Essenza Italian

7 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  7      Service  7      Value  7     

Cute and enjoyable Sunday lunch here, with the set menu of 2 courses for $22.
We were the only patrons which felt odd, but the wait person was knowledgeable and attentive, and all staff remained professional and discreet.

The Fritte de Mare was great, perfectly cooked, and the other dishes were delicious, from the pasta to the mushrooms, to the panna cotta. If only wine prices in these cute little places was better, or a decent house wine was offered.

Feb 26, 2012 

6.5 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  7      Service  7      Value  5     

From the outside Essenza looks like an urban foodie treat, albeit a small dining experience in terms of size of the restaurant. It's in a great junction of Crown and Devonshire and the welcome was genuinely friendly. I instantly wished this restaurant was bigger in size. In time through the night, I found the noise level of this place was actually pretty good and I enjoyed the friendly vibe.

Our waitress sounded French and was serviceable, polite but no congeniality. Our wine came before our aperitif (which by the way was a spritzer of bubbles, orange liqueur and a 'twist of orange' which was bordering vile), and then on to the entree. They offer Stuzzichini, which is I guess Italian tapas, but we chose it as entree.

The pork sausage with olives and calamari was actually really moreish, but the sausage seemed innocuous and nothing different to the pork and fennel sausages you'd get in the supermarket. Arriving with kalamata olive, tomato passata and tiny calamari ringlets was unusual but overall it was a success. Something I'd like to try at home.

On the other side of the table was the Prosciutto and Sopressa Salami Plate with Crostini and although the salami was awesome, the crostini I'd eat bagfuls of, the prosciutto was fairly fatty and at room temp I'm not that much a lover of it.

Finally, the mains arrived and I grabbed the special of gnocchi in an arrabiata sauce with garlic, chilli, pancetta and friends, and he had the veal scallopini. The gnocchi was sooo good, but got boring as it cooled. The veal came on a roaring hot plate (bit too long on the plate warmer perhaps) and fairly minimalistic, just two lean pieces of veal, a few french beans and a slash of mash for nearly $30 helped any dreams of dieting.

For what it is the wine menu suits pretty much all, from those who only drink Australian wines to those who want to try an Italian slant. Sadly no Montepulciano on offer though. Resisting dessert we left, $150 for the 75 minutes there and a job well done.

The service is pretty efficient, the welcome was probably the warmest feeling of the whole night but I'd seriously do something about the air-con, we were getting a bit embarrassed using our napkin to wipe sweat from our foreheads. For all the moans they do good food, they do their best but it's not a space you'd love to linger in all night. I saw an outdoor area and wonder if this would make the night different.

Great food, no wow, little change from $200.

Jan 15, 2012 

5.5 Average

Food  5      Ambience  5      Service  7      Value  5     

Warm breezy Saturday afternoon. $28 set menu. Okay food. Not great. Service good. But how is it that we asked for tap water and yet got not one, two but three bottles of water at $8 a piece? I can appreciate that tough financial times might have compelled some restaurants to an odd brand of entrepreneurialism but such bad behaviour is indistinguishable from that other freaky phenomenon for any small business: the disgruntled first time customer who heads out the door, never to return, multiplied by three and then spread to all of our social and professional networks. Please, when a customer asks for tap water, give them just that.

Nov 26, 2011 

8.5 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  8     

Very good small restaurant. The mushrooms with garlic and polenta was fantastic. The panna cotta was the best ever, and the chocolate indulgence was rich yum!

Nov 15, 2011 

8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  7      Service  9      Value  8     

This is a really nice Italian restaurant in Surry Hills that is always a good evening when we go there. I have been here quite a few times because the food is always delicious and really well priced. I normally get the risotto and my partner will have a pasta, they are not overly complicated but with good flavour. it has a nice relaxed atmosphere and i have always had excellent service.

Sep 24, 2011 

8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  7     

This place is just amazing. 5 of us had dinner here and all enjoyed the beautiful food and the service was great. The restaurant has a nice welcoming warm feel and the fire place makes a great centre piece. If you want great service and beautiful Italian food, dine at Essenza.

Aug 05, 2011 

7 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  7      Service  6      Value  7     

This place is very nice and cosy, the food is great especially the lamb they also had some very nice wine to go with it. Value is as you would expect in a restaurant of this size and the service doesn't leave you much to complain about, all I would say is we had to wait a little to long untill they asked us for dessert which we really wanted to try. All in all I'll be going back for more.

Aug 01, 2011 

9.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  10      Value  9     

Best find in Surry Hills. Amazing experience from the moment we walked in until the moment we left. Extremely attentive and helpful staff, great food, wine and experience. Definitely returning.

Jul 26, 2011 

6.8 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  7      Service  7      Value  6     

The first thing I will say about this place is the service is good. The restaurant is small, but the ambience is nice. It's quaint, it's cosy and I love the big wall chalkboard menu's. The calamari fritti is good, however, I still remain dubious about the pear and rocket salad that accompanied it. It certainly belonged to a different dish, although the accompanying aioli was a better complement.

Veal ragu with gnocchi was less heavy than I expected, and the lamb shank falling off the bone. Dessert of gelato was good, but slightly parsimonious in terms of it's delivery.

Jul 04, 2011 

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  7     

We'd eaten here before when it was Remos and it was Ok. The name change has obviously been worth it because it was a much better experience this time. The arancini was delightful as were the mains. Admittedly it was quiet because we ate early on a Saturday, but the service was attentive. Will be back to sample some of the other delights on the menu.

Apr 22, 2011