Empire Slice House

[kevinpate]

Just a thought, provided UnFrSaKn is fine by it, one or more of his as it looks today photos from this past week would be a nice addition, or replacement, for some of the existing art in the article portion of this thread.

[catch22]

Pepperoni:



Rocksteady:

[JayhawkTransplant]

My boyfriend and I went tonight for dinner. I LOVED the vibe there--reminded me very much of my college town. A great mix of 80s and 90s music played while we ate. We got the garlic knots as an appetizer, and he got a house salad. I got a slice of cheese and pepperoni and he got pepperoni. It was all very, very good, and we left feeling stuffed for $10 per person. I will make it a point to go back with my friends!

[kjones]

We went this weekend. service was good. atmosphere was good. pizza was ok. felt pizza 23 has fresher ingredients and better pizza. but if keep late hours would go then

[Pete]

Pizza by the slice is always a bit tricky because it's rare when you happen to get it right out of the oven. More often than not, it's been sitting around for a while and that always dulls the taste.

I like the idea of slices but they almost always disappoint me.


Still, I hope this is much more of a hang-out spot and bar with some pizza rather than a food-first place. OKC has plenty of strong restaurants now and what we really lack are good bars and a robust late-night scene.

[onthestrip]

Do they sell by the slice all day and evening or is it only a late night thing?

[Roger S]

Still, I hope this is much more of a hang-out spot and bar with some pizza rather than a food-first place. OKC has plenty of strong restaurants now and what we really lack are good bars and a robust late-night scene.

I think it could turn into both... I thought the food was pretty good.

Do they sell by the slice all day and evening or is it only a late night thing?

Pretty sure it's an all day thing.

[Urban Pioneer]

Your right about the timing Pete. The fresh put of the oven was by far better. Other slices I had were harder as the crust had baked more under a heat lamp.

It is tricky because you need some degree of paced consumption to be able to roll out fresh pizza consitently. When there were lots of people there and it was flyingbout, it was remarkably better.

[SSEiYah]

So I'm guessing this is not "by the slice" like Sauced on Paseo does it where they cook your individual slice to order?

[Plutonic Panda]

I went on Sunday night and it was pretty good. The service could've been a tad better, but overall I liked it and will be back!

[Pete]

So I'm guessing this is not "by the slice" like Sauced on Paseo does it where they cook your individual slice to order?

Every pizza slice has to be at least partially pre-made and pre-cooked. You can't cook once slice from scratch.

They probably make a pizza with sauce and cheese, slice it up, let it sit until someone orders a slice, then throw on some toppings and put it back in the oven.

[soonerguru]

Every pizza slice has to be at least partially pre-made and pre-cooked. You can't cook once slice from scratch.

They probably make a pizza with sauce and cheese, slice it up, let it sit until someone orders a slice, then throw on some toppings and put it back in the oven.

This.

If you've been in the best NYC slice houses they are slightly precooked, then finished in the oven after you order them. While Empire's slices were decent, it's clear they are still trying to perfect the crust, which is what sets apart real NYC pizza from the imitators.

[Urbanized]

I'm not sure Empire does the partially-cooked, then-topped-to-order, then finished-in-oven route (like Sauced). I went today, and they limit the by-the-slice orders to (I think) four daily combos. They had a large warmer out, and the pizza - while very tasty and hot - came out like pizza that has been sitting for a while, not like fresh-from-the-oven. So while I need to go again and verify this, I think they just keep pizzas going for today's selected flavors, put them on the warmer when baked, carve you off a piece, and that is considered "by-the-slice." Personally, I like the other approach better, because it seems more fresh when you get it. But again, I might be totally wrong.

Again however, it was very tasty, the salad was good, the decor was cool, and the service was better than described in other posts, so hopefully they are making headway in ironing out those bugs. I will definitely be going again.

[catch22]

I just ate two slices of Pepperoni at Sizzle Pie in downtown Portland. Similar concept, but no bar. Do serve beer though. They do delivery Sun-thu till 245am and fri sat 345am

Enjoyed quite a few beers watching the streetcar go by and eating some good pizza. Maybe someday the plaza will have a streetcar and I can't watch it go by and drink beer.

[Martin]

i picked up a pie from empire on my way home from work last week. i really wanted to like this place but the flavor of the crust was non-existent and there was something "off" in the flavor of the sausage. maybe i'll give them another shot in a few months but my first impression was that this place is a bar first and a pizza joint second... looks like an awesome place to hang out, but the pizza just didn't do anything for me. -M

[AP]

I just ate two slices of Pepperoni at Sizzle Pie in downtown Portland. Similar concept, but no bar. Do serve beer though. They do delivery Sun-thu till 245am and fri sat 345am

Enjoyed quite a few beers watching the streetcar go by and eating some good pizza. Maybe someday the plaza will have a streetcar and I can't watch it go by and drink beer.

I'm enjoying your Portland trip. Can't wait to go sometime soon.

[Urban Pioneer]

Try Escape from New York while your in Portland! Also on the streetcar line!

[sroberts24]

I love this place, it is 2 blocks from my house and everything I have had has been great. I have had it 7 times in the past 2 weeks.

[warreng88]

I really hope the service gets better here and quick, otherwise, I am afraid they will start losing business.

I went there with my wife's coworkers the Friday that it opened and it took us 10 minutes to place a pizza by the slice to go order and then 20 minutes to get the five slices of pizza, five salads and five cans of soft drink. So, 30 minutes to get a to go order when the pizza has already been made.

I took my dad, brother and sister-in-law there Tuesday night around 6:30 and it was so nice out, we sat out on the patio. We waited for 15 minutes before our server even came over to acknowledge us to ask if we wanted anything else to drink besides the waters a busboy brought us. We told him we were ok and placed our order. It took 22 minutes for the pizza to get to us, which is a good time considering how busy it was. We saw our waiter once more to get the check before we left. The owners/management were great in that they were helping out the servers but I have been a server before and our server was not moving like it was busy and was not prioritizing.

[BoulderSooner]

I really hope the service gets better here and quick, otherwise, I am afraid they will start losing business.

I went there with my wife's coworkers the Friday that it opened and it took us 10 minutes to place a pizza by the slice to go order and then 20 minutes to get the five slices of pizza, five salads and five cans of soft drink. So, 30 minutes to get a to go order when the pizza has already been made.

I took my dad, brother and sister-in-law there Tuesday night around 6:30 and it was so nice out, we sat out on the patio. We waited for 15 minutes before our server even came over to acknowledge us to ask if we wanted anything else to drink besides the waters a busboy brought us. We told him we were ok and placed our order. It took 22 minutes for the pizza to get to us, which is a good time considering how busy it was. We saw our waiter once more to get the check before we left. The owners/management were great in that they were helping out the servers but I have been a server before and our server was not moving like it was busy and was not prioritizing.

i have been 3 times now and this is my experience also .. the owner/manager were great to deal with but the servers (2 different on my 3 trips) were very very slow ..

that said the pizza is some of the best i have had in okc

[warreng88]

i have been 3 times now and this is my experience also .. the owner/manager were great to deal with but the servers (2 different on my 3 trips) were very very slow ..

that said the pizza is some of the best i have had in okc

That's disappointing that you had the same experience. I was hoping it was just me and everyone else was getting great service. I hope they ramp it up. If I go in the next time and it is the same, I am going to tell the manager, not to complain, but so some @$$hole later on doesn't have the same experience and go off the deep end.

[Richard at Remax]

haven't been yet but the experiences sound like the ones ive had at Picassos in the paseo. great food, great managers, but the servers/service could be real ho hum with no sense of urgency. That being said I am looking forward to a slice.

[sroberts24]

Like i said earlier i have been a lot. The first time the service was sub par, but has gotten better every time. Last night the service was excellent.

[Plutonic Panda]

I was not satisfied at all with this place.

The food was great, and the waiter that served us was excellent. She was very nice and very interactive(if that makes any sense). It just took too dang long to get 2 slices of pizza. I also wish they would take down that black iron fence; it just makes me feel trapped. It would be nicer if there was a barrier of plants or something maybe with a 2-3 foot wall. They could use a cable to tie down the chairs and tables, if that is a concern; they were actually very nice quality chairs.

That said, this place has major potential and I would to make this a regular place to go hang out. Right now, I'm deciding if I want to move to a place around UCO in Edmond or I might possibly be looking at places in and around Midtown. This place would be awesome if it were improved.

I'm just hoping that overtime, with constructive criticism, the place will improve.

[Mel]

Catch22, is that a reduction of balsamic vinegar they drizzled on top of that second pizza slice pic you posted up above? I love that stuff.