Restaurant Empire II

About

In Restaurant Empire II, manage a restaurant empire and out-cook competitors in a campaign that follows the Lebouf family's culinary journey, with a remastered campaign from the original game. Expand your business with two new enterprise categories: Coffee Shops and Dessert Houses, offering over 130 unique items in each. This game combines business strategy, role-playing elements, and a sandbox mode to provide a delicious gastronomic experience in four cities and cuisines.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

80%

Audience ScoreBased on 344 reviews

gameplay10 positive mentions

graphics16 negative mentions

The game offers a detailed and engaging restaurant management experience, allowing players to manage various aspects such as staff, menu, and decor.
Despite its age, the game is still considered one of the best in the restaurant simulation genre, with high replay value and nostalgic appeal.
Players appreciate the depth of micromanagement and the challenge of balancing customer satisfaction and profitability.

The user interface is clunky and outdated, making it difficult to navigate and manage multiple restaurants effectively.
There are significant bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay, including issues with customer AI and menu management.
The game lacks variety in decor options and can feel repetitive, with many players expressing a desire for more customization and modern features.

graphics
72 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
58%
22%
The graphics of the game are widely regarded as outdated and basic, often described as "potato graphics," yet many players still find the overall experience enjoyable. While some appreciate the nostalgic charm and detail in certain elements, there is a strong desire for a modern remake with improved visuals and mechanics. Overall, the graphics may not meet contemporary standards, but they do not significantly detract from the fun gameplay.
- “The graphics are a little dated, but nothing to complain about.”
- “Plus, you get to see all your delicious recipes in highly-detailed 3D graphics.”
- “Restaurant Empire 2 is a much improved version of its predecessor, with better graphics and larger varieties of recipes, restaurant buildings, and the new theme restaurants (e.g. rainforest theme and racing-car theme).”
- “The graphics and some of the gameplay are very dated but it's still fun.”
- “The graphics are outdated, but they still can excite your imaginations and make you drool from their food menu.”
- “Something I was disappointed in was the lack of improvement in graphics between the first and second version.”
gameplay
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
62%
9%
The gameplay is centered around managing a chain of boutique restaurants, which remains engaging despite the game's dated graphics and some clunky mechanics. While the core concept is praised for its depth and challenge, many players find the user interface unintuitive and the micromanagement aspects tedious, leading to a mixed overall experience. An update with modern graphics and improved mechanics could significantly enhance the enjoyment of the gameplay.
- “The core gameplay - managing a chain of boutique restaurants across the globe you build one piece of kitchen equipment and dinner table at a time - remains excellent to this day.”
- “The graphics aren't the greatest by today's standards (the game is after all 8 years old), but the gameplay aspect is genius...”
- “It's great gameplay and you can play it for hours :) not the newest thing but still loving it!”
- “The movement mechanics of the NPCs are frustrating and detract from the overall experience.”
- “The UI/gameplay isn't quite intuitive enough, making it hard to feel motivated to play the game.”
- “There is very little reward in terms of gameplay for what seems like a lot of micromanaging of recipe screens.”
story
32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
59%
9%
The game's story is a mix of charm and cliché, featuring a young chef's journey in the restaurant industry, but it has been criticized for its misogynistic undertones and reliance on stereotypes. While some players find the narrative engaging and well-integrated with RPG elements, others view it as simplistic and secondary to the gameplay mechanics. Overall, the story provides a decent backdrop for the tycoon experience, with a campaign mode that adds depth to the restaurant management simulation.
- “Restaurant Empire 2 integrates a compelling story and RPG elements (chef character skills, etc.) into a highly detailed restaurant simulation.”
- “This game also has an interesting story that keeps you going in the campaign mode.”
- “It lets you manage multiple restaurants, create menus, decorate the rooms, attend cooking competitions, etc. Besides the usual sandbox mode for this genre, there's also a story campaign mode about a young ambitious chef starting his dream business.”
- “The storyline and characters try to be charming but are inherently misogynist and slightly over-invested in pushing stereotypes.”
- “The game plot is rather simple, and most of the mechanics are even more so.”
- “A small dash of storyline is thrown in, but it can be safely ignored.”
stability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is mixed, with some users reporting a few glitches and bugs, particularly in later scenarios, while others experience no significant issues such as tearing or graphical problems. Overall, while the graphics are generally pleasant, the presence of persistent glitches and poor AI mapping detracts from the experience for some players.
- “I would give it a thumbs-up if not for a couple of glitches that start showing up around the 11th scenario and continue beyond.”
- “Unfortunately, the game is buggy, the AI mapping is very bad and probably won't ever be fixed.”
- “The game offers some nice graphics, although there are some ugly glitches here and there.”
replayability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
33%
33%
The game boasts high replayability, with many users highlighting its engaging nature and the added value of a sandbox mode. However, some feel that the sandbox mode lacks certain features found in the campaign, which may limit its overall replay potential.
- “High replay value.”
- “The replayability is really high.”
- “In conclusion, the game, while it is fun, leaves much to be desired. The sandbox mode adds a little more replayability, but also lacks some features of the campaign.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find that while the game offers engaging gameplay, it includes tedious grinding elements, particularly in managing menus and adding recipes individually for each restaurant. This aspect can detract from the overall experience, but many still consider the game solid.
- “Managing menus can be tedious.”
- “As other reviews note, there are some tedious aspects to the game (such as adding recipes to menus across each restaurant individually).”
monetization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization aspect of the game has been criticized as a cash grab, with players feeling that the franchise has lost its former quality. Despite starting with a well-equipped setup, players are required to spend money on additional features and face limitations on essential options, leading to frustration with the game's design and monetization strategy.
- “Don't waste money on this game either because it's just a cash grab. Sadly, the glory days of this franchise are done.”
- “Although you begin with a fully decked out kitchen, dining room, and restrooms, you still have to add decoration, dishes, hire staff, etc. Several options (such as advertising and training) are blocked, making it frustrating as your staff act all high and mighty for the first dozen challenges without the ability for you to stop them.”
music
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Users report experiencing a black screen issue where the game loads but only plays music without displaying any visual content or overlay. This problem persists despite various troubleshooting attempts, indicating a significant technical issue affecting gameplay.
- “I get a black screen with the cursor and music, but no overlay window.”
- “Game does not work; it loads a black screen with music. I have tried pretty much everything and it won't work.”
- “I get a black screen with the cursor and music, but no overlay window.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The optimization of the business management aspect is highly praised, with users noting that the data provided for restaurant performance is effectively organized and insightful.
- “The business management aspect in terms of the data the user gets for their restaurants' performance is very well done.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its immersive depth of simulation, surpassing that of other coffee shop games. Players appreciate the rich and engaging environment that enhances their overall experience.
- “The atmosphere and the depth of simulation in this game are far superior to any other coffee shop games I have played!”