May 14th, 2006
Emperor Garden
If you've ever wondered what it's like to go back in time and eat Chinese food, visit Emperor Garden.
With an hour to spare before the curtain rose on Boston Ballet's Carmen, my roommate and I were more than happy to take advantage of the Wang Center's proximity to Chinatown. Keeping the theme of Trying New Things, I suggested we try Emperor Garden, whose somewhat shabby Washington Street exterior stands in stark contrast to shiny-happy Penang.
I thought, perhaps, that the unassuming sign and faded menu signaled a hidden gem, albeit a rather large one given that the restaurant is located in an old theater. After climbing the well-worn carpeted stairs to the second-floor lobby, the musty smell that greeted us at the door only intensified. A smiling, middle-aged hostess couple quickly ushered us into the humungous ballroom dining area where Chinese paper decorations adorn the crumbling 1940s ornate molding. Boston's own Chinese Overlook hotel.
Emperor Garden's menu is limited to the standard American sweet and sour, fried rice, and noodle dishes and my grumbling belly demanded something familiar. An $18 Pu Pu platter for two was generously stacked with fried chicken wings, insufficiently stuffed crab rangoon, beef satay, pork strips, and chicken tenders. The appetizers were salty, overly fried, and nothing special but frequently dipping in the sweet and sour and mustard sauces allowed me to enjoy several pieces.
Our entrees of pork fried rice ($9) and General Gau's chicken were savory and the portions ample. The sweet, thick sauce coated each chicken piece thoroughly and the excess gave some much needed flavor to the steam broccoli garnish. Like the Pu Pu Platter items, the rice suffered from an excess of grease as well as poor cuts of overly cooked meat. I appreciate our prompt and attentive service, including a personal visit from the manager who told us the restaurant regularly seats between one thousand for weekend dim sum.
With so many other superior restaurants in Chinatown, it makes little sense to spend your money at Emperor Garden, unless, of course, you're hosting a party for you and two hundred of your closest friends. If they invest in some Glade, interior renovations, and a more creative chef, the restaurant could become one of the city's hottest fundraiser spots. I should also mention that others rave about their dim sum, which may be an experience from that which I had at dinnertime.
Well, I'm off like a prom dress to attend to my leaking roof. Will this rain ever stop?! I hear some people are building arks.
The Info
Emperor Garden
690 Washington St., Boston
617-482-8898