Szechuan Empire
| Address: | 29215 Five Mile Road, Livonia, MI 48154, USA |
| Phone: | +1 734-458-7160 |
| Site: | szechuanempire.com |
| Rating: | 4.1 |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 8
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Nick Miller
The place isnt very nice and thats okay but the prices are not accommodating for its shape. 13-15$ for a dinner plate plus tip is a bit absurd to be asking for a "hole in the wall" type of place. I have had so many better places than this at much cheaper prices (china gold, pan pan). My girlfriend ordered the general Tsaos, that is about as basic as you can get in terms of chinese food so its very difficult to go wrong. I ordered spicy garlic chicken thing (the exact name escapes me for the moment). Her general Tsaos was neither awful nor good, it was 100% bland. There was zero,zip,nada flavor, I am not kidding there was some lettuce in there and any chicken that touched the lettuce was over powered by the lettuce flavor. Yes you read that correctly, the lettuce had more of a taste than their general tsaos. My spicy garlic chicken thing was good but I have had much better at other local Thai places. The service was terribleeeeee, we were the only ones in there and the other servers/waiters/whatever just sat on the back table playing with their phones. I understand its not busy and youre bored. Thats all fine but its not a good idea to be sitting in the back with your phone out and just daddling. Go into the kitchen where no one can see you and do that. The extra annoying part of it all was even with them sitting right there it still took forever past eating to get the box and bill (about 20 minutes of sitting). Because of how absorbed they were into their phone to look over at the only 2 people in the place. No thank you, I will go elsewhere.
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Lisa Drouillard
This is by far, the best Chinese restaurant in the area, for a 30 mile radius. I eat out all the time, since Im in sales, so Ive had a lot of good Chinese, and I crave this place. I have NEVER gotten stale carryout, or food that wasnt prepared when I ordered it. I love their crispy rice soup (enough for 2, and only about 7.00) for carry out, as a cheap meal for my daughter and I. They prepare anything I want the way I want it, and it all tastes awesome. Their crispy shrimp with broccoli is my favorite. I love their egg drop soup. My daughter, who is the pickiest eater I know, says their sesame chicken is the best shes every had. I am gluten free, and I can order the soup without soy sauce, and its ok for me. The crispy shrimp is made with corn starch, so I can have breaded shrimp for once! But again, its not just the gluten free items that are good. My parents have eaten here, and they love it; Ive seen people come from Brighton to eat here. I used to live near New York City, which of course, has awesome Chinese, and this ranks right up there with the New York restaurants. The decor is a little dated, but the service is excellent, and the food is wonderful. I think the lunch prices are unbeatable, and like everywhere, the dinner prices are higher, but worth it. I strongly encourage you to try this restaurant!
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Lisa Ancona
FINALLY-a Chinese restaurant that actually serves quality food! We dined at Szechuan Empire for the first time yesterday evening and really enjoyed our food. The service was great as well. What I was most impressed with were: A)the variety of exciting and creative choices on the menu B) the QUALITY of the food itself, for example, the chicken broth in the Won-Ton soup did not taste like cheap boxed/caned and overly salty chicken stock from a supplier like GFS or SYSCO, but rather either a quality brand or perhaps even a home-made broth prepared there C)the fact that they serve brown rice D)the presentation: my boyfriends entre was garnished with orange slices and a little flower made from a vegetable peeling-nice touch for a casual establishment such as this :) My entre was exceptionally delicious (I ordered the home-style soybean patties and vegetables in spicy Szechuan Sauce) and I am looking forward to returning to try the Pad Thai or the Thai Basil Chicken. So yes, the prices are slightly higher than those of their local competitors, but food served at Szechuan Empire is actually worth it.
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A Private User
I have been going to Szechuan Empire for ten years. It is always a 50/50 chance to whether you will get food that was fresh cooked, or has been sitting and waiting for a customer to order. Maybe I should say 25/75 because it usually ends up where I only get fresh cooked food once in a while. Today I ordered my usual Lo-Mein (To Go) and when I got home I discovered it was old soft mushy noodles that had been microwaved to death. They felt like they were still cooking when I was trying to eat it. It was horrible. I stopped after severl bites. I lost my appetite. Today I have decided to stop being a customer of Szechuan Empire. Sorry Charlie... Ive had it. Ive also noticed over time that they appear to be losing customers. Lots of them. Customers dont appreciate old food, rewarmed food, or microwaved food. Believe me. Microwaved chinese food is not yummy. You cant fool the customer.. And if you try, you will lose them. hint hint...
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A Private User
The food is delicious, i went and got the Sweet and Sour lunch, To be honest it was great for the price, Me and My friend went and had my sweet and sour her shrimp plate (i forgot the exact name), They both came with a egg roll and rice and won ton soup (or other side of your choice), and tea, all for about $16! I believe each of our meals were about $6.49 or something like that but they came with the main entree, rice, soup and an egg roll. The portions are very large, but they offer doggy bags and are happy to fill them for you. They dont use MSG which is very important to my grandma. In general there just a great restaurant, great staff, great food, and a good atmosphere.
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Emily Paulausky
Went off the reviews, & finally decided to try it out. Live close by so we walked there and ordered what we normally get anywhere else, general taos. Requested extra spicy with hot and sour soup....let me tell you this was HANDS DOWN the WORST carry out we ever had. Im not over exaggerating when I say the food literally tasted like nothing. Literally, n o t h i n g ! The spring roll also tasted like once again, nothing. I dont smoke or anything and my taste buds are pretty good yet there was no taste. Ended up feeding it to the dogs & got something else. Save your money, truly. I wish we would have.
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Mandi Reitenga
Dont do im warning you!!! I had the sesame chicken, it was kinda hard, not tender in any way, pretty much tasted like it was cooked last week, stored in a fridge, then reheated and tossed in sauce again. Go to Chins, its a few miles away and the food is always delicious AND fresh. I made the mistake of trying a new Chinese place, but this is the gamble you take sometimes when youre feeling adventurous. Oops. And They had spring rolls, not egg rolls. Gotta have good eggrolls!! :P i do give a thumbs up to their crab rangoons though, they were pretty damn good
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Bilbo Saggins
I dont care what anyone says about this place, this is hands down the best Chinese around. Ive been around the chinatown block, Im also slightly Asian, so dont question my taste buds when I say that your tongue will thank me if you take it here to munch. Staff are friendly and efficient, plus the founder was on Food Network. The prices arent the cheapest, but it more than makes up in the quality. The interior isnt too large, cozy is the word. Get anything chicken, youll love it!
