Hunan Empress

I've added this down because I don't want a bunch of vitriol in a review, but the 1/5 is deserved so it stays.

I'll always have fond memories of Hunan Empress, and it's unfortunate that this place is still using their name.

I was pleased, the food is delicious.

This place use to have the best Chinese food in all of Saint Louis Missouri. Ever since this place was sold to the new owners about 10 or so years ago, it has went downhill big time. It is definitely not the same. The egg drop soup, crab Rangoon and food overall tastes like a cheap Chinese place like a wok express on Dorsett or China king on olive. This place is also overpriced. This is really sad.

While the choices here are pretty standard, everything is delicious and made with love. This place is a St Louis institution. Perfect for a casual night out.

I’ve been coming to this restaurant my whole life, and it is my favorite place to order Chinese food. The hot and sour soup is my favorite!

I love this place the food is so good and The people are so nice and the place is so homie so you should try it sometime

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The food was terrific and worth the price. The service was subpar. We made reservations for our party of 15. They had notice, so no excuses. Party of 4 or less okay, more than that - at your own risk.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 1

Great Chinese food, large servings and friendly service.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 4

After three botched call-in, take out orders in a row over the past two months, we'll be looking for a different Chinese restaurant. It's a shame because this was a great restaurant before the new owners took over. Despite what other's have said in their reviews about the taste/quality of the food, we still love it and haven't noticed a difference. Our discontent is strictly regarding call-in, take out experience since we rarely eat in.

Here's what we've experienced with phone in orders recently:

First time: Ordered a combo of chicken and broccoli, but found when I got home that they'd put something completely different in the bag. Called the restaurant and the guy I talked to delivered the correct food to our home and took the wrong food with him. I should mention that the order information attached to the bag was all correct.

Second time: Ordered steamed rice for the dinner combos, but received fried rice (which is the default). Didn't discover this until I got home with the order. Minor issue to us, but not what we ordered. Again, the order information on the bag was correct.

Third time: Ordered two chicken and broccoli combos, one with garlic sauce. When I got there to pick it up, I noticed the order information was incorrect (there was one chicken and broccoli and one beef and broccoli listed). The woman putting orders together asked me three times what I'd ordered while I waited for them to get the correct items together. They finally got the chicken and broccoli parts correct, but, at the last minute, she realized they'd packed two egg drop soups instead of a hot and sour and an egg drop. They gave us the extra egg drop soup and some additional crab rangoon for the trouble.

The two times I let them know the orders weren't correct, they certainly worked to make it right. However, consistently making mistakes on orders is an unacceptable level of service. It not only adds frustration for customers; it drives up costs due to wasted food (and packaging, in the case of take out orders).

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 5

Service: 2

Favorite Chinese food in STL by far. The Empress Beef is worth going for alone.

Food: 5

My first stop when I come in town from Florida. The food is the best Chinese food in the country. Not exaggerating. The chicken broccoli with garlic sauce is my favorite. The hot and sour soup is also the best I have ever had. The shrimp dishes are also delicious. The food is always very fresh tasting and cooked perfectly -- crisp vegetables & tender meat. The owner is so nice. I highly recommend Hunan Empress if you want a great meal with large portions and very reasonable prices. Simply put -- THE BEST!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Food used to be absolutely fantastic. Over the last few years they have changed their recipes and now nothing makes it stand out from any run of the mill generic Chinese food you can get anywhere.

Food: 1

This used to be our favorite chinese restaurant, and now it has changed for the worse and everything is completely different.None of the food tastes the same, and way lower quality. We are moving on to a new chinese restaurant

Food: 1

Amazing the people who work thete are super nice service is always awesome 👌

The staff are very friendly, they work hard, and the food was absolutely excellent. It was our daughter’s birthday and they went out of their way to make it special Thanks Hunan Empress team!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 4

Recommended dishes: Hot Braised Chicken, Hot and Sour Soup, Egg Drop Soup, Wonton Soup