Pretty close to a perfect coffee shop. Indoor and outdoor seating, good food and drink offerings made with great quality. My only gripe with this establishment is the staff. I can’t speculate why but every time I stop by it seems difficult for the those working here to show any signs of friendliness.

I was at this place for the first time, as a first-time visitor to Nelson, British Columbia. This place was wonderful! Loved the atmosphere, the coffee, and the space itself. Some of the best espresso I've had. Will absolutely visit the next time I'm in town!

Really poor coffee for a coffee house. Shot was totally burnt. Americano was overfilled with water. Barista didn't ask how much water to add. Not that it mattered due to lack of quality control. I highly recommend bean here now. Much better product served with care and attention to detail. Muffin was passable but weird flavors... Nothing the kids liked.

Vegan desserts and drinks taste great! They put time and effort into their products, and even when busy give good service with a smile.

Decent coffee shop, good cookie 🍪 the coffee all though pretty was cold asked for x hot to cool busy to care or pay attention to order....lots of other choices to experience a decent coffee in Nelson. Good luck with your coffee quest😜

Great patio, delicious breakfast sandwich, reasonable price. Nice!

Very tasty breakfast bagel

Best coffee shop in Nelson! Food is delicious, staff is friendly and coffee is consistently bomb

Great outdoor seating area, limited indoor seating, felt in the way when waiting for drinks.

Their lemon cheesecake is delicious. Coffee is always good. Lots of local products and souvenirs , books..

Such a quaint little coffee shop. I like the outside seating area....highly reccomend this spot ☕

Food was fresh and tasty

They have nice baked goods, and a beautiful atmosphere, but the coffee can be a hit in the dark. Sometimes its delicious and sometimes it's just ok. I would recommend it though.

Talk about vibes! The atmosphere here is legit, calm and clean with a little retro throw back. Well worth the wait in my opinion. The coffee came quite but the breakfast sandwich took a little more time. Worth it though, that tomato jam was to die for, I would highly recommend them bottling it and sell it, I would for sure stock up on that. As for the rest of the sandwich was just as good, back bacon was well cooked and the egg was perfect with just a little bit of runny yolk but no so much that you get it all over your hands and that aïoli was a nice touch! As for the vanilla latte I ordered it was the perfect temperature, I got two pumps of vanilla to balance out the tasty bitterness of the stumptown expresso. Looking forward to the next time I can come back. Next time I wanna hang out in the atrium, that looked so cool!

Good breakfast sandwich.

We've been here a few times and sat in the glass encased sun room. Nice, clean and it's a pretty modern space to grab a beverage and snack. Good selection of caffeinated, non caffeinated as well as some boozey options. Staff is very nice. Music varies depending on the employee rotation but most times we like the tunes they play.

Great selection of treats / food / and drinks. I come here with my kids all the time and the staff are very friendly. This place gets busy and sometimes we just listen to the complex drink variations they make and are shocked! I don’t think anywhere in town makes as many specialty drinks as this place. My favourite is the selection of bagel sandwiches, and the muffins. Ambience is great, always a nice selection of indie tunes, cosy vibes, and the terrarium in the warmer months is just the best! Love it here

Empire coffee is great, place is super clean and the atrium or sunroom is a great place to enjoy your eats and drinks. We had the ginger fresh tea today and is was unexpectedly flavourful! Excellent to the last drop. Nelson as a whole is a great town to people watch, this place was no different, love the diversity in this town🥰

After our first choice for breakfast had a line down the street, we decided on Empire Coffee for a quick to-go breakfast. Serving Stumptown coffee and a bakery case full of delectable pastries and muffins, you’re sure to find something tasty. I got the veggie bagel sandwich (pictured) and loved it. We experienced friendly service which wasn’t rushed nor too slow. A great stop for grabbing goods on the go or sitting down on their enclosed patio.

Friendly service, good baked goods and coffee. Informal comfortable atmosphere.

Delicious breakfast and lunch. Well made coffees and friendly staff. Wish we had found this place sooner! We will be back on our next visit.

This place has poor service, the lady that took our order rolled her eyes because she did not get a tip, after stacking 20 dollars for 4 baked goods on top of one another in a to go box. If you feel entitled to a tip work at a restaurant not a coffee shop. I don't tip at Tim Hortons or Starbucks and recieve much better service from these places when going in for coffee.

Excellent sometime coffee will be very happy drinking it. Friendly service tasty coffee lots of other food to eat. Wonderful warm environment friendly too.

Consistently good coffee and specialty drinks. The smoked salmon bagel is to die for and you can’t leave without grabbing the chocolate chip chessecake…. WOW.

I have been coming here for years The food is excellent, the baking is excellent, the atmosphere is perfect. I used to love this place because I could get a great breakfast sandwich (still can ) BUT .. the coffees? Its NOT good anymore. Its gone from great to inconsistent to consistently bad Just really weak tasteless coffee Im really disappointed because it has been my go to since before it became Empire

Their coffee is really great and the atmosphere is cozy and roomy. The sweet treats though are awesome. Yummy cookies and cakes

I am done. Too many entitled computer campers taking up tables while paying customers stand holding their food wondering where to sit. Staff is oblivious. Got a response from the owner, feeling my review was 'unjust'. I wanted him to know that, last time we were in (and it probably WILL be the last time), after waiting for a table for 20 minutes, while people sat on their computers, not drinking or eating at all - we finally had a discussion with the manager on duty. She explained that there was nothing she could do, yet she could clearly see that our complaint was completely justified. Too bad, because we've been coming here since it opened, and we love everything else about the venue and it's offerings.

The staff is very friendly and helpful, the coffee here is my favorite in town, good quality and really tasty! The pastries all looked really good and the food smelled/ looked amazing. I tried a pesto pastry heated up, so delicious! I have tried almost all the coffee spots in town and this is my go to place when visiting, highly recommend. The macaroons were so cute and the lemon one tasted amazing.

Opens nice and early Sunday morning - cappuccinos not quite a little too much milk but enjoyed the soft music - furnishing and photo decor- multi level comfy vibes

We enjoyed the coffee here at Empire Coffee. The service was friendly and fast and the coffee was great. Definitely would recommend checking this spot out.

Delicious drinks and a Veggie sandwich. Love the location and food options. Very friendly and helpful staff.

I love going to Empire for Matcha lattes, they make them so amazing, I love the venue and the staff are always lovely.

Great coffee, sandwiches, muffins and other treats. Also has top quality raw desserts and vegan muffins and cookies. The seating areas are excellent, there are bar height spots by the windows, booths inside and tables in the solarium section.

Delicious and cheap breakfast

Lots of V/GF options, and Stumptown coffee.

I like the coffee and solarium, the breakfast bagel with the olive tapenade is great. Although, you may wait 10 minutes for your black drip coffee and when you politely ask if they forgot they might snort at you and make you wait another 5 minutes. Also if you ask what kind of chai tea they have they might tell you “I don’t know” and follow-up by putting in no effort to find out for you even when it isn’t busy.

Nice coffee shop with some breakfast sandwich selections and baked goods. Coffee was very good--I just had a dark roast, and the breakfast bagel was well made. I didn't care for the tomato jam but it wasn't terrible, only not my thing. We were happy to find it because almost all of the restaurants we'd found were closed for the holiday Monday or not open until later. Sat in the patio and enjoyed the view and the breeze.

Coffee was great! Food was okay.

They are a warm and friendly, just from walking in the doors you feel welcome. The drinks there are amazing and so is the food. It’s a great place to work if you bring your laptop and have something on the side. The outside seating is just as great as the inside. I highly recommend going there.

Great coffee, pastries, and sandwich selection! Nice decor, and the outdoor patio looks like it would be great in the summer!

Excellent! The food was fresh and flavorful. The coffee has good flavor and the breakfast sandwich has a spicy sauce that was unique in a good way. You must also try the good morning muffins. Overall a wonderful experience.

Good place and has many options for coffee lovers

I wish I could give it 5 stars for the baristas alone. They push out great beverages in quick order especially during busy morning times. The hot food people on the other hand are completely incapable to make even a simple breakfast sandwich. What sounds delicious on the menu turned out to be cold english muffin with cold meat and cold cheese. And it took over 20 minutes to make! Yikes. So, stay for the drinks, go someplace else for hot food.

Located in the Adventure Hotel with street access this is a great place to start your Nelson adventure. Stumptown coffee from Portland is on tap here and you'll feel like you're sitting at Stumptown's coffee shop as sip it. There's a wide selection of inhouse baked pastries as well as various sandwiches. Seating in the main area can be a challenge but there's a large glass enclosed area attached to the coffee shop which allows for watching Nelson life pass by. It's also a great place to sit on a rainy day.

WORST ICED CHAI OF MY LIFE. ALL MILK. NO SPICE. I LEFT A 50% TIP FOR NOTHING.

My favorite go-to coffee shop :)

Good coffee

Tasty coffee with a cool patio thingy

Great coffee and baked goods!

Better espresso than Oso. Sorry!

Love the sun room

Great selection of baked goodies coffee and cold drinks. Even so kindly checked in the back for more banana bread for my son.

Solid coffee. Excellent Breakfast Bagel sandwich. Lovely service, and super fast! Lots of seating space. Customer bathroom.

Great coffee, fast WiFi, lots of seating, good sandwiches. Everything you need for an office away from the office.

Big slide in quality. Espresso burnt, not a usual good Stumptown. Food over cooked. Too many good cafes in Nelson to bother.

Great drink and snack selection, indoor and outdoor seating, friendly staff. I love this place!

Typical coffe shop. Stand in line, wait to get your order, go sit outside.

Good coffee and bites. Outdoor and indoor seating. It's a small-ish busy place.

great service,,great coffees

Often busy when I'm there (a good sign no doubt). Orders come out in a reasonably timely manner and they have a nice solarium to sit in.

Nice little coffee shop on Baker that I enjoy on a semi regular basis