Cooked?
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.
- 🚰handwashing sink issuescriticalNo 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.
- 🧽surfaces not properly sanitizedcriticalFood contact surface not properly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use and following any activity when contamination may have occurred.
When was Essex last inspected?
Essex has 5 inspections on record going back to July 12, 2022, averaging 23 points.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| April 29, 2025 | Grade B | 15 pts |
| March 18, 2025 | no grade issued ⏳ | 35 pts |
| November 14, 2024 | Grade C | 35 pts |
| April 2, 2024 | no grade issued ⏳ | 20 pts |
| July 12, 2022 | Grade A | 10 pts |
Essex vs Chinatown
Chinatown runs 74% clean across 671 tracked restaurants — 443 clean, 46 mid, 106 cooked.
Against the 671 spots Cooked tracks in Chinatown, this one comes out cleaner than 25% of them.
Other spots 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.
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.