Esencia Urban Kitchen — Restaurant in Lake View Township

So last weekend my wife called the restaurant to place a pick-up order. She placed it and they said it would be ready in about 20 min. I waited a few and then walked over to the place and told them I was picking up an order. I gave them the name and the went to get it, I saw they looked confused and were searching around. They eventually came back and asked if I ordered from that location (fair question)? I said yes and verified the number called was theirs. They asked another employee nd he said he took the order and he looked around a bit then told me that for some reason the ticket never printed out so the order wasn't made. They said they could make it now, I said that's fine. I did end up getting my food and was happy qith what I got but I gave them 3 stars because first the guy that took the order never offered an apology, and they never offered a discount. I wasn't looking for a free meal, and honestly the amount of a discount was irrelevant to me. While I understand things happen, the fact that the guy didn't apologize, and didn't make an effort to do something to encourage me to come back again is what was disappointing. I work in an industry dealing with clients and understand that people can go anywhere but they choose our business. If something goes wrong regardless of tech issue or employee error, it's important to let every client/customer know we want their business. In many cases customer service is what separates one business ...

I really enjoyed Esencia Urban Kitchen.

The boyfriend and I came in for brunch a couple of Fridays ago, when it was warm and sunny, around 11am and we were the only ones in there for a bit.

The place is tiny, with several tables, but it's very well lit with sunlight and welcoming. We started off with coffee and we both commented how delicious the coffee is. It's very flavorful and when I asked, they confirmed that they sell bags of the coffee right there in shop. Cool!

They have a pretty decent sized menu. It's Mexican inspired so a lot of the dishes were breakfast staples. For me, it was a toss up between the Chilaquiles and the Sunnyside Huevos Rancheros, but I ended up getting the Sunnyside Huevos Rancheros. Perfection! The eggs were perfectly runny, no overcooked eggwhites, and the salsa was tasty!

My boyfriend ended up getting the chorizo mash and he enjoyed it.

It was such a chill ambiance, we ended up hanging out there for a couple of hours, sipping on endless coffee. There was a lunch rush, but it didn't get too crowded, and they did not rush us out, which was great!

All in all, I would recommend Esencia for great food, nice ambiance and...

Stopped in for weekday lunch, their breakfast offerings sounded scrumptious.

I was seated immediately in their charming café dining space and received prompt service. I had trouble between choosing between chilaquiles and the chorizo hash, and the chilaquiles were recommended.

I went with the green sauce and poached eggs. Presentation was beautiful, like a sculpture of smothered tortilla. The taste overall was good, not mind-blowing. The vere, creme, and cheese was heavy on the sour-tangy notes, and overwhelmed the dish. I also though the beans and rice weren't spectacular, good though. Maybe could have used slightly more quantity. I craved some sort of meat to accompany you to this meal. The poached eggs were elegantly prepared and the runny yolk helped level off some excess tang. The size of the dish itself was fine. Value-wise it's decent for the area.

I also ordered butter milk biscuits with a runny strawberry spread. These were excellent.

Definitely worth a visit, I'd be interested in trying other...