Empire Tea Coffee - Newport

I absolutely loved the chocolate chip cookie and blueberry banana bread at this restaurant. Both were incredibly moist and delicious. I will definitely be returning for more baked goods the next time I'm in the area.

Frozen hot chocolate was okay, they definitely didn't blend it enough because there were ice chunks in the drink. I ordered two Chocolate Croissants, which were underbaked and oily. Chocolate wasn't even melted it was just chocolate chips. I couldn't evenfinish the first one before throwing them out

Before the pandemic, I used to visit this restaurant nearly 4 to 5 times a week to do work throughout the day, and I absolutely loved it. The staff was amazing, the coffee was fantastic, and overall it was a great experience. From 2016 to 2019, I truly believed that this cafe was the best in the state. However, since reopening post-pandemic, something seems to have changed. It is not the same Empire that I used to love (especially since many of the staff I knew are no longer there). Every time I visit, there are minor issues, like forgetting the vanilla in a latte or mixing up hot and iced drinks. Today, when I went with my girlfriend, we ordered a large iced latte (made correctly), a small iced vanilla latte (made as a small hot latte without vanilla), an acai bowl with peanut butter, and a bagel with cream cheese. Instead of calling out our order by name, as expected, they left it at the mobile online order pick-up station for 15 minutes, causing frustration. I don't usually write reviews, and I still think the coffee is good when made to order, but it feels like I'm slowly losing my love for my favorite coffee spot, and it's heartbreaking.

I visited the restaurant yesterday to get a refreshing drink and a quick meal, and I was very impressed by their exceptional customer service and welcoming atmosphere. Their breakfast sandwiches are delicious too. I highly recommend this place!

I?ve been to Empire too many times to count since 2009 so maybe I?m just feeling nostalgic about the Empire I remember with comfy seating and a lite brite table. Came back to this location for the first time in a year or so, and bummed to see theytook down the art and replaced what was very cozy chairs with a big standing area. Menu seems smaller. 8 dollar breakfastsandwich was a little cold, but also burnt on one side. Coffee was fine. Overall a weird impersonal ambience, expensive, and notnearly as good as I remember it being last year or the years before. Hoping this was a blip. Staff was nice though!