Lil' Empire Burger - Capitol Hill — Restaurant in Calgary

The food was pretty underwhelming. Nuggies, poutine & milkshake. Nuggies were overcooked, poutine gravy was good but a little light on the pour, so the curds didn’t melt well. Dirty fries and Empire Burger. Burger bun was good and it was fine as a classic burger style but it just wasn’t memorable. Dirty fries had a much better amount of sauce and flavour, they were probably my favourite of all, but still generally underwhelming. Milkshake was okay but overpriced.

The service was friendly but not really exceptional. I don't tip at the beginning of service so with it being a self serve I didn’t enter anything and was met with a change in tone and demeanour that seemed disappointed. It’s a self serve - order at the till and get a buzzer to go and collect once it rings, also we cleared our own tables of all garbage - so I don’t think a large tip (especially upfront) is warranted. I would always tip at the end of service, in cash and I think 10% for this would be plenty. From the time we ordered to the time we got our food it took about 20 minutes which was okay for the amount of people we saw.

Atmosphere was pretty good. Kitchen and dining are were both clean and organized. Bathrooms were tidy. All the utensils and dining ware were all compostable and suited their theme well.

Price was a little steep for the potion and quality that you get. Bill was around $45 without a tip.

Overall it was okay but I would most likely pass on my next opportunity to eat here again in order to try something else in this price...

My family and I always like a good burger. When I saw a Youtube video of Lil' Empire Burger we just had to try it. The place is easy to find an near 16th avenue but parking is a challenge as there is limited 2 hour street parking. It's in a residential area so there are lots of permit parking. It's a nice little corner restaurant with lots of seating on patio and also inside.

One thing that struck us is the place is super clean and we liked that the restaurant had sustainability practices in place. For example, there is no garbage - only recycling and compost. All their cups and burger boxes are all compostable. They also provided a water dispenser to fill up your water bottles or compostable cup (provided). I even saw outside they had little bowls so even your furry friends can have water.

This restaurant, you order at the counter, they give you a buzzer and when food is ready you pick it up. We had 3 Double Empire burgers with cheese, 1 Empire burger with cheese, and order of fries to share, and a chocolate milk share. Also, took advantage of complimentary water and I dispensed waters for the table.

Everything was really fresh and tasted great. Burgers had great flavour and didn't fall apart. The fries were nice and crispy with warm soft center. The milkshake was great and not super sweet albeit a bit small.

Staff were friendly - they all said bye to us, when we left, like they appreciated us being there. Great food, inviting space, and sustainability practices all make this...

Service 5/5 kind friendly and pleasant

Atmosphere 4/5 lacking a little comfort inside, standard picnic tables outside. It's a plain burger shack. Some really cool art in one corner.

Food 3/5 let me explain

We ordered: -2 burgers (1 single patty, 1 double patty) -One order of fries and gravy. -2 cans of diet coke.

This was 40 bucks (after a 15% tip because the guy at the til was so great) Still for 35 dollars of Wendy's or Harvey's, your buck goes wayyyyyy further.

The burgers were good. Not great. Same for the fries and gravy, super standard nothing notable. My dad had read somewhere they were "the best burgers in Canada" so we had to try. It was all hot and fresh and made to order which is always great for this type of meal nobody wants precooked.

Still sadly, they're not worth returning for.

I hope this establishment sticks around and improves and expands their burger menu, as there are only 2 to choose from. Which would be fine if they were good enough you wouldn't want...