Quintessence

Recently went raw/vegan and always looking for places to take friends that aren't. A girlfriend and I went here for brunch and I just had to write a review! The savory crepe is to die for and the atmosphere is really charming! Service isn't anything special, and entered were a bit pricy ... but the food and vibe are really top notch. Can't wait to go back!

Lovely live food dining. Vibrant and fresh! Could you please consider having a second location in New Orleans? :o) Not only was the food delicious but the drinks were so very lovely as well. Have the electrolite lemonade with your meal and a warm ginger latte to finish. Stay juicey!

this is good food! i love it. it makes me happy and all the coconut flavor! and ch-ch-ch-chia seed pudding ym!! and the lemongrass soup:) we are what we eat so maybe i will grow some green fuzz now- stay tuned.

Seeing as I love love love Quintessence, I'd like to counter the previous bits of criticism by saying that 1) the service is incredible! From reading the reviews I was expecting to wait a long time for my food, but every time I've been, my food has been served within 10 minutes! 2) The food is DELICIOUS! I'm vegan but not raw and I enjoy the flavorful food immensely. I've brought a ton of my carnivorous friends there and they absolutely LOVED it! 3) The food is certainly filling, and I am usually full from an appetizer alone. Not to mention how wonderful I feel after eating their food!

Disclaimer: I have been a vegetarian for 8+ years, and have eaten Raw Food twice before, and have never liked it. That said, I decided to give Quintessence a chance to be my third experience, since I've heard good things about it. To sum up my dinner, the food was super salty and overseasoned, which seems like a typical technique in Raw Food to cover up the fact that they don't cook it, and its healthiness. It was extremely displeasing to the palate, and I left not feeling satisfied or full, and very sad. Also, my $20 entree included salad (which covered 2/3 of my plate), and a 'butternut cherry walnut loaf w/ gravy', which was a disgusting cold little blob of dog-food-like-consistency, and butternut squash puree, which wasn't bad. I felt completely ripped-off paying that much for so little food, and bad-tasting food, at that. They also gave 2 types of salad dressing on the side, neither of which tasted good - how can you mess up salad dressing?! The atmosphere of the restaurant is cozy, but a little too cozy - squished in your seat is more like it (I'm thin, too). But that's pretty common in NYC, and doesn't bother some people. The staff were attentive and nice, but overall, the entire experience cemented my belief that Raw Food culture is pretentious and annoying, and generally overpriced.

My wife picked this place for dinner last night. It reminded me of eating a weird cheese - you know, something where you know it's weird but cannot decide if you actually like it or not. The taco started our alright, but as the meal went on my indecision was being molded into definite dislike. Not to mention, everything was cold. I ordered the taco, a soup, and pizza. Maybe this is for people who like cold that tastes weird. I am not one of them. I can go for a good veggie/vegan place (like Suen is great, Dai Lai Palace which is veggie).

I have been a vegan for a while, and I try to eat mostly raw now. Going to Quintessence was my first raw vegan restaurant experience, and I must say I liked it very much. I guess I would have to try other like restaurants to compare, but overall I was very satisfied. The whole feel of it was just right. I will definitely go back. The waiter suggested some great choices, which I went with. It's a bit small but very cozy. I loved their taco, and handmade roll.