Essex

• gradeGrade B
• inspection score15 pts
• critical violations2
• last inspectedApril 29, 2025 →
• address124 Rivington Street, Manhattan 10002
• cuisineNew American
• phone2125339616

Is Essex clean?

Essex is currently Grade B from NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), from an inspection on April 29, 2025. Inspectors wrote up 2 critical violations — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads mid 😬.

What did inspectors find at Essex?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on April 29, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 🧽surfaces not properly sanitizedcritical
  Food contact surface not properly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use and following any activity when contamination may have occurred.
• 🚰handwashing sink issuescritical
  No hand washing facility in or adjacent to toilet room or within 25 feet of a food preparation, food service or ware washing area. Hand washing facility not accessible, obstructed or used for non-hand washing purposes. No hot and cold running water or water at inadequate pressure. No soap or acceptable hand-drying device.

When was Essex last inspected?

Essex has 5 inspections on record going back to July 12, 2022, averaging 23 points.

Essex vs Chinatown

Chinatown runs 75% clean across 685 tracked restaurants — 450 clean, 46 mid, 105 cooked.

Against the 685 spots Cooked tracks in Chinatown, this one comes out cleaner than 24% of them.

Other spots in Chinatown

• A Jiang Nan Nyc
  clean · May 6, 2026
• A Douzo
  clean · May 19, 2026
• A Ray's
  clean · June 24, 2026
• A Partybus Bakeshop
  clean · August 20, 2026
• A Dunkin Donuts
  clean · December 18, 2025
• B New 94Th East Broadway
  mid · April 3, 2025

See every restaurant inspection in Chinatown →

How New York grades restaurants

New York City health inspectors score violations in points, and lower is better: 0–13 points earns an A, 14–27 a B, and 28 or more a C. Every restaurant is inspected at least once a year, and the letter has to be posted in the window. A restaurant that scores 14 or more on the first inspection of a cycle does not get a letter right away — it stays “Grade Pending” until a re-inspection settles it, which is why some spots here show an hourglass instead of a letter. Cooked only ever shows a letter the city actually posted; we never infer one from a score.

Read the New York ratings guide →

Inspection findings and available history come from the authority’s published records. Cooked checks daily; publication can lag behind an inspection. Read the date on each result and check the official source for newer information.

Source: NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) via NYC Open Data. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated April 29, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.

check your own block 📸

Cooked covers 10 cities on official inspection data — see who's clean, mid, or cooked near you.