Review Essenza Italian Kitchen - Sydney

Are you hungry? The portions are for true carb champions. Gnocchi outer layer is slightly crispy, well juxtaposed with the soft inside. The Ragu was mildly flavoured, perfect for the size. Pappardelle was appropriately wide, providing relenting resistance to the biggest of molars. The dessert plate was not so mini. Several fruitfly friends. Cool inside, well lit (natural light) at 18:30. #Essenza #restaurant #italian #pasta #tiramisu #pannacota #pappardelle #ragu #gnocchi

Very welcoming neighbourhood gem, hope the running of the light rail will bring even more customers. BEST LASAGNA I've ever had with pork and veal. Loved the gnocchi too.

Very recommend Italian fries, something different. All food is good quality, the Lasagna was very traditional Italian taste, fresh made, the beef inside are not beef mince, use slow cooked beef, very soft and juicy, excellent ! worth to come again.

If it was possible to give 6 stars I would. Sublime food, fantastic service and great wine list. Can see us coming back here every time we are in Sydney. Thank you Essenza. Just perfect. Been a long time since I've left a restaurant feeling just the right kind of full and utterly satisfied. And beyond reasonable to boot. Would have been happy to pay double the price for such great quality food and service.

Absolutely loved it. Everything we ordered was delicious and the service was great. Probably my only complaint would be that the place is small and busy, so it's very noisy during peak. But not much you can do about that and it's definitely not a deal breaker.

Good italian food and friendly staff. Lasagne and arrancini balls were the standout dishes. Dessert sampler is good to share between 3-4.

Hidden Gem. Delicious Italian food, beautiful courtyard, friendly service.

The lasagna was amazing, really elevated a classic dish. Seafood pasta also very fresh and delicious. The patio outside is nice and cozy, very good atmosphere for dinner. A bit noisy with the tram construction but was not a problem for us

Friendly, welcoming service, excellent food, generous servings and well presented in a true Italian fashion. The pork with sage and apples was mouth watering and the Ox tail ragu was flavoursome. We enjoyed sharing the panna cotta.

Second time to this Sydney restaurant and my two colleagues & I remember a good dining experience last year when we were here for work. We decided to book again this year. Coincidently we were seated at the same table as last time. Service was prompt & efficient and before long we were sharing a light entree of zucchini flowers stuffed with prawn, ricotta, lemon & basil with prosecco batter served on a bed of rocket, squirts of aioli around the plate. The batter was light & crisp though slightly oily. The filling was plenty & creamy but honestly I couldn’t taste prawn, lemon or basil at all. It tasted like straight smooth ricotta & nothing else. Why prosecco in the batter? It was’t discernible in flavour so why not just use soda water or beer to aerate the batter? Suppose it reads well on the menu. While nice, the zucchini flowers didn’t live up to their promise. For main I chose the spaghetti marinara. A decent bowl of pasta arrived bathed in a rich red tomato sauce smattered with calamari, prawns, mussels & cubes of white fish. I was a bit surprised to be offered parmesan for this pasta dish, as it is not usual with seafood based sauces. A few grinds of black pepper was all it needed. The prawns & mussels were good, the calamari chewy but the fish pieces had a strong fishy flavour which I found too intense. The tomato sauce was rich & earthy flavoured which towards the end bordered on too heavy. The pasta was well cooked & al dente - though I don’t believe was house made. Both my colleagues enjoyed their mains - a crusted snapper fillet & stuffed roasted pork., which looked succulent & juicy. With sides of roasted potatoes & Jerusalem artichokes and a rocket & pear salad, we were too full to to be tempted by dessert. Overall quite good quality dishes but for my choices the flavours we’re not quite there.

love love loved their beetroot gnocchi, however entrees and everything else was nothing too spectacular. it was a bit empty for dinner time and it was quite difficult at first trying to communicate with the staff (the owner served us himself too) about the menu. overall would give it a 3.5 rating.

A small Italian restaurant that has been located here for over twenty years. The outdoor area at the back of the restaurant is a perfect retreat for these warm Summer nights. <br/>Tonight we tried the Essenza Linguine Meatballs, Pesto, Basil and Cherry Tomatoes. The serving was large and those meatballs were made with quality beef and a serve of Mama's love! <br/>We didn't have room for desert tonight but from looking around at what others were eating, next time I'll be ordering the Spaghetti Marinara and finishing with the Tiramisu.<br/>The wait staff were pleasant but not welcoming. There was only one waitress for the whole restaurant and a man who was doing both the front bar/ counter area as well as offering to clear plates <br/>The prices are $$ for what you are offered. <br/>However, the food was good so you pay a price!

Had the mussels and salami board as entrees - the salami board was massive! Definitely worth the price! Followed with porchetta and barramundi as mains and both were quite flavourful. The pork was quite tough though. Finished off with the mini dessert platter and it was definitely worth getting - loved the pannacotta!

Such a cute italian restaurant in Surry Hills serving delicious pastas and mains. I had the penne with fried eggplant, tomato based sauce and ricotta salata, and it was great! The outdoor terrace area at the back made it a great venue to catch up with friends on a Friday night. Would recommend!

As Italian as it can get<br/><br/>We had Arancini Balls for entree and wow absolutely light and delicious. I've had this entree in the past (at other restaurants) and they've often been heavy and deeply fried. These were very light and pleasant to eat.<br/><br/>For main we had Risotto Marinara and Spaghetti Meat Balls.<br/>Spaghetti was delicious and full of flavour. The most balls were juicy and well cooked<br/>The risotto is the usual meal I have at an Italian restaurant and so I am very picky. Often in a marinara they don't have enough seafood.... this restaurant has plenty which was great. The arborio rice was well cooked and did not contain and crunch rice. The flavour I think it did need some more salt or maybe cooked more in some of the seafood juice. It just very slightly lacked flavour.<br/><br/>The ambiance of this restaurant is terrific and great relaxing vibe. It is great for a romantic dinner or a family dinner. It is a very laid back restaurant.<br/><br/>The waiter we had was very professional, friendly and knew the menu well.<br/>She was able to recommend wine as we asked and explained the dish to us when we had a question.<br/><br/>I would go back again, definitely and next time I will take our friends. It was a great experience and look forward to trying other Italian meals.

Fantastic local.... super friendly staff and the lasagne is amazing. They also do salmon dishes really really well here. The biscotti accompanying the bill are delicious !!!

Good portion and tasty food. The lasagna was really big. Pasta was good too! The lamb one was tender and cooked to perfection. Dessert share plate is a must try!

My partner and I really enjoy coming here for dinner. It's a nice small place with very friendly and attentive staff. The menu is quite small, but hey it's a small restaurant and I guess it helps the chefs pump the food out at a good pace. Also I like that I don't have to hold a large menu and read so many options. As for the food, I've never had a problem from entrees to dessert. It has always come out perfect every time! The only bad thing I can think of is finding parking! We parked somewhere in Redfern and got an Uber to make our booking on a weekend.

Quite nice dining environment, with an attentive service. Not much choices of food, some pastas and starters, no pizza, pretty cosy tho. A very cute small place for dinning out.

I'm not sure how this place has gotten such high reviews. I booked it as we decided to do Valentine's tonight. Loving Italian food, I was super excited, having read the reviews but it ended up being massively disappointing. The service was all over the place. We waited about 20 minutes for our drinks orders to be taken. Our waiter was lovely however but I just think they had too few staff on duty. The memu in a word is.....boring. Plain and uninspired. We got the bruscetta and arancini balls for starters which were nice. For my main, I ordered the gnocchi with mushroom and pesto. The gnocchi were doughy and bland, far too many peas and a generally underwhelming dish. My boyfriend got the salmon which was literally just popped on the pan and fried up. Zero seasoning. Served with an olive and anchovy tapenade which was simply awful. We didn't opt for dessert because at this stage, we'd just had enough. Very overpriced for what you get. We paid $160 in total and left the restaurant feeling dissatisfied. Won't be back.

Liked the place and food was ok overall but found it a bit pricey for what I've got. Service was slow. Location is good, in the heart of Surry Hills.

The main pasta meals were really big and quite tasty, we had the gnocchi with prawns and the spaghetti and meatballs which were both great. The entrees were interesting and varied, especially the blood sausage. The only problem I had was that the prices were a bit expensive considering this seems more like a casual Italian place. I would recommend, but I'd only go back if there was a dish I absolutely loved.

Great quality food for the price, nice courtyard area in the back and BYO (always a big plus). The seafood in my marina was very fresh and staff were attentive

Great service, delicious entree and incredible pasta and dessert. Only thing is we had porchetta and it was a little dry. Recommend sticking to the pastas. I had the gnocchi with prawns - was delicious! The Nutella semifreddo was the perfect end to a wonderful evening. Highly recommend! :)

Service staff could improve, wasn't able to answer questions to help us with the menu.<br/>Overall food was good however the veal dish was dry but lagsana was very delicious.

Came here on the weekend for dinner. Was not impressed. Does not deserve the 4.2/5 rating.<br/><br/>Entrees<br/>Bruschetta with mushrooms and garlic was cold. Would have been much nicer if it was warm.<br/>Black sausage with salami was quite nice.<br/><br/>Mains<br/>Osso Bucco special was not very special. The mashed potato base was the same as the Black sausage entree, the meat was pretty dry, and the sauce was uninspiring.<br/>Gnocchi with prawns was delicious, and one of the best I've had in Sydney.<br/><br/>However, the service was not good. After being quickly seated, I had to wait quite a while just to ask for the menu. Once I was ready to order, no one was available to take the order - I had to ask 3 times. It seemed like I was constantly ignored. There were sufficient staff, but the whole front of house system was just very disorganised. Only the bartender (who ended up taking payment) was pleasant.<br/><br/>The entrees came out reasonably quickly (about 15 mins after ordering) but the mains came out very late (about 1 hour 15 minutes after ordering). Other tables also had to wait significant periods of time for the food to come out.<br/><br/>One thing I noticed was that the food did not go out quickly. Dishes constantly sat under the hot light for quite a long time.

Yes, Italian food never lets me down! It's a nice place with tables both inside the house and in the courtyard. We ordered calamari with aioli sauce, sashimi plate with bread, pasta and a share plate of desserts. Though their menu is short, it gives us plenty of great choices. Very good place for hanging out with friends on Friday night.

My problem with Surrey Hills is I always end up at the same place! I know I'll get a great hearty meal here. Ingredients are clearly fresh and I've always had great service, great wine and great food. Highly recommended

I have eaten at Essenza restaurant on 3 occasions and found it to be excellent. The food is delicious and the service I received was very good..

Came here for a Saturday night date night. First impressions were good, it certainly looks the part from the outside decor. Got inside to our seat, and it was very cramped. Anyway, we ordered the spaghetti bolognese and gnocci with pesto mushroom and peas. The service was seriously poor- they were very slow to take our order (probably waited 15 minutes just to order), and even slower to bring the food out. We had to wait almost 40 minutes until it came out. The gnocci itself was nice, but the rest of the dish was meh. The sauce wasn't nice, and the dish was drowning in peas- too many! I tried my partner's spaghetti bolognese and it was ok, kind of average. We were going to order dessert, but since nobody asked and service was so slow, we just asked for the bill as we wanted to get out of there that night sometime. Since the bill never came after we asked, we just walked over to the register to get some service. So overpriced too, almost $30 for each of our dishes! Poor service and average food, won't be returning.<br/><br/>Food - 3.5/5<br/>Ambiance - 3.5/5<br/>Service - 2/5<br/>Value for money - 2.5/5<br/><br/>Overall - 3/5 (only just)

Went to Essenza for Mother's day dinner and the food was delicious but quite overpriced in comparison to the serving size. Try the mushroom gnocci! Very tasty.

Beautiful food and lovely service accompanied by a cosy atmosphere. A perfect night out. Had the seared scallops, lamb shoulder and Panna cotta all were to die for!

Average<br/>The setting is nice and service pretty good. <br/>We had zucchini flower the batter was much too thick. <br/>Arrachinni balls were stodgy<br/>Pulled pork lasagne looked impressive but lacked flavor <br/>Prawn gnocchi had lively flavor but the gnocchi its self was heavy.<br/>Overall a disappointing meal

It's a nice Italian restaurant! Very friendly staffs and nice ambience. Dishes that stood out were the zucchini flower and arancini. The zucchini flower had shrimp in the stuffing, giving it some nice texture and sweetness, love that. I normally wasn't impressed by arancini ball but found theirs surprisingly good - full of flavour and not doughy. I had lemoncello cocktail to go with my meal which was good too.

Definite fan of Essenza Italian. <br/>The 'Gnocchi Prawns' were so soft and pillowy - it just melted in your mouth.  <br/>Our table had sides of the Italian chips, arancini and the calamari - all of these were delicious sides. <br/>The drinks menu at Essenza is also very good - especially the Aperol Spritz.

For entrees we got the arancini balls, deep fried calamari/octopus and Italian chips. The arancini balls were the best of the three! Delicious little morsels of delight. It was crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. For the main I ordered from the specials menu and got the pulled pork lasagne. It was definitely different to the traditional mince meat lasagne but it has its merits. The meat was tender (there was a lot of it) and they weren't stingy with the sauce which I adore. Thumbs up from me.

We ordered the arancini balls, fried zucchini flowers, board of mixed salami and bread and braised marsala lamb.<br/><br/>The stand outs for me were the arancini balls which were warm and fluffy with a nice touch of cheese. It was a very light arancini ball! Zucchini flowers were splendidly soft on the inside but with a crisp light batter outside. It was just nicely seasoned so it did not compromise the original flavours of the zucchini flower. The board of mixed salami and bread was quite enjoyable and great accompanied with a glass of wine (although note I ordered a glass of montepulciano and it had clearly been sitting out there for a while...eeek!)<br/><br/>The marsala lamb was a pretty big let down for me. It was very dry and sitting on a bed of crushed gnocchi and with an abundance of rocket. Nothing complemented one another on the dish.<br/><br/>In essence, this is a pretty cute little Italian restaurant. I think the starters are pretty good and it's a great casual hang out. I hope to try the pastas and hopefully I may have better luck with my mains next time. Staff here are friendly, welcoming and helpful. Thumbs up!<br/>

Stand out dish for us was the mushroom gnocchi 👌🏼 we also thoroughly enjoyed the arancini balls and the black sausage on soft polenta was tasty but not as impressive as the gnocchi

Valentine's dinner was delicious, the slow braised lamb was a winner, perfectly tender, melted in the mouth. The share dessert devine. We have been before and will again. Good value and service.

I had my birthday dinner here. The staff did the best to ensure that  premium service was provided. I have a nut allergy and the staff ensured that care and caution was taken with every meal. The food was fantastic and was very reasonably priced (not the typical prices you pay in Surry hills) I would highly recommend this restaurant. A great night out.

For me this was a perfect restaurant. My friends and I were walking around deciding where to go for dinner and we passed by, read the menu and decided to give it a try and we were not disappointed! We shared the black sausage with soft polenta, mussels in tomato and chilli, gnocchi with mushrooms and white wine sauce and gnocchi with prawns in a vodka tomato sauce. The sausage was very tasty nice char on it with smooth non gritty polenta, the mussels were so fresh and soft! You could taste the sea! Both gnocchi dishes had freshly made gnocchi which always gets a 5 from me, they were light and both the mushroom and the prawn sauces were moorish. The serving size was generous and quality excellent for price. Can't wait to go back!!

Absolutely amazing food! Would definitely recommend trying it out. Customer service was superb as well. We got the beef/gnocchi & seafood pasta

We decided to haves dinner here on a Wednesday night. The table was way down the back in the yard. Friendly and efficient services, not long we had three courses, each of them was tasty. I rarely ordered gnocchi from a restaurant but really liked the sound of that dish, it turned out to be good too.

The atmosphere is cosy and the customer service is attentive. I love every dish they have on the menu. i highly recommend the dessert platter and the wine list is wonderful. Make a booking as it can get really busy.

We had a fantastic lunch to celebrate a Christening for 21 people. The staff were fantastic, the food was delicious and superb. Would recommend without hesitation for any private function.

DINNER <br/>Food - Amazing 5/5<br/>Service- 5/5<br/>Price- $95 for two with no alcohol. <br/><br/>The inside looks like a cozy lounge room which backs onto a gorgeous courtyard. Seeing as it was 6 degrees we opted for an inside table close to the kitchen. We were seated with menus in a prompt manner and ordered: bruschetta, arancini, Sicilian olives, prawn gnocchi and spaghetti with meatballs (between 2). The entrees came out fairly quickly and were nothing short of delicious. The bruschetta had a mixture of fresh and semi dried tomatoes with olives and a balsamic glaze (each perfectly complimenting the other), the Sicilian olives were in olive oil with a touch of lemon and garlic (perfect to dip the bruschetta crust in) and the arancini was on a bed of rocket and tomato purée with a pesto and mozzarella centre. <br/><br/>We had the perfect amount of time between the entree and the mains, giving us time to chat, digest and not feel like we were being rushed (which happens way too often these days). When the mains arrived we asked for chilli flakes, Parmesan & pepper- the waitress happily obliged, not skimping on any. The gnocchi was cooked perfectly in a beautiful pink sauce with roasted cherry tomatoes throughout. The spaghetti and meatballs were moist and tasty without being too heavy or rich. <br/><br/>We were too full to order dessert (though the options were very tempting), when we went up to pay they offered bite sized coconut macaroons which were crunchy with a chewy centre and the perfect taste to end a perfect meal. <br/><br/>Overall verdict: CANNOT WAIT TO RETURN!

Came here on a Saturday night. Pretty busy in there. The service was warm and attentive. The food was tasty without being amazing.<br/><br/>We had the lasagne, which was delicious, one of the cook's grandma's recipe. We also had a veal involtini, which was tasty but the meat was a little tough in parts. <br/><br/>Two reds by the glass, and from memory, I think two whites. The red I had was an easy drinking light red, but bordered on the edge of tasteless. Not unpleasant though. <br/><br/>A good Italian restaurant, though not my first choice, as there are other Italian eateries close by that i believe to be better for food and white choices in the same price range.

Had a cracking dinner here on a very wet and quiet Wednesday evening. The staff were friendly and efficient and the food was wonderful. Will be back!

Friendly staff, warm and cozy atmosphere, an extensive menu. I loved the scallops, my partner had the lamb shoulder and it did not disappoint. Will be back soon, and if you throw in Mr Fox up the road for cocktails, this is becoming a favourite part of town

I organised a work Christmas function here in 2015 and I have been back for dinner myself 3 times since. The food is beautiful and the wine is good. If organising a function or event the staff are extremely helpful and accommodating and I cannot recommend it enough. The lovely courtyard is perfect for a casual dinner in summer and inside is intimate. After dinner they give you a homemade Italian biscuit which is a perfect end to the meal that you can chew as you wander down Crown Street on to your next location. I cannot wait to go back!

One of my best dining experiences in Sydney. Beautiful, authentic Italian served up by warm and attentive servers. The atmosphere was gorgeous and the price was reasonable. This is on my must return list!

Amazing!!. What can I say- absolutely amazing! We started with garlic bread, which was perfect. My partner and I both got the pulled pork lasagne, which was delicious. We shared the share dessert plate between 3 - my friend declared it absolute best dessert she had ever had - we had to agree! The coffee was great, staff were lovely and ambiance warm & inviting. Highly recommended!

Great food, very accomodating... Ask nicely for an extra bikkie at the end... Won't make sense now but it will once you have eaten here...

After moving to surry hills over a year ago my wife and I have eaten almost everywhere and Essenza served us the best meal we have had in this area. The service is also great

Very average. Given the 90% rating of this particular restaurant, I had high expectations. Unfortunately I was dissapointed. After myself and my wife were seated, we were seemingly forgotten about, and as a consequence had to wait 15 minutes before ordering. Although I can't remember the name of my wife's dish, it was essentially a seared pork steak with rosemary, baked potato, and bacon. It's one of those meals thats sounds alot nicer than it looks. The meal arrived in a small cast iron pan with the potato on the side, and broccoli & peas as an extra. Normally I have no issue with rustic, however this meal resembled friday night left-overs. The potato was very average, and the pork was overdone - a fairly dry meal.<br/><br/>I ordered the lasagne cabonara, one of the house specials. I've always been a fan of lasagna and was dissapointed to find that they didn't have a traditional lasagne on the menu. Surprising for an italian restaurant. So I thought I would give this a try. When the meal finally arrived 45 min later, I was at least expecting the meal to be of a substantial size. It wasn't. Although it arrived in one of those eliptical bowls, I almost felt I had ordered from a degustation menu. It literally was half the size it should've been, and in all honesty looked quite boring. There was alot of empty real estate around that lasagna. On the plus side I guess it had plenty of room to breathe. The flavour was nice, but nothing to write home about, and the top of the meal was very crusty. I think this was intentional, but I have to say, I'm not a fan of this style of lasagna.<br/><br/>So, all in all, a very dissapointing experience. The waitress clearly didn't appreciate our comments, as we never received our complementary biscuit upon paying the bill. I don't really care much for complementary chocolates/biscuits in any case, but I care even less for the attitude.<br/><br/>Chris

The rustic setting of Essenza Italian in Surry Hills is a small restaurant but the table settings didn’t make us feel cramped...

We both gravitated towards the gnocchi; I had the dish with prawns, vodka, olives, basil, cream and cherry tomatoes. I had never tasted a pasta this incredible, the gnocchi was pillowy and the prawns were absolutely moreish. This is the dish to come back for! H had a glorious one full of broccoletti, tomato, olives, pine nuts and lemon nut butter. I’m excited to try out Essenza’s other pasta offerings because I’m sure they are just as incredible.

Will we go back? Definitely!

Nice traditional italian. Had a delightful meal here, good italian, friendly service, what more could you want!

LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS PLACE!. Being away from my family for the second New Years Eve, I was not expecting much - but a nice meal before going back to the home of friends for a beverage or 20.. what we got out of this place was so much more than a meal. The food was PERFECT by the way, we had zucchini, meatballs and garlic bread for starters - gnocchi, lamb and calamari for mains. LOVED the food. <br/><br/>What won me over was the awesome warm vibe. The owner went to every table, spoke to everyone - made everyone feel so welcome. We had such a lovely time here - will definitely return, if for nothing else than to hear the awesome golden oldies playing in the background :)<br/><br/>Thanks for such a lovely night!!

A friend of mine had won a voucher for this place and after following their Instagram account I knew this was going to be a good night AND IT WAS! From entree to dessert we couldn't fault anything .. We decided to share a EVERYTHING even mains as it all looked too yummy. Highlights for me .. Crummed olives stuffed with goats cheese, lamb with lentils and the mini desserts.. A great place for couples, family's and friends ..

Terry, Brisbane. A group of three married couples went to dinner at Essenza Restaurant last Saturday night (26/07) we picked this restaurant based on reviews ,however couldn't have been more disappointed, food average , service terrible , dont bother

Great all around. An intimate venue with prompt service and delicious food. Lamb shoulder was succulent!

Always good! Lovely ambience with the lighting, service is always personable and food home style itallian- the meatballs never dissapoint!

Great food with genuine, friendly and attentive service. We read the reviews while deciding on our dishes and we were not disappointed! We had the seared scallops on special which was superb. Lamb shoulder was tasty and cooked to perfection. I really enjoyed the spaghetti mariana, nice mix of seafood. Tiramasu for dessert was delicious! Loose leaf tea a nice touch.

AMAZING!. We absolutely loved this restaurant! The atmosphere, the food and especially the exceptional service make for a wonderful and intimate dining experience. Now for the food, the authentic italian and amazing flavours they manage to achieve with each and every dish is impressive. We had the lemon chicken and the specialty ragu pasta for main, and the calamari and meatballs for entree, and both will definitely be going back to try more off the menu. The food came out in perfect timing, and is very reasonable for the exceptional quality you receive.<br/>Definitely recommend visiting this restaurant if you are local or visiting sydney.

Enjoyable. The food here is flavoursome and our waitress was very friendly. I especially enjoyed the dessert tasting plate and zucchini fritters. The complimentary cookies was a nice touch. Lovely date restaurant!

Have to agree with the previous reviewer - we had Valentine's Day dinner there and the food was just ok and presentation could be improved. However wasn't that expensive and so on a less busy night could be an ok restaurant option - but don't think we'll bother going back.

Worst place ever. Ruined my valentines day. Don't go here. The food is horrible and tasteless. Whoever voted for this place has no idea about Italian food. It's the worst place I have been to in sydney. It's absolutely overpriced and overrated. I travel often to Italy and this place is a disgrace for Italian food. Don't waste ur money

Have your function here!. I chose Essenza’s upstairs room to host a large dinner function for a friend’s celebration and it was a raging success. <br/>What really set Essenza apart was the fantastic service and extra little touches. Throughout the entire process of organising and running the celebration, I truly felt like we were dealing with friends. Nothing was too much and we were given absolute free reign on the space; a spacious, pretty terrace room with high ceilings, floorboards, private bar and toilet. On top of letting us set up and set down an entire room over a few days, we were allowed to have our own music system, play video over their flat screen, and kit the whole room out with flowers, lights and balloons. <br/>I appreciated the small details – like a handwritten sign on the street and specially printed menu’s. Owner Gareth really went above and beyond. The three-course meal was timed beautifully to coincide with speeches, and we were able to linger until late into the night. On top of that, the food was delicious, accommodating gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian guests with generous servings of delicious, classic Italian. The waitress Flavia was a true delight and looked after us all evening!<br/>I really have to thank Essenza for a wonderful, memorable evening. We had a great time and will definitely be hosting more events there in the future, perhaps next time in the new outside courtyard area. If you’re looking for a welcoming, easy place to host a beautiful private ‘do, I cannot recommend Essenza enough.

Visitor to Sydney from Melbourne and was looking for an Italian restaurant in Surry Hills. Essenza didn't disappoint - great ambiance, friendly staff and meals were delicious. Ordered two pasta dishes and they hit the spot, would recommend.

Went there 2/11/13 for lunch wth my wife and daughter. The place was really nice and cozy, staff were awesome, my daughter seem to enjoyed the place. We had the gnochi prawn and chicken penne and arancini ball(i think that how it spell:)) and creme brule for the dessert...they were fantastic. Nice food, friendly services, and my daughter love the food too:). Have to comeback for dinner next time:)

Been here twice and both times food was good - consistently tasty. My first time there menu seemed more exciting whereas this time, menu was rather old school and conservative. Service was friendly but was not as attentive as my first visit and food was much slower to arrive. Wonder if there's been a change in chef?

Delicious! I would definitely book again. The service was wonderful and the food and wine was so beautiful.

Had a beautiful long lunch today . The food was delicious from the calamari, arancini balls to the lamb shoulder and salmon. There was 6 in our party and we stayed over 3 hours and the staff were so kind and attentive and didnt mind we were the last ones to leave. Will definitely go back. Thanks for a fantastic afternoon.

On arrival we were greeted by the friendly staff and sited on a table of our choice.<br/>menu choice was good and specials ok not a fan of having to peel my prawns however very nice with the pear and rocket salad meatballs nice as well.<br/>the desert we had chocolate soufflé I think it should be called chocolate pudding centre was firm.<br/>Coffee great and nice place for dinner.<br/>Service ok had better but very friendly that makes up for it .

Great food and wonderful, friendly service. I don't normally like such simple decor but the experience makes you look beyond that.

ABsolutely fantastic service and food!. We booked a large group for their function room, Essenza were fantastic. We were pretty vague with numbers, confirming only on the afternoon of the dinner. With 25 people in a room upstairs, we had our own waiter, a set menu which was perfectly timed, we honestly couldn't have asked for better service! And the food, wow super yummy! Sometimes set menus can be a bit lacking, but we had a huge choice for the set menu, (6 mains to pick from) and it arrived hot and all timed perfectly. The wine is delicious and the staff wow I can't express enough how wonderful they were!!! Everything we needed was there without asking, anything we wanted was provided and they let us be as noisey and stay as late as we wanted.<br/>A fantastic evening with a group of friends, made better by great service, amazing food and a wonderful setting. Thankyou Essenza!!

Essenzial Italian Experience. Nice elegant decor, friendly staff (a particular mention to our waiter Enzo) <br/>The menu gives you a limited choice of Primi and Secondi, I suppose they aim to focus on only few things but done well. <br/>We skipped the starters as nothing really attracted us apart from the arancini. We changed though our mind when, after asking about the filling, we were told they had only cheese (and the tomato sauce ?? ) <br/>We ordered Chicken staffed with ricotta, really delicious and tagliatelle with veal shin ragu'. In my humble opinion the ragu' was a bit too dry although overall the dish was fine. Chocolate Nemesis was a great way to finish our dinner<br/>We had a bottle of an Italian Pinot Grigio (Lamberti Sanpietre, if I am not mistaken) which I would expect to be of a better quality given what we were charged for (42 dollars)... <br/>Overall a good nite out !

At first site this restaurant is quite charming, with an intimate seating arrangement and simple decor. The service however was another story. <br/>The hour long wait for our mains may have been forgiven if it wasn't for the sub-standard food that was served for almost $27/8 a plate. <br/>The meals were lacking in taste, with the sides being either too salty or too sweet. The only positive of dining here was the delicious entrees and the 25% discount we received on our bill for such a delayed meal.<br/>Overall a disappointing choice for Mother's Day dinner.

Delicious!! Seafood gnocchi to die for

Shocking service. Dinner 30/4/13- Had to wait long periods of time for service, one stretch was so long that I needed to walk up and order more wine to be delivered to the table, which resulted in another 15 minute wait for the bottle to be dropped off. The waitress was not friendly and at times abrupt. <br/><br/>Food was delicious but I found a piece of plastic in the lamb. Staff took my half-eaten meal away without offering any replacement. This resulted in having to leave the restaurant hungry. <br/><br/>Ordered stuffed olives that were on the bill but never actually made it to the table. This was dealt with again abruptly. <br/><br/>When speaking with the manager while paying, we were given the excuse of being 'too busy' when we explained that we weren't happy with the service and of the long wait times. He did not offer any avenue to give feedback or a review when asked to do so. <br/><br/>Overall, very disappointed with the service provided at Essenza. For the cost of the meals, one expects the overall experience to worth the money. This was not the case.

Disappointing. Our food took an hour.... it was nice but I was so starving by the time it arrived I could barely taste it. When I booked the hostess told me it was BYO for the night I booked but when I arrived it turned out it wasn't for that night... plus they seated us next to the bathrooms.

Delicious home style Italian. Reasonably priced meals, generous serves... Without being too large. Friendly staff and prompt service. Warm inviting setting. BYO was reasonable about $3.00 per head. I make sure I come to this restaurant every time I visit Sydney

Good food, friendly staff. Had Seafood Risotto and Prawn Gnocchi with a friend for dinner. Food was good, and really friendly and caring staff.. But the Risotto was a bit of under cooked, a bit of hard in the middle. Overall was good.

Above average price tag but had the best Canelloni here. The pumpkin adds a nice sweetness and the almonds and rocket in combination with the tender beef create a really enjoyable taste and texture. Well done.

Definately going back again!. We had pasta for lunch here. The people serving were very friendly and inviting. The pasta served was authentic Italian, quite tasty and was a good sized portion. Best of all it tasted fresh and healthy! The place is not huge but has a very peaceful atmosphere. Definitely going back again! -Michelle-

This italian restaurant is really awesome place including a lot of delicous pastas

Lovely Italian place!! Much batter than Italian restaurants at Circular Quay and Leichard. Totaly loved Gnocchi with Prawns &Olives. The waitresses are so friendly!!

It's awesome! I love gnocc.... It's awesome! <br/>I love gnocchi prawns :) <br/>Enjoy !

So yummy dishes. I want to recommend this restaurant to my friends.

Gnocchi duck ragu was delish! Great atmosphere, great owner, great relaxing place to come and enjoy with friends for a catch up! Sitting in the back with a nice breeze coming in, I thoroughly enjoyed this place! First time but not the last!

Most Amazing Night. Was there last weekend, and had an amazing time. The atmosphere was great, staff attentive and professional and the food was absolutely beautiful. The Gnocchi Prawn and the Arancini were my favourites, but I can't wait to come back and try other things on the menu. Love that it's easy to share! Will definitely come back:)

My family and I wanted to have a meal before we went to the Belvoir Theatre on Thursday Night. I pre-booked and was given the gluten free options for my wife is a caeliac. They have gluten free bread and pasta and the chefs even went out of their way to make the rib eye steak gluten free. We arrived at 7.05pm and were out by 7.45pm. The food and service was exceptional. The atmosphere was beautiful as our table was right next to the open fireplace. Just wish we had spent more time there. Will definitely go back in the future. Most impressed!

Highly recommend. I return time and again.

Found this place by accident last Saturday night. We had the best food we have had in Sydney for a long time, definitely the best value for money. Staff were very friendly and very efficient. We will definitely be returning soon.

Amazing gnocci! Staff are quick and nice... Food was great!

We've been here 3 times now and love it!! Great food esp the arancini balls and the seafood spaghetti.. Service is tops!! Love the Italian white wine!!

Great food, friendly & unobtrusive staff, tempting menu. Great all round, really enjoyed dinner there.

Great atmosphere, staff are very welcoming and attentive. Menu has a bit of everything- classics with some modern flavours as well. Good value for money!

Atmosphere excellent, staff great, food wonderful. Would definitely come back.