Essex Restaurant overall score: 84
My wife and I came here during the joint’s opening week. We ate at a high top near the bar so we could enjoy some of the awesome happy hour deals.
Flavor: 7
We had the porterhouse. There is a nice amount of dry aged flavor on this steak, but it just needed a bit more seasoning to really pop.
The steak was also a little overcooked, rendering some of the slices dry and mealy in texture. But nothing that a sauce couldn’t fix. I chalk this up to opening week jitters.
Choice of Cuts & Quality Available: 8
There are five different steaks on the menu, including some wagyu. All the bases are covered (filet, strip, rib eye, porterhouse), but perhaps something like a skirt or flat iron could round out the selections for their steak frites item (currently that is just another strip steak, likely boneless and smaller than their dry-aged offering). My suspicion is that everything here is choice, given the low pricing and the lack of “prime” statement on the menu (with the exception of the wagyu filet – ungraded Mishima Reserve, 8oz for $83).
Portion Size & Plating: 8
All of the portions here seemed generous for the price. We had a few happy hour items that were discounted, so that definitely helped in the whole “bang for your buck” department. Plating was very nicely executed in steel platters.
Price: 10
You get a lot for your money here. The prices feel like they’re dialed back to 10 years ago. Happy hour drinks were $9, which is excellent. And $1.50 oysters and other discounted plates made the appetizer round a steal.
Bar: 9
Gorgeous bar. A great place out hang out and people watch along the windows on the high tops. It can be a bit crammed along the side wall, but the bar is roomy and beautiful. Their Applewood Smoked Old Fashioned was a steal at $9 for happy hour.
Specials and Other Meats: 7
We had the lamb shank and kofta meatballs alongside our steak. Both could have used a bit more salt, but execution and flavor was on point for these.
Apps, Sides & Desserts: 8
We ordered some happy hour starters like oysters, truffle parm fries, and fried calamari. These were all excellent and at a great price for happy hour.
The steak came with za’atar spiced smashed fingerling potatoes (also comes with their steak frites). These were actually my favorite item of the night!
The broccolini was nice, but also needed some salt. In fact the only things that didn’t need salt were the fried items and the dessert
For dessert, we tried the pineapple cake, which sort of tasted like corn bread – both in flavor and texture. I enjoyed it but the cake dealer did not.
Seafood Selection: 7
There’s standard steakhouse seafood fare here on the appetizer menu, but the only offering on the entree menu is branzino. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and maybe the menu will change seasonally. But the seafood we DID have was great.
Service: 10
Service was great here. Staff knew their menu well, and they were considerate enough to ask us if we wanted to sit in the bar area to take advantage of happy hour.
Ambiance: 10
The dining space here is gorgeous. There is an upstairs seating area, and a high ceiling downstairs area in back. They really did a great job of creating a big steakhouse feel in a small-ish neighborhood joint. I will definitely be back to try their burger, rib eye, strip steak and steak frites.
ESSEX RESTAURANT
124 Rivington Street
New York, NY 10002
