So I was aware of Empire before it was even a twinkle on Chorley New Road, yet for some reason, it's taken me this long to actually go. A couple of months ago, I bumped into an old school friend who I hadn't seen since we were about 18. She's moved back to the area, so we decided to get out for the evening, and sample what Empire had to offer.
Downstairs is a beautifully styled restaurant, whilst upstairs boasts a rather swish cocktail bar. The plan was to have a little something to eat, followed by a couple of cocktails in the bar. Sensible eh? It did not go down like that. Not at all.
We took full advantage of the 'Two steaks for £26' offer that was on that night, which included a fat sirloin served with cherry tomatoes, sautéed mushroom and hand cut chips. I also ordered a peppercorn sauce, which is standard behaviour. I have to admit that I wasn't expecting amazing things, as steak can be a bit of a risk when trying somewhere new. This was absolutely delicious. Perhaps a tad more to the medium than rare side, but still, a lovely cut of meat with tasty sides.
This is where things went a little bit west for us. I was still heavily jet-lagged after New York, and if I was able to push through the mid afternoon lull, I was good until about 2am. It was a school night.
So, we popped upstairs for a couple. Things started in my usual fashion of challenging the barman to a surprise, so the cocktails below are mainly 'off piste' and of his own creation on the night. We became firm friends with Lucas, who I am sure performed some sort of alcohol based witchcraft. I also have to admit that looking at the volume here, I know there were more, and I had two of at least one of these. I didn't take pictures of duplicates, or the additional beers. Don't judge, it was a reunion.
I'm just sorry that I can't recall what was in most of these, other than the first one, which I know was a Poison Apple. What I can tell you is that we had a cracking little time, with each cocktail more delicious than the previous one. We also got vouchers for a free bottle of Prosecco for our return visit. I only got in bed at 1.15am on a Thursday night... oh well.
![Empire, Horwich Empire, Horwich](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQqj2cVHGtHlKEOgRJiKc4PA2KNw8Mm4q0HGGLpJ0V96c0aHv50FXlYZ9S3WS5dfjcttXALK0zUDrVWRE_R7Qfy9JN2OwECJcAY_lwPyQEInP9m-OuZtVQchPN-uHb7EnYhu4P6ioyaWft/s640/Empire+Horwich+5.png)
![Empire, Horwich Empire, Horwich](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqU6ffS2lGClVF9zPZPkAVaOx3w14i9rtoCtQnE8HilZb8n9cS4Hof8FFcPFeEd1rvbNYvWttZtS_0VVzznZ4t2FJO03c-baY50ZWjqloMx08_UVbCsM0gF6YuaSmYHSINRvd6Bz5HWfh3/s640/Empire+Horwich+3.png)
![Empire, Horwich Empire, Horwich](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSsNOmya379vSof7NyTwseumZd9k1i8oDqyXVInU8fXnbVGJn0jeZq0Jo8kHo8vnHgMA7pLITjkW5EFcxmesaDpUC52xmyRcR-KEWza4kyl8uDVB_hXys64pqTJbRTeBva-18JV65qdadx/s640/Empire+Horwich+6.png)
![Empire, Horwich Empire, Horwich](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg1cj-jJU1RLXZlXCv6JlyZ7Lg-okUIjhJQ7JP9V15OX7YbUsiU8IrtXm3u0e89Cmn6qhq3Yk6afVuBKp7-yK3B3ht7XoIn2zNbYfEFH65Hay0lcm4mwtdzAwXc2nTp0IFuL1HfSmAmcQ6/s640/Empire+Horwich+4.png)
![Empire, Horwich Empire, Horwich](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfhxY3n6PeFrerlKBwFwiq2Rr4nLJBHhQAgoRO5_mSbaEY_Wq5XUmLxjSEjbfQAkdi5rqn7o_3XPfBRMwc-Y_FVZCzUv2yMp6utDjd4ISfaUm8Phechzix96P_DYbdP_JolXijvWpsytN2/s640/Empire+Horwich+7.png)
No comments:
Post a Comment