Imperial — Restaurant in Maryland

I place an order for delivery through there website, the total was $60 which included the tip for the driver. The delivery is accomplished through a third party company called doordash. I will start with my gripes first, cause I believe this prevented my order from bieng ideal. Doordash placed my order in the care of individuals that decided to stray of course for over 10 minutes. I was using there application to track my order, after they pick up my food it seemed they where in route but a few minutes in they decided to go the opposite direction from there destination. They stop at a place for twelve minutes, all the while my food getting colder by the minute, I don't know why. When they finally arrived late, obviously, I attempted to ask the individual what the detour was? But this person immediately turned around after handing me my food. No greeting or hello, just off they go... Poor delivery service makes for a bad order, I would suggest Imperial reconsider there relationship with Doordash or way they can improve, still curious on what they did for that twelve minutes... In all honesty it's so far my only problem with Imperial. Now for the food, It's what I would call a shining "Standard" for Chinese cuisine in Hagerstown. The only flaw I noticed was my crab rangoon where no longer warm, the cause is probably what I mentioned above with the additional twelve minutes of delivery time. The caveat is that it came in an insulated bag that is ideal for heating in an oven or microwave if ever needed, that's convient, though one should never anticipate there food arriving no longer warm, I do appreciate the option and will not fault them for the effort. Sauce for the rangoons where not included, maybe on purpose because when hot it's not needed but as I mentioned before mine where barely warm so sauce would be ideal in my situation, nothing of noteworthy with the taste, just regular rangoons in my opinion. The fried pork dumpling I found to be quite good, the dumpling still had there crunch though a fair portion of each dumpling was soggy, due to time but still warm, probably cause it was further down the bag, the crab rangoons where on top. The sauce for the dumpling I found to be quite complementary, sour & slightly acidic, a suitable combination. Though I would prefer if it was slightly spicy too, but I understand spicy food probably isn't to popular around these parts. The Vegetables fried rice was favorable and complementary with my main dish, it added some necessary green or color. Most of the vegetable still had there crush but partly soggy because of time, a balance of saltiness and umami done well, with separate grains visible and almost no clumping, small amounts of clumping possibly due to time. Now finally the main dish, General Tso's chicken, from the reviews it should be a treat, Yes? It does not disappoint, possibly the best Tso I had in recent memory let alone in the whole of Hagerstown. The sauce has little viscosity with the signature sweet then sour flavour that coats and clings to the chicken well, may also be used to flavor the white rice or as a alternative dip sauce for your rangoons. The chicken of the Tso are large chunks of either breast or thigh, some may have a hard or more chewy skin a by product of the frying but most are still tender. There's no vegetable here hence I recommended the vegetable fried rice, to compensate for the unwelcomed broccoli that usually accompanies this dish. The last item on my order was sweet tea, nothing much to say other than like most places to much ice but I do like the taste balance of favouring tea over sugar. In conclusion the main hindrance to five stars for Imperial was doordash, there effort lowered the quality of the food, kinda makes you regret tipping them $7 for a mediocre...

I must admit I'm still kicking myself for not dining here before now!!! I have known about the Imperial for many years but just never stopped in. It's a very well established Chinese restaurant in the north end of Hagerstown, Md. It sets back from the road a bit but is very easy to find. There's a big yellow sign out on Pennsylvania avenue. Remember, this was my first time there, but it certainly will not be my last!!! As soon as I entered, I was greeted warmly with a big friendly smile from the hostess. Everything about the place is wonderful. The food, the staff and the atmosphere. As I was waiting on my meal, I was very entertained by watching the hostess literally skipping from the front to the kitchen!!! Let me tell you this lady was just full of life and what I took to be a very happy person. SKIPPING!!! I loved it!! The take out business there was also very brisk. Constant, almost. Anyway, they have a full service bar as well and their cocktail and drink prices are also very reasonable. Most were just $7.75 and large and potent. I had a few Mai Tai's and they were delicious. For my meal I had an appetizer of shrimp toast and the entree was called Seafood Combination in Bird's Nest. It was shrimp, lobster and scallops with vegetables in a bowl shaped nest of crispy taro potatoes. I had the combination which also comes with a shrimp roll and soup of your choice. Their menu is very extensive. It seemed to be a family affair as the husband and children were all pitching in. The interior is very cozy and the chinese music was very relaxing and conducive to having a great experience, which I most certainly did!! I highly recommend giving the Imperial a try if you're in the area or just passing through. It's very easy to get to from both Interstate 81 and also from Interstate 70. You'll be very pleased you did!!! I CAN'T WAIT...

People kept saying this was the best Chinese in Hagerstown, but it wasn't the closest so I've put off from ordering...until now! And now I know why people say it really is the best! The food is restaurant quality, not the same more fried than meat chewy frozen stuff from most generic Chinese take outs. You can actually see and taste the fresh big chicken pieces in dishes like general TSO chicken. The dumplings are HUGE, they have HOUSE MADE duck sauce that you get either in a huge jar (dine in) or a big cup w/lid (to go). They have plenty of dishes on the menu you don't see in other to-go places either. The soups were delish, I loved the hot and sour, it wasn't super spicy like some,.just a touch of heat which I like (no modifications requested). l was glad that the other dishes we ordered like the kung Pao chicken they allow you to adjust the heat, so you can make them mild if requested. Crab ragoons were huge! Lots of filling in them, make sure u request sauce. While we did to-go the inside looked very nice and elegant, with white table cloths and plenty of seating, for a nice dinner out, so I can't wait for my family to visit to take them. Il have to take photos then, I was too busy stuffing my face with our Christmas meal on my couch to get photos this time haha! The staff was all super friendly and nice, casually talking and joking with customers who seemed like regulars. Easy parking with their own parking lot. Handicap ramp up as well. I also loved that when u order off the website you have the option to upgrade things such as white rice to fried or noodles, vs always having to get white rice that no one will eat and order a whole separate and expensive large order of noodles. You can request double meat or extra vegetables as well...