Essex
New York, NY 10002
Phone: (212) 533-9616
- Price:
- $$
- Cross Street:
- Between Rivington Street and Delancey Street
- Directions:
- F at Delancey St; J, M, Z at Essex St
- Best of Citysearch:
- Morning-After Brunch 2008
- Hours:
- Tue-Thu 6pm-12am, Fri 6pm-1am, Sat 11am-4pm, 6pm-1am, Sun 11am-11pm
Editorial Review for Essex – by Cat Greenleaf
The Scene
The meeting of dramatic, wide-open space and a warm family vibe may be the key to Essex's magic. Double-height, white-washed brick walls and skylights overlook sleek black tables and chairs, creating a sparse, clean atmosphere. At the eat-in bar, bartenders serve up margaritas and Manhattans with a flair that turns alcohol into an art.
The Food
The fresh menu pays homage to the quirky cultural mixture of the Lower East Side, with plates like potato cake Napoleon, the Essex Cubano sandwich, scallop and mango seviche, tempura tuna and kasha varnishkes. On the weekends, it turns into a lively post-meal destination with DJs spinning an easy blend of house and hip-hop.
Editorial content is independent of paid advertisers. Any expenses are paid for by Citysearch.
Insider Tips
Save MoneyThe hearty $16 brunch on Saturdays and Sundays includes three bloody marys, mimosas or screwdrivers.
Know Before You GoThe kitchen always closes one hour before the bar.
User Reviews for Essex
07/15/2008 Posted by Sonsie
I had dinner @ Essex last night (Monday Night). Essex featured $ 1.00 Oysters and half price drinks. I started with the oysters, my friends had the crabcake and the smoked trout. For the main course, I had the wasabi-crusted salmon, while my friends had the baby lamb chops and grilled swordfish. All of our dishes were excellent. The service was terrific and all of the waitresses looked great in their Essex black uniforms. We all shared an order of potato pancakes which were outrageous. I had one of their new house cocktails called the Green Zinger ( Green Tea Vodka, Pimm's & Lime). I strongly recommend it. For dessert the table shared the Molten Chocolate Cake and the Apple Tart. We really had a great time and when the check came, we were all shocked at the low, low prices..Essex is serving uptown food at downtown prices...I highly recommed Essex Restaurant.
Pros: Food and Service were great
07/15/2008 Posted by Melis979
I never write these things, but after last nights experience, I just want to make everyone aware of how horrible my friends and I were treated when we went out for a friend's birthday dinner. We were having dinner and drinks and everything was going fine, the food was good and, since the place was not too crowded, service was OK. The waitress brought us another round of drinks and ended up spilling all of the drinks on me and all over my bag, soaking the bag and the contents in it. The waitress apologized and said this round was on her. Thinking more than just the drinks she spilt should be on her, I decided to not make a huge deal of it and ruin the birthday dinner. We then ordered a shot for the birthday girl and the waitress bought out one for everyone. Thinking that it was on the house because of what had just happened, we gladly accepted them. When we got the bill though, we realized she had charged us for all 6. Again not making a big deal, we paid the bill and went on our way. While we were standing outside of Essex, deciding where to go next, another waitress (who was not serving us) came outside and screamed at the top of her lungs so that everyone on the street would turn around and look at us, “15%, all you are f@*% leaving is 15% and went back inside. I have NEVER been more embarrassed in my life. We were not going to make a big deal of the situation at all and then this person starting yelling at us about the tip we left our waitress who just spilt 6 glasses of sangria on me and did nothing but buy us a round of drinks (and we actually left 17% which is more than enough considering what had happened). We then went in to speak with the manager who just gave us a comp card for the next time we came in (which will be never after this!) and did not offer to pay to clean my bag or even speak to the women who just embarrassed us! Now I see why Essex gets such bad reviews, their customer service is horrible!!
