Essensia Restaurant

Fabulous food and outstanding service! Had dinner at Essensia last night and it was wonderful. There was a party going on and the music was a little too loud for me, so my friend and I asked to be seated outside instead of in the lovely terrace. No problem, it was early in the evening, so there were plenty of available tables. My friend spilled a whole glass of water and made a mess, but they were very agreeable and cleaned it up making it look as if it were a pleasure for them to do so. The staff was totally friendly and accommodating. The food was excellent

My wife and I had lunch at Essencia, ordering the grain bowl and a veggie club. Based on flavor alone I would rate this as four stars, the grain bowl was delicious with a unique combination of flavors. The veggie club was pretty good, but there is a pickled element that’s a bit strange in combination with the savory avocado spread. Our server was also very attentive. The only downside is the price, items are not at the level you expect for premium pricing.

We were staying at a South Beach hotel and looking for a good restaurant that had vegan options. Essensia was a little on the expensive side ($ 150ish all in with a cocktail, ala carte salad, dinner & tip) but didn’t disappoint when it came to service, ambiance, and food quality. The setting is lovely (we sat outside on the ‘porch’), the service was spectacular, and the food creative and delicious.
They brought out a little special treat and even had a special vegan treat for our vegan diner. The staff was knowledgeable about the vegan diet. I dropped a knife at one point and it was picked up and replaced by a staff member not involved in our service so fast you’d have sworn it never happened.
We had a wonderful time! Thanks, Essensia!

Food is delicious. Ambience is beautiful and very romantic for date night. The staff was very friendly and took great care of us. My new favorite place to go. I would highly recommend.

We opted for the breakfast buffet here this morning. Looked like a good selection of food, but everything suppose to be served hot was cold… frittata, sausage, bacon, eggs, potatoes all cold. I ended up get the yoghurt parfait and fruit. Should have just ordered it off the menu for a lot cheaper… Over $ 100 for the 4 of us. on the positive side, very attentive servers!

The breakfast is amazing! The best selection and buffet with great service and beautiful outdoor seating. Not giving 5 stars because it’s very expensive, 2 people cost $ 60-​$ 70.

Excellent Breakfast and Dinner. I’m extremely particular and they were very accommodating to my allergies.

I wanted to like Essensia the same way I wish I loved vegetables because they’re good for you and will keep you thin, but truth be told Essencia was a huge disappointment.
For starters, my reservation was at 10 AM in which I arrived at 9:45 and was seated promptly– all of this is great except for the fact we had three different waiters come by to ask what we wanted to drink. Can you all maybe communicate? walkie talkies? Headphones? Word of mouth? The initial attention is great, but after the second guy comes around if a third one comes… now you know that there’s a problem.
My husband is vegan so I assumed like all other nicer hotel beach establishments there’d been options for him as our previous breakfasts; not here. They don’t offer egg substitutes and only have ONE menu option that is vegan qualified; the oatmeal made with water or soy. The waiter (don’t remember name– but from Puerto Rico) was peculiar about the whole vegan friendly request. It was all…“no; sorry we don’t have anything.” So an order of oatmeal in water for the vegan and a whole wheat coconut waffle for me with a side of fruit and cottage cheese that was listed on the menu as a side item.
It was now 10:50 and we had still not received our food! Really? It shouldn’t take a full hour to make an oatmeal and a waffle. When I asked why there was a hold-​up, they stated it was because they could not find cottage cheese for my side order and were «looking for it» huh?
Our meals finally came out and as a courtesy we were each given a FREE little fruit salad… apparently they never found the cottage cheese by the way.
After looking at the Unilocal pics, I noticed Unilocaler Stephanie had a phenomenal looking whole grain and coconut waffle with greek yogurt and fresh basil– WAIT A MINUTE… that’s what I ordered and why don’t I see the same condiments in mine?!? Lucky for them, I don’t tend to complain about things– but I also don’t plan on giving them that second chance for breakfast either. Hopefully your experience beats mine!

Omg. Delicious meals all around. This was my splurge night and the ny strip did not disappoint. Great ambience, beautiful lobby, and lots of public seating. Good service and totally worth the visit. I would come back.

Went to Essencia last night. We valet parked our car, and our reservation time was honored without waiting. Atmosphere and ambiance was great. We took a walk around the grounds, it is beautiful. Our drinks and appetizers came in the perfect amount of time and the food was delicious. Our main dishes took a little too long but again food was delicious. Service was good.
So far so good… now for the bad part… and it ruined the whole experience and I will never… I mean NEVER go back there. Our waiter asked for our valet car number so they could get our cars ready. He said it would take 15 minutes. Great idea, we sat at the table for 15 minutes. We then got up to get our car. We walked outside, had to pay $ 20 plus tip (we ended up not tipping) for valet parking even with the restaurant stamp… apparently normal for Miami, so not that bad. They said car would be right up in 3 to 5 minutes. Well, 45 minutes later still no car, and the valet people were not helpful at all, they kept telling us the car would be here in 3 minutes. They were not rude but they did not care about us at all! Not apologetic, just blank stares and «your car will be here in a few minutes»
Our car finally came over 50 minutes from the time the waiter took our car number. I don’t care if I was at the best restaurant in the world, that is totally unacceptable. There were people walking out soon before our car came and they said this is a problem with this place. I would have given 5 stars if not for the valet service. If you do eat here… WALK OR PARK ON STREET!

Good choices. The service is good

I was there recently, and all I can say:
Service: incredible
Food: bellow average
This was one of my favorite places for a romantic /​quiet dinner. But it’s now time to look for new alternatives!

Went for breakfast this AM before heading to the beach. Got seated quickly and the service was very friendly. The dish I ordered came with ingredients that were not on the menu. Totally ruined the breakfast for me. The other dish we had ordered was a egg dip scramble thing. It was super greasy. I think the main problem with this place for me was that the servers don’t know the menu. I had to ask several people and finally the chef about the ingredient that I knew I tasted but they all kept saying it was just mayo. Until the chef confirmed that there was anchovies in the mayo. The outdoor patio is pretty and they have parrots which was cool.

OMG do not miss the opportunity to try the wonderful cuisine your tastebuds will thank you

I have had brunch and dinner here, and every time I find the quality of the food to be outstanding. I really appreciate their locally sourced farm-​to-​table approach, and that they have good healthy options for everyone. (vegan, vegetarian, pescetarian, carnivore, all will find an option here!)
The atmosphere is spectacular, I highly recommend the outdoor seating area so you can enjoy the lush tropical landscape. For brunch, the lemon poppy sead quinoa pancakes are divine, as is the french toast bread pudding. The egg dishes are all pretty on point, the only brunch dish that sounded better than it was executed is the baked eggs dip; I found it waaaaay to greasy.
For dinner, I would recommend starting with the signature kale salad. It’s called signature for a reason! Honestly, this is the best kale salad I have ever had. They massage the kale with the dressing to take down a bit of the grittiness that kale can have, which I found to bring out more of the actual flavor profile of the kale. The ceviche is also a lovely appetizer or small plate option. The roasted chicken breast I had was perfectly seasoned and cooked, however I did have order envy of the lovely fish dish my dining partner had. Now that I am a vegetarian, I want to return for dinner to try some items of that section of the menu.
My only reason for removing one star is that the two times I have visited for brunch, the servers have been lackluster. The bar manager and hostesses have all been lovely, but I have been pretty much ignored by the waitstaff on both brunch visits. The food more than makes up for it, so I will return. If they can improve on the service, I would say this is a 5 star spot.

Went here for dinner on a business trip to Miami Beach, and it was a great way to kick off the trip. The ambiance is fantastic, from the stroll through the lobby of the Palms to sitting outside on the veranda looking at the lush palm trees and gardens. Food was pricey (not surprising anywhere in Miami Beach), but delicious. Only complaint was that it took a looooooong time for dinner… about 3 hours. But based on our trip, that seems to be the norm around here. Things move slowly.

What a beautiful little «hidden gem» as our waiter called it. He was so nice, then we loved him even more when we found out he was a Boston native!
I was thrilled to find a menu with a vegetarian/​vegan section with several options. Plenty for omnivores too. We sat out on the beautiful back porch and it was lovely. We even got a visit from a sweet little black cat who patrols the area. Non-​cat peeps – don’t worry, he is not a nuisance; very chill. I love cats so I called him over to our table.
Good wine selection and amazing bread basket to start! Excellent service and nice staff.

Finding great food in south beach is difficult at best. There are so many tourist traps and fakes that it is easy to blow money on bad food.
Essensia is not that. This is a genuine foodie type restaurant. Creative menu with amazing food. Ambiance is brilliant and staff quick, attentive, and helpful when asked.
Brilliant find!

Nice outdoor ambiance. Mango Mojito delishhhhh … The Chicken Thai with coconut rice was very good.
Great service.
I recommend this place

The restaurant is absolutely beautiful with inside and outside seating options. The Summer salad, summer refresher juice, and quinoa pancakes were delicious! However, the service from our waitress was just not up to par. She completely forgot our juices, didn’t check in, and took 15 minutes to get our check. The gentleman, Jean, was great. He definitely made up for the lack of service from our waitress with his smile and attentiveness. He’s fantastic!