The Essex Boston

My wife and I went for her birthday dinner to the Essex rooftop and the vibe was great. Not too stuffy, but elevated and accessible. The staff was friendly and made a Monday night feel special. Nothing but compliments to the cuisine, all of it inventive and delicious. I can’t vouch for a busy brunch Saturday or Sunday, but for us, it was a great experience to have on a summer evening.

If you want dinner, you have to eat at the downstairs part of the essex restaurant. The rooftop serves small plates and drinks. The view is good, but at night it looks even better. It's cozy, spacious, and has plenty of dim light to make the atmosphere feel cozy. I got to see some fireworks when I went (on a wednesday). I got he prosciutto panini and a sharable charcuterie board. My friend has the lobster roll (it's small and not really worth the price).

Came for brunch! Great flavors, nice staff. Smaller portion sizes, bit overpriced. Views are nice. Right off highway. Top floor of Cambridge hotel.

I was traveling from out of town because my mom is at Tufts awaiting a heart transplant. Because of this restaurant and the staff, I will always choose this hotel when traveling to Boston. Dominic was absolutely amazing. The best service I've had so far ever visiting Boston. He's friendly, professional, and authentic. Made a difficult trip so much better. The food was absolutely top notch 👌 👍 Even my very picky 11 year old daughter loved her meal. She got the chicken with pea 🫛 risotto, OUT OF THIS 🌎! The filet with the roasted potatoes and amazing homemade sauce...AMAZING! My daughter wanted a dipping sauce for her chicken, and Dominic had the kitchen whip her up a special fresh batch honey mustard...yum! But most of all, after long hours of travel while dealing with some heavy stuff, the place made the end of a long day so much better. Thank you for your compassion and overall hospitality. Truly appreciated 👏 we will be back. This morning, before checking out, we tried their breakfast, and it did not disappoint! Tim, our server was friendly and attentive. My daughter got the pancakes with sumac yogurt and berry compote, it was 👌 👏 👍 😍. I got the first option on the menu, came with eggs, handmade hashbrown, toast, bacon, and a light refreshing little green salad. Everything was amazing. Coffee was good, too! We will be back.

Went here on a whim after picking up my brother from the airport. Didn’t know what to expect as at first it was a bit confusing to find, but it’s a newer place to the area. Our server, bartender, and the manager were all super kind and attentive. The food was good and plated beautifully. They don’t have a dessert menu just yet, as they only have been open a few days, but the desert they did bring out was delicious. They had this chocolate mousse with a wafer on the bottom that we ordered. My brother has a nut allergy, so just to air on the safe side, they brought out a mini cheese cake as an alternative. Overall I would definitely come back! Apparently they are opening a rooftop portion to the restaurant so i want to come back in the warmer months for a great drink outdoors. Thank you to the folks that work there, my family and I felt so welcome and we had a great time.

My review is based specifically about my experience and how I (and my group) felt during my short stay in the restaurant. We arrived around 7h20PM (on a Wednesday!) and initially we were all happy about the costumer service and how we were treated, the view is great and the environment looks nice. After we sat at a table was when unfortunately our experience went in a different direction. We received tap water and some menus after almost 20 minutes of arrival and after that we waited another 40 minutes before we decided to leave without any food served. Nobody came to our table and we kept seeing people coming in, receiving assistance, getting their food while we were just with the tap water. Initially we thought we were forgotten because we were “distant” from their eyes, but after a couple sat next to us and got their food before we even order was when we decided to leave. I did mention to one of the hosts what happened briefly but I didn’t want to over explain during my mother’s birthday, we just wanted food and great time. One of us mentioned how the host didn’t even try to make it right, he just said sorry and that was it, he went on with his job like they didn’t lose costumers. We did notice we were the only people of color in there and we felt like we just were looked over because “we didn’t belong” in that space. Not saying it was done on purpose, but it was how we felt, which was really unfortunate because like I said it initially was a nice first impression, but now all of us are remembering the restaurant as “we shouldn’t go there again, because we’re not welcome”. I’m leaving this review not only because it was frustrating but also because I understand the importance of feedback. Once again this review is based on our experience and how we felt. I know working in a restaurant isn’t easy, but the place was not in any way packed and nobody should feel like that even if it wasn’t on purpose.

The vote from the AEssex is only outmatched by the great management team here!! From the elevator attendants hanging to Dokinic who was just super awesone! Great smile and then Tim, our server was literally a game changer. He’s so special and the VIEW is spectacular✨✨ perfect corporate meeting space or birthday celebration like mines was today

The Essex is wonderful! I had dinner and drinks on the rooftop and it was a lovely experience. Can’t beat the view up there and service was excellent!

One of the best chef's in Boston hits it out of the park! Let me describe to you the perfect night out: We arrived at Essex on Broadway at about 5:30pm and went up to the roof deck bar for fantastic cocktails and oysters. The views are incredible, the atmosphere is lively and the service friendly. After enjoying our delicious libations we went downstairs to the main floor restaurant for dinner. This intimate restaurant with elegant bar is very stylish and sexy. But, the best part was the food! OMG incredible! I am a bit of a risotto connoisseur and this pea risotto was the best I have ever had. The parmesan sauce....scrumptious! So full of flavor when many 5 star restaurants make this dish so bland. I can't wait to go back to try the Cauliflower Steak. Thank you to the chef for having two vegetarian entrees on the menu! So often I have only one or no choices. My three meat loving companions all had the steak and all cleared their plates. My son said the accompanying potatoes were one of the best things he has ever eaten and all three steaks were cooked to perfection. On the topic of potatoes; The Za'Tar fries were flavorful and crispy. Perfection finished off by the deconstructed s'mores which were a delight. After dinner we proceeded back to the roof deck bar for one more celebratory drink (comped on the house for my husband's birthday...so sweet of them!) with perfect timing for a gorgeous sunset over the Boston Skyline. Truly a perfect evening. My only regret is we did not take more photos I could share with you! The restaurant is brand new, so I suggest you get in while you can. As soon as word gets out this place will have a line out the door!

I've gone here several times now and have had a great experience every time! Everything I've had on the food menu has been a winner. My favorites so far are the little ricotta toasts and the hummus dip. I love the frozen marg also and the craft cocktails are great as well! The rooftop is well decorated and had a great view. The indoor part of the restaurant on the ground floor is also stunning! One of my favorite restaurants in boston overall.

Another win from the owner of 1928! The food, ambiance and views are all amazing. Will definitely be spending time here this summer!

We started by having drinks at the Rooftop bar. Cocktail was excellent as was our young waitress who was very personable and friendly. Views weren't quite as good as advertised...did have a view of the Boston skyline, a tiny view of the harbor and a much larger view of the Red Line MBTA yards. We then went down to the Restaurant. Menu was reasonably priced for Boston and offered many tempting options. We started with a Scallop appetizer which was beautifully plated and could have been five stars but was probably cooked 1 minute too long and thus was not as tender or delicate as it should have been. My wife had the burger which she loved and the hand cut fries that came with it were also very good. I got the Black Truffle Risotto which was good but not great. I would say that the risotto was a bit undercooked and too crunchy as opposed to being al dente and the truffle flavor was a bit overwhelming for me. I think that the restaurant has a lot of potential and we would return but it fell just a bit short of expectations.