Standing on the subway platform after Kevin Draper’s lecture “The Second Toughest Job in the World: A History of New York City Mayors, 1700-1950” at New York Historical (no longer Society!) to grab the B downtown, I met this adorable, perky woman.

We started talking about restaurants and squeezed in lots before one of us got off the B train. She mentioned working at the Michelin-starred Essential by Christopher and said I had to try it.

I convinced a friend to join me at the inviting bar to sample some Chef Christophe Bellanca’s dishes.

The restaurant started us with an amuse bouche that I thought needed a touch of color. That is until I put a spoonful of the ethereal layered sweet potato royale with a Madera reduction topped with white mushroom foam into my mouth. A taste of heaven. This mushroom cappuccino has been the amuse-bouche since December 2022, when Essentials by Christopher opened.

I had the tender octopus with caramelized onion jus and black lemon ($22), while my friend had the foie gras ($22) coated with zaatar, with a Medjool date along with country toast ($31). With that, we couldn’t resist the housemade bread. I especially loved the crust on the Kalamata olive and buckwheat slices. Addictive.

My dining companion enjoyed the blanquette of frog legs topped with a parsley velour ($28) with curried mashed potatoes, while I savored the ash-marinated langoustine, with thy colored vegetable curry topped with smoked pike roe and in a tart créme aigrelette sauce ($52)

Even though we didn’t order a tasting menu like other diners, they still served us mignardise, a small bowl of bite-sized desserts. We savored each bite of the fresh hazelnut pâte à choux filled with eponymous creme, yuzu madeleines with zest and passion fruit pâte des fruits.

What a delightful meal. Their Michelin star is well deserved.

I recommend.

Essentials by Christopher
Upper West Side
103 W 77th,
New York, NY 10024
646- 478- 7928
essentialbychristophe.com/