very unacceptable to leave unused dishes on the table when guests have already sat there with said plates at the table. They could have been touched or coughed or sneezed on. This was so gross, which made me really get the ick from the fact I'd drank from their "wine bottle sized" water vessel. I doubt they care much about sanitation, given how they "reuse" the appetizer plates.

    The Sophia Loren ($16), a burger with fresh mozzarella, pesto, tomato, basil and balsamic glaze
    Eric S.

    NAPERVILLE STATE OF MIND Serving extraordinary burgers with an all-seasons top floor, Empire stands tall. Downtown Naperville is packed with all manner of places worthy of your Instagram feed, but I find myself drawn to Empire for a number of reasons. In addition to top notch food, the vibes at this restaurant along the river between Main St and Washington keep me coming back. Their cocktails always satisfy, especially their mules & mojitos. Try the root beer old fashioned! Draft list is big, they always have plenty of nice options on tap including local area brews. For apps, we love the poutine ($10): fries with cheese curds, gravy, bacon, and sour cream. Their burgers are 1/2 lb and come with a wide variety of toppings. The signature Empire burger ($16) has a 50/50 bacon patty, sunny side egg, cream cheese, spring mix, and maple bourbon syrup on a pretzel bun. It sounds chaotic, but don't knock it until you've tried it.....it's amazing! Last visit I ordered the Sophia Loren ($16), a burger with fresh mozzarella, tomato, basil, artichoke pesto, and balsamic glaze. It was tasty, though not the best choice here. I loved the patty melt ($16) with grilled onions, jalapenos and chipotle mayo on Texas toast. Their house chips are dusted with a unique sugar-salt seasoning. The Key West ($15) might be the best turkey burger in existence with chili garlic aioli, a pineapple ring and maple glaze. The Yardbird ($15) is another solid pick, a fried chicken sandwich with bourbon-tomato jam (!) and dill salsa. Crispy fish tacos (3 for $16) come with cilantro, avocado, radish slaw and jalapeno crema; those too, are aces. Bread = 5 Circuses = 4.5 Empire's fried doughnuts ($11) are legendary. These irresistible bites are rolled in cinnamon sugar and served warm along with crème anglaise dipping sauce. I'd say they're as good as, if not better than, the doughnuts at Next Whiskey Bar in Plainfield. In case all of that wasn't reason enough, Empire has the only retractable roof deck in the Chicago suburbs. I prefer the top floor because the ambiance is much more open and airy than the darker (and trendier) first floor. Also, they've got trivia on Monday nights. Last time my wife and I won 1st place and got $30 off our bill! * TL;DR * Across several visits I've come to expect delicious food and great vibes at this downtown Naperville restaurant. Service has rarely faltered and being able to enjoy the rooftop bar year-round is incredible (I've sat up there in the dead of winter, and although it's not shorts-and-T-shirt warm, the heaters go a long way towards comfort). Doughnuts are probably the best thing here, a must-order. Whether for a quick drink or long meal, Empire is very much worth your time. P.S. look for the quirky spiraling 'staircase to nowhere' inside! Call it an oddity or architectural easter egg, but every time I'm here I take a moment to appreciate its delightful weirdness.

    Ellen
    Ayad F.

    We were walking around Naperville and the weather was nice so we decided to visit this restaurant with a nice rooftop view. Tasty food. Great selections of drinks. Amazing service. Well maintained. I Strongly recommend visiting Naperville and trying out Empire.

    Soudary K.

    This bar and restaurant is located in downtown Naperville. I'm here on a business trip and this is where our group had dinner. If I live here, this would be the type of place that I would frequent. Our private dining area was upstairs with outside the patio over overlooking the river. They also had a full bar upstairs. We were treated to appetizers and drinks. Downstairs they had live music starting at 9pm. Staffs was attentive and made sure our drink orders were filled and appetizers kept coming out. Some of our group left after dinner but a few of us stayed till the very end. It was a fun time for all.

    Luigina L.

    A few gluten free options. Only fries and the caprese salad for vegetarian gluten free. But it was yummy. Had an old fashioned, it was ok. Was really loud so me and my friends had to yell to hear each other.

    Bar area - nice floor spacing.
    Brian P.

    My buddy and I met up to watch sports, have drinks, and share some burgers. Overall, we had a great experience and I absolutely plan to revisit this organization when I'm in the area. The burgers were FANTASTICALLY juicy. The fries were a bit plainer than I thought they would be, but not a turnoff. The prices are actually pretty reasonable as well considering it's in downtown Naperville. The only two annoyances we had is one of the bartenders kept putting our whiskey in liqueur glasses. We sent at least 2 drinks back. And the other thing was they don't have the FULL sport packages for the tvs in the sports bar (we were advised only local sports). No nba package. No nfl season pass. So they were unable to tune into the Celtics game - which was the very reason we went there. Sports bars should have sports tv packages.

    Jodi K.

    Had an amazing lunch at Empire. We sat in the inclosed atrium which was super cool. I live about 45 min from Naperville but I had some shopping to do and it was recommended by some friends. We had the Poutine and Burger Cigars for an app. We should have stopped there because they were sooo filling. Then my niece and I split the Chicken Sandwich special (Romaine Empire) which was perfect!!!! Our waiter was awesome and friendly! The manager stopped by to ask how everything was. Highly recommend!

    Ishani B.

    Spacious restaurant to go with a group to celebrate a special event. They have live performances and outdoor seating as well. The beer is sourced from across IL and keeps changing keeping the place interesting and the burgers never disappoint. To add to this if you are celebrating a special event then they give a bag of hot donuts!! Staff are knowledgeable and have good suggestions

    October BOM "The Fall Guy"

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    6 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Had a delicious burger for lunch. Bartender was very nice and attentive, will be back for their Tuesday night love music!

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    3 years ago

    Jackson is an outstanding server. Consistently making sure everything is as you want it. He is very pleasant and professional.

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    3 years ago

    Nice view and decent menu. Some of the staff seems to be more concerned with how they look as opposed to their customers.

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    5 years ago

    Delicious burgers! Good drinks, too! Love the upstairs spaces and sitting at the bar on the first floor.

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    4 years ago

    It's not a huge menu, but they have solid burgers and a great beer list. Highly recommend.

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    Page 6 of 24

    Empire Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - Empire

    Is there a brunch menu?

    No brunch options. Not even specials on mimosas .

    Are dogs allowed in the outside dining area?

    Yes, our dog was with us when we ate there, and there was a dog at the table next to us.

    I want to go on a date for my anniversary with my fiancé but I have never been here and I would definitely love to go around 7:30/8 but is it busy at that time and how long is the wait for the patio?

    Typical burger joint 2 levels outside it get busy , but anniversary seems special to me , go to santo cielo , down the street , it's beautiful and made for a special occasion. Hope that helps cheers !

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

    Review Highlights - Empire

    We saw an order of Burger Cigars go by and next time we come back, we are definitely ordering those, as well.

    Mentioned in 12 reviews

    Read more highlights

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    Two-Nine

    Two-Nine

    2.4(59 reviews)
    0.1 mi
    $$

    Closed in, claustrophobic, and no room to move around in or even dance as your shoulder-to-shoulder…read morewith so many people trying to squeeze through or lounge around. This happens very often on weekends that it almost feels like a potential hazard waiting to happen.

    We came out to Two Nine recently for a birthday party and had a good time but it was overly…read morecrowded. I think something they can do to minimize this is to have wait times for when your party can arrive or be more strict about how many people they let in at once. Things that are unique about this spot is the ambiance and the iron branch-like artwork on the walls and throughout the bar. It's a cool atmosphere when the lights are dimmed as they have fun colored up-lighting to set the mood. There's a little outdoor bar called "the shanty" and it is the best spot to be if you visit in the summer. The DJ is usually always spot on for the crowd; usually a mix of modern EDM and early 2000's hip hop throwbacks. The dance floor is small but was packed. There is a semi-private table area by the bar that you can reserve for a group party. If you ever are planning to come here for a birthday or any type of celebration I'd recommend you reserve this table/booth area so your group has a place to sit or at least stand. You also get a server assigned to your table! Like I mentioned, on a busy Friday or Saturday night, this place is packed shoulder to shoulder like a college bar. If that's the scene you're looking for, you're in the right spot! They should staff at least 6 bar tenders for the influx of people but they only have two or three tops. You can tell they are hardworking bartenders but it is impossible to serve that many people. The women's bathroom was rough. It's small and there's hardly any room to wait inside or outside the bathroom. Because the place is so crowded, I got bumped and spilled on multiple times just standing outside the bathroom door. The garbage was overflowing and something from the ceiling was dripping and of course landing on me. Maybe it was a rough night for them to keep up overall but this experience wasn't what I had in mind to help a dear friend celebrate her birthday.

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    Altavida

    Altavida

    3.4(13 reviews)
    0.1 mi

    Altavida is a new addition to the downtown Naperville area as they have only been open for 3 weeks…read more It has taken over The Craftsman building which offers three floors. Altavida's concepts for the three levels are Publico, Rumba, and Altura. Publico (1st Flr)- A South American fusion of food and drinks that will be rotating. The cocktails will be more tequila and mezcal based and food will be subtly rotated based on trends happening in South America. The food menu currently offers tapas, empanadas, ceviche, guacamoles, larger format meat/seafood entrees, and more. They will have a front of our bar as well as a back bar that will specialize in more coffees/coffee cocktails. Rumba (2nd Flr)- The entertainment floor! There is a separate bar on this floor that will specialize in more Rum based cocktails. Additionally, they will have a wine bar area with wines in tap. Lastly, they will have an open area for live music as well as dancing. Their hope is to have a mix of jazz, club music, salsa dancing options available. Altura (3rd Flr)- This floor is still under construction but will have a rooftop patio. The hope is that this space will be an event space both for public and private events. Back to my experience! My partner and I stopped in for a cocktail and to see what Altavida was about. Our first bartender was very nice but was still getting used to the drink recipes and was leaning on their cheat sheets. While we waited, another bartender kindly told us all about the restaurant and its focus on hospitality. Unfortunately, each bartender had a slightly different explanation of the restaurant's goal concepts which was confusing. We ended up ordering the El Toro and Vaquero (both mezcal drinks). Both were VERY spirit forward to the point that it may have needed better balance. Both drinks had a nice presentation with garnishes, color, and a skull feature at the bottom of the glass. Lastly, we saw many people walk up and look confused as there was no formal host stand. They didn't know if they should seat themselves or wait for someone. Overall, there still seems to be some kinks needing to be worked out as well as some conceptual editing. I feel they are trying to achieve too much and it ends up being confusing for staff and guests. I hope with time, Altavida is extremely successful in the Naperville area and I hope to circle back after some time passes.

    This place is a wonderful addition to DT Naperville! I was able to get a last minute dinner…read morereservation on a Friday night. I arrived at 6:30 and there were plenty of people already in the restaurant, but I was seated promptly. My server Richard came over to greet me right away. He went over the menu options and gave great recommendations. We put our order in pretty quickly because we've been to tapas restaurants before. I loved the modern decor and lively music being played. The place is truly colorful and has a very energetic vibe. The service was excellent. Everyone was extremely kind and happy to help. Edwin, the general manager was so friendly and accommodating by making sure that everything was to our liking. He is a gem. My husband and I ordered a few different tapas to share. We started with the empanadas and they were truly 10/10, highly recommend! We had the beef and chicken with the chimichurri sauce. We also tried the papas bravas and those were delicious as well. They are spicy and have a nice kick. The portion is pretty big and shareable. Last, we had chicken en mole. Omg, so good! They knocked it out of the park with this one. The presentation is very pleasing and the flavor is 10/10! I'm a hot sauce girly and even carry it in my bag just in case. The sauce they had in the dish was so good that I didn't even think about adding hot sauce! The rice and chicken along with the sauce is chef's kiss. I also tried the Brussels sprouts but they were my least favorite of everything. They should go back to the drawing board on that one. The drinks we had were solid. My husband had an espresso martini and dragonfruit margarita, while I had a mango margarita. All were good. Needless to say, I had an amazing evening at Altavida! The dancing on the second floor was also very fun and entertaining. I will definitely be a regular here!

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    Hugo's Frog Bar & Fish House - Gibsons Prime Angus Burger

    Hugo's Frog Bar & Fish House

    3.8(746 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    $$$

    Long time patron, first time reviewer. Hugo's is even more appreciated in downtown naperville now…read morethat catch 35 is gone. The seafood options down there are lacking. Hugo's seasonal specials, and its alignment with gibson's steaks, make it a great option for just about any one. We have been here for lunch and dinner. Always consistent service and quality. It is not a cheap place, but you get what you pay for. We enjoy their escargot, oysters rockefeller, shrimp and grits, and of course the crab cakes. The only thing I ever truly disliked was probably the sushi, but everything else is great. If they could add a couple more hot oyster preparations to their menu, that would be awesome. I also wish they did more weekly specials.

    My husband and I visited this restaurant on a Friday night. The atmosphere was great when we walked…read morein. There was live music, which created a fun and lively vibe, and the staff were friendly and welcoming. However, the experience went downhill after we were seated. We waited almost 30mins before our server came to take our order. I understand that Friday nights can be busy, but guests should still be attended in a reasonable amount of time. Unfortunately, the food was disappointing. Several of the mussels tasted spoiled, which was very disappointing!! The avocado in the crabmeat avocado appetizer was not fresh either (please see picture). There were shell fragments mixed in with the oysters. It honestly felt like they were not shucked properly in the kitchen. Finding shell pieces in oysters is not something I expect from a restaurant at this price point!! The one exception was the frog legs. They were incredibly tender, flavorful, and cooked beautifully with plenty of butter. That was definitely the highlight of the meal!! Overall, the atmosphere and live music were enjoyable, but the long wait, food quality issues, and high prices made this a disappointing dining experience.

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