Ludography
Restaurant Empire cover

2003 · Enlight Software · Business simulation · Simulation

Restaurant Empire

Starting with nothing except some cash and a passion for food, build a restaurant from the bottom up - hire waiters, decorate, even cook the meals! Buy, build, outsell and underprice your competition.

Released
17 March 2003
Platforms
Windows
Genres
Business simulationSimulation
Developers
Enlight Software
Publishers
Enlight Software
Modes
Single-player
Perspective
Bird view / Isometric
Themes
BusinessSandbox
Country
People's Republic of China
Age ratings
ESRB ECLASS_IND LUSK 6
Languages
English

About

Restaurant Empire (simplified Chinese: 奇迹餐厅; traditional Chinese: 奇蹟餐廳; pinyin: Qí Jì Cān Tīng) is a 2003 business simulation video game created by Trevor Chan. Developed and published by Enlight Software for Microsoft Windows, the player owns, designs, and operates a restaurant.

Keywords

  • tycoon
  • cooking
  • management
  • restaurant
  • chef's hat

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

The player assumes the role of Armand LeBoeuf, a young chef who has recently taken over his uncle's restaurant. As the new owner, the player makes decisions on the kind of cuisine the restaurant serves (American, French, or Italian), what specific dishes go on the menu, and the staffing from the chef on down to the waiters, among other things. The ultimate goal of the game is to keep guests happy and make money at the same time.

The main gameplay mode features some story details and periodic minigames to flesh out the simulation. There is also a sandbox mode, which is basically freeform. Sandbox play removes many of the limitations the player faces in the main story mode, but there are no challenges either.

Story

In the game, a global culinary conglomerate, Omnifood, controls over 60% of the world's restaurants and is rapidly growing. The player must compete against Omnifood.

The player takes the role of Armand LeBeouf, a recent graduate from a French culinary school given the opportunity by his uncle to run his own restaurant. Later, the player is given the opportunity to attract investment capital and open more restaurants.

Reception

The game received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. It was criticized for its poor soundtrack, blurry textures, and blocky character models, but praised for overall good gameplay.

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

Releases by platform
PlatformReleasedRegions
Windows1 March 2003Worldwide

Editions and related releases

Followed by
Restaurant Empire IIRestaurant Empire 2

Games like this

Collections1 collection

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.