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Tea houseTea house

Empire Tea & Coffee

★★★★½ 4.5/5 (100 reviews)
$
22 Broadway, Newport, RI 02840 (401) 619-1388 Website
Empire Tea & Coffee Empire Tea & Coffee Empire Tea & Coffee Empire Tea & Coffee Empire Tea & Coffee

Reviews (100)

Michael
Michael
★★★★☆ Jan 20, 1970

Nice space to relax or get work done with in & outdoor seating. Drinks are fine, but service was a little slow

Daisy Fu
Daisy Fu
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

Friendly staff and the coffee was good

Sarah McCann
Sarah McCann
★★★★☆ Jan 20, 1970

Vibes immaculate and a pretty decent dirty chai for the area. Wish it was spicer but nonetheless very good. Only issue was that I wanted to eat in but I don’t think they have mugs to drink from, just paper. Took away from the coffee house experience for me.

rishi lad
rishi lad
★★★★☆ Jan 20, 1970

Coffee ☕️ croissant 🥐 hot chocolate 🍫

R.
R.
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

This afternoon, a top-notch employee with brightly colored hair (who called me her friend) demonstrated tremendous customer service. This amazing barista made the best iced mocha oat latte - period. Phenomenal. Her friendliness and skills at putting together a superb drink were amazing. I will return to this exemplary coffee shop.

Geoff Reynolds
Geoff Reynolds
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

Great selection of tea, good coffee and a friendly staff

Michael B
Michael B
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

A+ all around. Particularly had good black dip coffee.

Justin Brennan
Justin Brennan
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

Great hole in the wall to sit and relax with friends

david zhu
david zhu
★★★★☆ Jan 20, 1970

Ordered mango bubble tea for around $5, it was OK. For bubble tea fans, this was the gel bubbles, not the chewy tapioca bubbles. Fast service. They have 2 touchscreen ordering kiosks as well. Good atmosphere/decor.

Brian Connolly
Brian Connolly
★☆☆☆☆ Jan 20, 1970

My boyfriend ordered two of the same latte’s today (French vanilla…simple right?) and one was made wrong. Instead of remaking it the barista insisted it was correct and argued that it tasted right. It wasn’t right, I tasted both. I then asked it to be remade and instead they refused. We’re local to town and try to support local businesses but rude and unprofessional is still rude and unprofessional.

Cassondra
Cassondra
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

My daughter loooves getting boba tea here 1-3 times per week. Our favorite batista is David because he's always extremely friendly & makes her drink perfect every time. It's much appreciated!!

alexander valaris
alexander valaris
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

Loved my chocolate chip cookie and blueberry banana bread. Both where super moist and tasty. Next time I'm in the ares I know where I'll be going for my baked goods.

Caroline Warner
Caroline Warner
★★☆☆☆ Jan 20, 1970

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 even finish the first one before throwing them out

Cassie D
Cassie D
★★★☆☆ Jan 20, 1970

Post pandemic empire is just not the same! It is extremely irritating that they stop serving food at 1. They are open for 2 more hours after that! Also the seating they've put in is strangely cold and uninviting. There used to be a cozy seating area with a couch! Also as another reviewer pointed out, they've stopped calling your name and started putting it all in the mobile order station? Overall bizarre experience lately and feeling nostalgic for pre pandemic Empire.

Zack Harden
Zack Harden
★★★☆☆ Jan 20, 1970

I used to come here pre-pandemic nearly 4-5 times a week to get work done throughout the day, and I loved that more than anything. The greatest staff, amazing coffee, all around great experience. I truly believe that this cafe from 2016-2019 may have been the best cafe in the state. However, I'm not sure what seems to have changed after re-opening post pandemic, but it is not the same Empire I loved before (notably, a lot of the staff from before do not work here anymore). Every time I go in there are minor issues. Little things like forgetting the vanilla in a latte, or mixing up hot and iced drinks. Today I went in with my girlfriend for 1 large iced latte (made correctly) - 1 small iced vanilla latte (made as a small hot latte with no vanilla) - an acai bowl with peanut butter - and a bagel with cream cheese. For some reason instead of calling out my order by the name they had asked for, as I assumed they would, they left it at the mobile / online order pick up station for 15 minutes until I had gone up frustrated that something so simple was taking so long when it wasn't busy. I'm not one to write reviews, and I still do think that the coffee is good when made to order, but it feels like I'm falling out of love with my favorite coffee spot and it's heart breaking

Angela B
Angela B
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

I stopped by yesterday to grab a cool drink and a bite to eat and was impressed by their above-and-beyond customer service and general friendliness. Their breakfast sandwiches are amazing as well. Definitely recommend!

Ellissa George
Ellissa George
★★★☆☆ Jan 20, 1970

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 they took down the art and replaced what was very cozy chairs with a big standing area. Menu seems smaller. 8 dollar breakfast sandwich was a little cold, but also burnt on one side. Coffee was fine. Overall a weird impersonal ambience, expensive, and not nearly as good as I remember it being last year or the years before. Hoping this was a blip. Staff was nice though!

Ken Loder
Ken Loder
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

Great coffee and breakfast sandwiches...ya can't go wrong!

brettandkat
brettandkat
★★★★☆ Jan 20, 1970

Ordered a Fog Horn and Cranberry scone. They were both okay. Would like to check out the other location.

Shawn Pearce
Shawn Pearce
★★★★★ Jan 20, 1970

Nice coffee spot off the main road. Staff was friendly and the shop itself was clean and inviting. I really enjoyed the fresh coffee and baked cookie my friend and I ordered. Can't wait to visit again!