rom Francesca to Cesca, then to the pared down Esca, this resto has shaved off two thirds of the fancy, multi-syllabic, traditionally female Italian name to arrive at a simple Esca. The seafood centric resto capitalizes on the market’s weekly, and often daily, fresh fish offerings and thus the menu is crafted around what is in season and what is available.

This resto was created by none other than Iron Chef extraordinaire Mario Batali (current win/loss/tie ratio 14-4-0) who wanted to create a resto that was strictly seafood and appealed to an Italian coastal cooking sensibility. Thus Esca was created. If you are weary that Batali’s hype won’t match the products from the kitchen, at least you can rely on a stellar wine cellar full of Italian only bottles at correspond with the coastal cooking theme.
-E.J.