This new brasserie is not quite French (fried chicken, beef wellington, clam chowder and similar items are on the menu). The place is quite attractive and very pleasant to sit in. The service was a little erratic, but good enough. The problem is that the food was totally mediocre. Our salade Lyonnaise was mainly frisee out of a bag. The pate was bland, tending toward tasteless. And the onion soup was treacly sweet with a strange aftertaste--suggesting that the stock was not prepared from scratch. We are unlikely to return.
Lori
This is a brand new restaurant in Branford. We were skeptical but was pleasantly surprised. Food was excellent. It was hot and delicious. Service was a bit off but it is new so that should take care of itself in time. There was a Mexican restaurant in there prior. They could do a bit more for the ambiance part. Thinking small booth's in the bar area instead of high tops. All of our food was perfect. We will be back soon! Let's support this new restaurant!
Traci
The Essex was fantastic. Ambiance, service, menu, and finally, great food. Colt, the chef/owner is amazing and we will go back often. One of the best burgers I have ever had - period!!! This restaurant is a homerun for Branford!!!
Leeny
Delicious French- inspired food in agreeable ambiance..wait staff were stellar! Friendly, knowledgable, and professional. Welcome addition to Branford, CT food scene. I ordered the mushroom risotto with incredibly delicious oysters as my first course. I highly recommend this restaurant.
Lindy Lee
It is great to have this French inspired brasserie in Branford. It is lovely without pretention. The menu is inclusive for every palate. The bar is well appointed. The staff was cordial and efficient, There are also nightly specials that are appealing and price sensitive. I will definitely return.
Dinner was outstanding, and the service impeccable! The fresh bread was served with a delicious whipped butter, drinks were wonderful. We started our meal with the lobster and beet fusilli - taste was amazing, huge chunks of lobster served with the most delicious beet infused pasta! For the entree I truly enjoyed the Seared Salmon, with its unusual presentation. I would definitely consider this as one of my all time favorite and most satisfying meals!
The food is very good, the tables are well spaced, and the staff is lovely. The wine pour is very small - and I am not a big drinker - and the dinner was not served until an hour and half after we arrived. The place was not that crowded the evening. That said, this was the first time we were there and the service was slow. Otherwise, the place is very good.
The best fish tacos I've ever had! I've had them there before, but last nights 6/8/24 were absolutely the best. Lightly tempura fish-perfect spice blend-and scrumptious! The guacamole was also delicious as well as the salsa flight. Oh, and don't forget the traditional margaritas! My family also loved their tacos!
The food was delicious, but there were only three tables of patrons in the restaurant and our service was terrible. I believe servers are just not trained well. There was no refill of water glasses. There was no cleaning up the table before next course and when asked for silverware the waitress forgot.
For some odd reason the restaurant was not busy on a Saturday night! We lucked out. The server was excellent, even after I asked a really stupid question. The guacamole was out of this world good!! My husband got chicken fajitas and ate every last bite. My tacos were also excellent. Too full for dessert, but we'll be back.
The food was good, but the service was very poor. I had felt bad because there was only one waitress for the whole restaurant at that time and due to that the service was not the best at all. If they had more staff it would have been more efficient. Would most likely not go again.
Foodiefanatic
I have been to this restaurant several times before, and was so surprised to have a poor experience this time. The food has absolutely gone down hill, and much of it was lacking in flavor. I could justify the price tag in previous experiences, but this was very disappointing. The biggest surprise was how bad the drinks were. I have told countless people how great both the food and drinks are here, and they were some of the worst cocktails I have had in a long time. Our server was not very welcomign or friendly, and I felt like we were rushed most of our meal. I hate to say it, but due to this experience I will likely patron other places in the future instead.
My family ordered the salsa flight and guacamole to start. One thing to note if you have a nut allergy notify the server RIGHT AWAY. The salsa flight has a peanut salsa and guacamole has pumpkin seeds on top. I personally find that pumpkin seeds ruin the guacamole plain is always better. The salsa flight was a great way to find the salsa you'll like the best without having to order large portions of it. For dinner we order chicken tinga fajitas and gazpacho. The fajitas were moist and flavorful. The crema must have been home made it was delicious (sour cream) . The gazpacho was just ok came puréed which is not the typically way it's presented. Overall I would return for fajitas and the salsa flight.
Zxurian
Good food and drinks, service was a little lackluster.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 2
We made a reservation for Mother's Day for 4pm. The day of I received a voicemail that they actually close at 4pm. Apparently whoever is in charge of removing that option for online booking has not yet updated the times. Despite this, the staff were incredibly accommodating and kind, keeping the kitchen open and not rushing us through our meal. The food was great, the margs were tasty, and even the v young kiddos had a great time there and wanted to stay longer. Whoever is in charge of changing the reservation options, PLEASE make the change happen so that their wonderful staff can go home on time!!!!
This new brasserie is not quite French (fried chicken, beef wellington, clam chowder and similar items are on the menu). The place is quite attractive and very pleasant to sit in. The service was a little erratic, but good enough. The problem is that the food was totally mediocre. Our salade Lyonnaise was mainly frisee out of a bag. The pate was bland, tending toward tasteless. And the onion soup was treacly sweet with a strange aftertaste--suggesting that the stock was not prepared from scratch. We are unlikely to return.
This is a brand new restaurant in Branford. We were skeptical but was pleasantly surprised. Food was excellent. It was hot and delicious. Service was a bit off but it is new so that should take care of itself in time. There was a Mexican restaurant in there prior. They could do a bit more for the ambiance part. Thinking small booth's in the bar area instead of high tops. All of our food was perfect. We will be back soon! Let's support this new restaurant!
The Essex was fantastic. Ambiance, service, menu, and finally, great food. Colt, the chef/owner is amazing and we will go back often. One of the best burgers I have ever had - period!!! This restaurant is a homerun for Branford!!!
Delicious French- inspired food in agreeable ambiance..wait staff were stellar! Friendly, knowledgable, and professional. Welcome addition to Branford, CT food scene. I ordered the mushroom risotto with incredibly delicious oysters as my first course. I highly recommend this restaurant.
It is great to have this French inspired brasserie in Branford. It is lovely without pretention. The menu is inclusive for every palate. The bar is well appointed. The staff was cordial and efficient, There are also nightly specials that are appealing and price sensitive. I will definitely return.
Dinner was outstanding, and the service impeccable! The fresh bread was served with a delicious whipped butter, drinks were wonderful. We started our meal with the lobster and beet fusilli - taste was amazing, huge chunks of lobster served with the most delicious beet infused pasta! For the entree I truly enjoyed the Seared Salmon, with its unusual presentation. I would definitely consider this as one of my all time favorite and most satisfying meals!
The food is very good, the tables are well spaced, and the staff is lovely. The wine pour is very small - and I am not a big drinker - and the dinner was not served until an hour and half after we arrived. The place was not that crowded the evening. That said, this was the first time we were there and the service was slow. Otherwise, the place is very good.
The best fish tacos I've ever had! I've had them there before, but last nights 6/8/24 were absolutely the best. Lightly tempura fish-perfect spice blend-and scrumptious! The guacamole was also delicious as well as the salsa flight. Oh, and don't forget the traditional margaritas! My family also loved their tacos!
The food was delicious, but there were only three tables of patrons in the restaurant and our service was terrible. I believe servers are just not trained well. There was no refill of water glasses. There was no cleaning up the table before next course and when asked for silverware the waitress forgot.
For some odd reason the restaurant was not busy on a Saturday night! We lucked out. The server was excellent, even after I asked a really stupid question. The guacamole was out of this world good!! My husband got chicken fajitas and ate every last bite. My tacos were also excellent. Too full for dessert, but we'll be back.
Restaurantji Recommends
The food was good, but the service was very poor. I had felt bad because there was only one waitress for the whole restaurant at that time and due to that the service was not the best at all. If they had more staff it would have been more efficient. Would most likely not go again.
I have been to this restaurant several times before, and was so surprised to have a poor experience this time. The food has absolutely gone down hill, and much of it was lacking in flavor. I could justify the price tag in previous experiences, but this was very disappointing. The biggest surprise was how bad the drinks were. I have told countless people how great both the food and drinks are here, and they were some of the worst cocktails I have had in a long time. Our server was not very welcomign or friendly, and I felt like we were rushed most of our meal. I hate to say it, but due to this experience I will likely patron other places in the future instead.
My family ordered the salsa flight and guacamole to start. One thing to note if you have a nut allergy notify the server RIGHT AWAY. The salsa flight has a peanut salsa and guacamole has pumpkin seeds on top. I personally find that pumpkin seeds ruin the guacamole plain is always better. The salsa flight was a great way to find the salsa you'll like the best without having to order large portions of it. For dinner we order chicken tinga fajitas and gazpacho. The fajitas were moist and flavorful. The crema must have been home made it was delicious (sour cream) . The gazpacho was just ok came puréed which is not the typically way it's presented. Overall I would return for fajitas and the salsa flight.
Good food and drinks, service was a little lackluster.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 2
We made a reservation for Mother's Day for 4pm. The day of I received a voicemail that they actually close at 4pm. Apparently whoever is in charge of removing that option for online booking has not yet updated the times. Despite this, the staff were incredibly accommodating and kind, keeping the kitchen open and not rushing us through our meal. The food was great, the margs were tasty, and even the v young kiddos had a great time there and wanted to stay longer. Whoever is in charge of changing the reservation options, PLEASE make the change happen so that their wonderful staff can go home on time!!!!
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