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My husband and I are ex New yorkers and come back to enjoy the city at least once a year. We chose Esca because Lydia Bastianich's son was part owner and the reviews we read were wonderful. We always invite one of our New York friends along with us to introduce them to new experiences. We made sure to make reservations well in advance. We arrived at the restaurant early and did not mind waiting until a table was ready for us. After that, it was all down hill. The staff was extremely rude. We were made to feel that a simple request of bread was not appropriate and we were told so. The waiter and the staff were condescending. The food was mediocre at best with the emphasis on presentation rather than flavor, which was bland and less than ordinary.

The main dish came with about 4 raviolis, which tasted more like something from a mediocre and inexpensive italian restaurant. The waiter also refused to change my dish literally 2 minutes after I had placed the order, saying that they already started preparing it and could not change. Is that what you call good service?

We had sardines we didn't love, black sepia linguine had a spicy tomato sauce that didn't go with it well, and monkfish was bland. Service was good as well as wine and condiments, bread and olives. But for almost 100 dollars- not wortth it.

My husband and I had wonderful appetizers and we shared extraordinarily light gnocchi with lobster. We also shared a very good Sicilian wine . My problem came with my main course, the Fish Stew. The mussels were tough and chewy, and the fish was also overcooked and almost falling apart. The broth itself was not hot, and the bread for sopping the juices was just not there. To dole out bread a piece at a time when you have a stew for dinner is just not a good thing. In terms of ambience, it was comfortable. While I found it noisy, the noise level served to essentially prohibit conversations from entering your space. In other words, my husband and I could talk comfortably with each other, and while we could hear each other we did not hear the couple sitting next to us. Ideal. I rated the value low because my dinner was not up to the high standard I had been led to expect from a Batali establishment. Our waiter was quite good--he checked frequently but didn't rush us. Will I go back? Probably not. $200 for an unsatisfactory meal just doesn't do it for me.

Our first visit to Esca couldn't have been better; the decor is quiet and pleasant, a fitting background for the fantastic food. The crudo dishes were uniformly excellent and well presented...all perfectly chilled. The briny flavors of the two pastas we shared was complimented by the vegetables and it just got better with the secundi. Dessert was a trio of gelati highlighted by the pink peppercorn and this was followed by the best cup of expresso I've had outside of Italy. The service was pure poetry in motion, attentive and helpful but not intrusive in the least. A truly wonderful dining experience.

I read the reviews after tonight's dinner. I'm surprised. I found the food to be excellent. I'm not sure what people expect. Esca is a fish oriented restaurant. The flavors are varied, but briny. We had mahi mahi, spearfish (crudo), split a pasta with clams (truly an elegant taste), and ended with wolffish and diver scallops. Don't want to sound too pedantic, but this is a complicated place. Be patient, ask questions and explore. You won't be sorry. Also, prices are not bad considering what is going on here. Have fun.

I ate at the restaurant last night 2-2-2006 and was underwhelmed. The interior was stark and clean, the service was attentive but not a bit cold and the food was good, not spectaucylar. My pasta dish was average and my apple tart dessert tasted like it was made the day before. The menu is heavily weighted with seafood oriented dishes so this is not a good place for a large crowd that may have none seafood and shellfish eaters.