Empire Hotel

No points for its setting on Parramatta Road but the Empire Hotel does score for a pleasant interior, prompt service and good, inexpensive food. Tender lamb shanks in red wine and rosemary jus are propped on a serious bed of oozy mash and subtly imbued with a hint of curry, perhaps echoing a lamb curry special that was on, too; but the dish was great. Chicken parmigiana is smothered in a mushroom sauce and arrives with hefty salad and chunky chips. Hunks of garlic bread are smeared with butter but are impossible to finish - portion sizes are massive.