Essie's Restaurant & Lounge — Restaurant in Clementon

A friend and I decided to go out to catch up over food and drinks. We were excited to try Essie’s because of the great things we heard however we ended up with an unpleasant and unsettling impression of the place which is so disheartening because I had very high hopes for this black owned restaurant.

Long story short, we were seated next to a party of four. Please keep in mind where we were seated the tables are pretty close to each other, so the waiters and others walking around could easily bump into each other if you’re not careful. As the night progressed, the same party of 4 were actually there for a surprise engagement. It was a very special and beautiful moment. But we were literally in the middle of the chaos. There were about 10 other people who came w/ the couple that bombarded our table and theirs. Even a camera man with two cameras that was reaching over us and our table, in our faces, all kinds of elbows, guts, and booties were bumping into us and in our faces. I attached a photo so you know I’m not lying. It was a very beautiful moment but they could’ve gave those people their own area with all the open seats available.

The restaurant knew that they would be getting engaged (hostess who sat us brought in the flowers to the girl literally a minute before it happened. So they were in on it.) yet still decided to sit us so closely to them. The hostess even hesitated when he initially was about to seat us. As I stated, there was PLENTY of other open tables available. it really felt strategic and malicious towards us.

To conclude, we couldn’t take it anymore so my friend asked another fellow who worked there if we could be moved. Minutes later, our the waiter came back and apologized for the chaos and said she would move us (I declined because at that point, I felt uncomfortable and I was ready to go). The fact that we had to ask to be moved and was in that restaurant for almost an hour and 20mins with no food was the icing on the cake for me. We left without eating or paying for the food. They tried to right their wrongs but I was beyond done. I’m sure the owner will have a comeback for this review as I’ve noticed they do for all their low star reviews but it’s ok. Everything I said is 100% factual. I had big expectations for this place but it was a huge...

Everyone should stop what they are doing and run directly to Essie’s! If I could give this place more than 5 stars, I would. Tonight was our first time here, but it definitely will not be our last.

First impression coming in - we were immediately greeted and welcomed by several staff members. There is a bar area that has seating and a separate dining area. We chose the dining area, which is gorgeous.

Our server, Diana, could not have possibly been friendlier. She was super busy with all of the tables, but that didn’t stop her from providing top tier service. All of her menu recommendations were on point, and she never missed a chance to stop by our table to share a joke with us, provide more recommendations, or just make sure we were having a great time (we were).

We were not aware that it was open mic/karaoke night when we arrived. The DJ was awesome, and there was no shortage of local talent filling the stage, so the live music was an excellent bonus. It was pretty clear that most of the people there were familiar with one another, but rather than making us feel like outsiders, the whole room was very inclusive. Not only that, but my son was encouraged to get up and sing too, and he had an absolute blast.

My husband’s favorite food is Cajun food, and he’s extremely picky about it too. That man would live in Louisiana just for the food if he could. Everything came out super fresh and incredibly tasty. It is apparent that the food is prepared fresh and made from scratch, which a lot of restaurants lack. Essie’s does not - they take the time to make it perfect.

We also ordered some drinks from the bar, which were all perfectly crafted too.

I wish I took pictures because the presentation of the food and drinks was beautiful.

We can’t wait to come back! Thanks for a very enjoyable night, Essie’s!...

This was my husband and I first time dining at this black owned restaurant. We went here for Valentine’s Day and they had a special menu which was $75 per person. Their special menu was a joke for $75. I hate to say it, but for that price per person the food was not worth it. We started off with the Cajun chicken noodle soup and crab bisque. The noodles were overcooked, and the crab bisque came out cold to warm. Then the second option was wings or salad we chose the bourbon wings. I couldn’t believe we had to share 4 wing dings. Wings didn’t have no seasoning besides the sauce. Next we had our main course stuffed chicken and salmon. I had stuffed chicken with medley vegetables. Sadly, the chicken was dry & only stuffed with spinach :( along with their special sauce. The sauce helped the moisture & seasoning for the chicken. Veggies were good. My hubby had the salmon, sweet potato and kale. Salmon was surprisingly good and moist. Sweet potato was okay and kale was tasteless. Again their special sauce made it taste better. Lastly we had dessert’s. Chocolate cake and bread pudding both were good. I feel like we wasted our $150 on some regular food that wasn’t enjoyable. I forget our waitress name but she was very attentive and friendly. She noticed that we were unhappy with the food and said she will let manager know ( not sure if she did or not). However, As we were on our way out manager told me I can’t take the rose that was their table decor, however didn’t ask us how was our experience ( which I was hoping). Overall food was not great 2/5, ambience, drinks, waitress were nice 4/5. I hate that I had to put this type of review but hopefully constructive criticism will help. Despite all of this one day we will give it another try on a...