Essence

Fully vegan menu. The restaurant was empty at 12:30 on a Saturday. When sat, brought to the table is a carafe filled with ice water and a plate of pita bread with olive oil and pomegranate, greatly appreciated and delicious. Appetizers are very well priced so we ordered 3 to try, the pakora, buffalo cauliflower and the tofu spinach dumplings. The pakora was great, the yogurt sauce was too thin to fully enjoy. The buffalo cauliflower was the best item we had, the sauce was perfect. We really enjoyed that the cauliflower was baked rather than fried, and it was baked perfectly. If you enjoy a bit of heat, make sure you order this as an appetizer. The tofu spinach dumplings, we ordered these fried. The presentation was beautiful and the dumplings were fried great... unfortunately the filling was bland. For entrees we both ordered the Essence burger, it's fried mushrooms, individual fried mushroom pieces. Seasoned well, some mushrooms were much better than others. The bun was great, the fries were double fried. If you enjoy a salty fry, you will enjoy it. Lastly we ordered two of the mint lemonades to-go, we were given a sample, pictured...and it was perfect. It's not overly sweet which I prefer, the mint is so refreshing with a hint of lemon. This is a need to try!! Overall a very decent place for lunch. My recommendations are the buffalo cauliflower and the mint lemonade!

We went for an early lunch on a Sunday and I was blown away. The food was incredible and our waitress was so friendly and helpful! The first few courses were so delicious that I just had to try the dessert, which did not disappoint! I can’t wait to go back.

We stopped in for a Saturday lunch and we were not disappointed one bit! This place is such a serene spot to eat at and the food is amazing. I never knew rice could taste so good! Service was amazing and so were the portions. Can’t wait to stop here again next time we are in town.

The absolute best place for Vegan meal with African infusion. I had the Pilau with crispy Tofu it was served with a sauce. The meal was delicious, they served cold hibiscus drink on the house and it was so refreshing. The hospitality from the team is 💯. Definitely going back with friends for more good food and great vibes.

Essence is a awesome place for vegetarians and vegan friends. The restaurant is located in vibrant area of Pittsburgh. The service was super friendly and accommodating with my tow kids.

Had dinner there with the wife for the first time. Food was amazing. Very friendly staff and the co owner stopped over to answer questions and was very polite. We'll definitely be going back to try other options on the menu.

Always a wonderful experience, and I say experience because their food and service is like no other. Thank you for such great food and service. A must go to vegan restaurant ❤️

I am obsessed with this place and the Falafel burger meal. The consistency, hospitality, and taste are all a 10/10! Describing this place as PHENOMENAL is an understatement!! Thank you 😊 oh and the MINT LEMONADE!! Chefs kiss!!!

I went to Essence for Mother's day brunch during Chef Earl's popup and even though it didn't have great ambience due to the restaurant being completely empty, it had great food and service! We got the fresh juices, pineapple ginger apple and the mango one and both were super fresh and tasty. For appetizers we got the spinach sambosa and the no crab cake. The sambosa was great with the sauce and the no-crab cake was tasty but didn't hold its shape together. I really loved the jollof rice, falafel burger, and the ful madammas. Everything was vegan and really good. Even my mom loved it! Would recommend coming here and trying out some of everything! The waitress was really attentive and gave lots of recommendations and tips on what to get!

This Illy Philly is out on a dinner date in the Southside, and I've always wanted to experience Essence for their vegan and Caribbean fare. It was a Saturday and the restaurant had a nice ambiance. They don't have their liquor license yet, so it is BYOB! I wish I'd known because I would have definitely brought a bottle of wine! The server greeted me with a smile and knew the menu. She made the suggestions of the Fried Dumplings ( you can get them steamed) with spinach and tofu, and it was sooo good!!! Delicous!!! My date ordered the Buffalo Cauliflower, and it was definitely hot, but good. For dinner, I ordered the Black Bean Bowl, which was a rice bowl packed with black beans, grilled veggies, and corn with a cream sauce, but that is not quite what I got. It was rice and beans, mixed, corn with no cream sauce, broccoli, and two plantains. The rice was not too savory, the broccoli was a bit bland and there was no cream sauce on the corn....sad face. I will definitely give this place another go to try their other dishes because the Dumplings were so good. There is off street parking, the service was really good and next time I'm bringing some friends. A couple bottles of wine and a palate ready for some Caribbean vegan goodness!!!!

I took my uncle here for his birthday since they have a great selection of vegan items. Everything was delicious! I'd probably get the dumplings steamed instead of fried next time. I had the mint lemonade and harrisa wrap, my uncle had the pilau. Our server was attentive and gave great recommendation!

Great fresh original not-processed menu. highly reccomend. i had the Fatoosh ($11) and it was a generous size with all fresh veggies and thin sliced fried pita. the fried baby eggplant was a nice complement. best health option on the South Side i know of.

The chef, Ojok greeted us as we arrived. We have many dietary restrictions and he was comfortable with all of them. He asked us few things and then prepared assortment of small dishes for us. Amazing experience. He is very good human. Must visit.

This place has a lot of promise, but isn't quite there yet. The service was very slow despite there only being about 5 people in the restaurant. But the server was very friendly. The space looks like it has potential, but still needs some work. The food was ... ok. I always am excited for a new vegan or vegetarian restaurant. The menu looked great, but the food was a bit underwhelming. I always think that if a restaurant is bold enough to have Brussels sprouts on the menu, they must be amazing. Not so, apparently. The samosas were decent. The veggie burger was ok. The fries were Potato Patch-style, and who doesn't love that? I'm confused about what on the menu is vegan. Some things are marked only vegetarian, but the server said she thinks they messed up the menu. She asked the kitchen, and they said everything is vegan except the mozzarella sticks. I'm not so sure about that. Like, who decides not to have a fully-vegan restaurant just to serve mozzarella sticks!? Especially when they allegedly have other vegan cheese on the menu. I'll be back to give them another chance. Stay tuned!

Wonderful little restaurant serving delicious African cuisine. Excellent service, a must-go in South Side!

We started with Pakora fritters, something we were not familiar with, but they were delicious. Hot out the kitchen and filled with onions, potatoes and carrots with a cucumber dipping. Also, added the Brussels Sprouts, the right amount of grilling and crunch with tasty spices. The young man said the spices were a secret recipe and they were yummy. The food was delivered hot, hot, it was freshly made. For our main course we shared a large of their tomato based pasta dish. Again came out hot and it was delicious. Did I mention this is an African cuisine vegan place? We were so happy with our decision to check it out. It was my birthday and I was pleased and satisfied. Even our drinks were refreshing. Wait I almost forgot the warm pita bread and pomegranate dipping oil, the warm of the bread and the touch of sweetness in the dipping sauce was on point. The service was excellent from the greeting at the door to the byes at the door. We were asked if we were pleased with the food and our drinks. Someone from the kitchen also came out and asked about the food, I think it was the chef. Our smiles confirmed yes everything was good. The ambiance was friendly, the music at a level we could hear each other's conversation, lighting that we could see what we were being served. I recommend Essence to everyone, go over and check out the intimate, but roomy location on the South Side on East Carson.

What a gem. We had a small group with various dietary restrictions. The chef came to our table to answer questions, understand our requests and make suggestions. All 4 of us were delighted with our meals, including best French fries in recent memory! Generous portions, reasonable prices and excellent flavors. We will return!

Delicious plant based food. Tamarind and hibiscus teas were a delightful treat . this restaurant is a must go to for the vegan and vegan- curious community

The food was delicious! Only one person in our party was vegan but we all enjoyed our lunch.