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Mon noon-2:30 pm, 5-10:30 pm, Tues-Sat noon-2:30 pm, 5-11:30 pm, Sun 4:30-10:30 pm
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- Clinton, Midtown
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At a Glance
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95% ambiance
“It is not a cozy restaurant--not a good first date place, unless you REALLY have to try hard.”
100% dessert
“Desert (chocolate cake) was superb.”
100% drinks
“Our waiter last night made terrific wine and food recommendations.”
86% food quality
“Esca is not the best seafood the city has to offer.”
92% menu variety
“Our waiter was very good and he was well versed in the menu and preparations as well as recommending some of his favorite dishes.”
91% overall
“This restaurant is one of the best fish restaurant in manhattan.”
66% return potential
“have never written a review but Mario- I am truly dissapointed and actually quite sad that I cant go back to one of my NYC favorite restaurants.”
82% service
“However, I have to evaluate if the food can compensate the horrible service.”
68% value
“The fish was very fresh and well-prepared but not to a degree to justify any higher prices than at many italian restaurants.”
50% wait time
“The service was good, but not excellent; however, the waiter was initially huffy with me when my guest was only 5 minutes late, threatening to make me move!”
March 11, 2013
One of the best places I have been. The food was great and so were the people.
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December 20, 2012
This is a pretty good place to go for sea food. The place was decorated nicely and the staff was very polite and well mannered.
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January 05, 2012
Gross and way overpriced. The 4 of us left hungry and disappointed. The only thing satisfying were the cocktails. Do not go.
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November 16, 2011
Boycott Mario Batali Restaurants.
Mario Batali's recent comment comparing bankers to Hitler and Stalin are downright disgusting and irresponsible (reference at bottom of review). While there are many views on bankers during these challenging times, his references to such dictators who executed many people for their religion and / or beliefs is hurtful and ignorant. I do not believe it is in this world's best interest to support him or his restaurants given his most recent comments.
google or search for the following article as a reference: "mario-batali-apologizes-for-comments-comparing-bankers-to-hitler-stalin"
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November 16, 2011
Batali's comments are hurtful and insensitive. I can't believe Batali is comparing bankers to Hitler and Stalin. Agree with the previous post that it is completely insensitive. Why can't he just stick to making food? I can only assume that if he is busy attending conferences and media events offering his political views he is definitely not paying attention to his businesses and the quality of his food. Given this, and the insensitivity he recently displayed in comparing bankers to Hitler, I will no longer eat at his restaurants and will encourage others to do the same.
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July 15, 2011
Good for foodies but lacking in ambience.
The food is the standout piece to Esca. I thoroughly enjoyed the squid ink pasta, marinated sardines and fish stew (the crudo tasting was a little bland though). The service was good, with water and wine glasses being refilled and new utensils being laid out in a timely manner.
The main drawback is the actual space itself. When you walk in, you are liable to think you walked in through the wrong entrance. It feels like a back entrance as you immediately face a large table where servers are cracking pepper and preparing plates. The hostess stand is tucked a little bit to the right and the two hostesses on Wednesday night were inattentive to the point where I thought they might just be waiting for a table too and didn't work at the restaurant at all.
The bar at Esca seats maybe five stools and the servers rush between the seated patrons and those standing by the wall to get from the kitchen to get to the main dining room, shouting out
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February 25, 2011
Stay Clear- Bad Shrimp - it made me sick : (. Menu is excellent but unfortunately I ordered the wrong dish. Don't order the Fritto Misto it has bad shrimp, they smelled like Amonia...they told me the shrimp has iodine. I felt sick and threw up. Manager was unsympathetic and unwilling to look into it. Service is excellent, decor is warm. I don't want other people to get sick so stay clear of their shrimp it's not worth the unpleasant experience !! : But someone should really look into it !!
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February 17, 2010
Wonderful experience.
A friend and I went to ESCA (without reservations) and sat at the bar where we were greeted by an amiable tender named Victor who promptly presented us with a wonderful and complementary white bean bruschetta. My friend and I shared the tuna carpaccio (which was delicious) and I ordered the gnocchi ricotta while she got the lobster spaghetti. The menu said it was a one-pounder but it looked kind of small to me. I ordered the gnocchi because I saw it on one of the Food Network shows and I was not at all disappointed.
Our evening was topped off by a visit from the chef who shared stories of his growing up in New York as well as other fun stories of this wonderful city. We had a great time, good food and great company. I would definitely recommend ESCA for anyone wanting an enjoyable experience.
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