Black Seal Seafood Grille - Essex, Connecticut

Dennis S.

Great Nachos, Odd Cheesesteak! I recently dined at The Black Seal in Essex, CT, and had a mixed experience. The nachos were absolutely five-star delicious—crispy, cheesy, and perfectly layered with toppings. However, the Philly cheesesteak was a bit of a miss. It came with an unexpected green pesto that both my friend and I found odd. The flavor didn’t quite work with the traditional cheesesteak ingredients, leaving us confused about the choice.

The atmosphere was cozy, and the service was friendly, but the inconsistency in the food dropped my rating. If you’re stopping by, I highly recommend the nachos!

Warm regards,
Dennis Schleicher, YouTuber with over 90K subscribers and content creator on Instagram

KM P.

We’ve been here dozens of times over 30 years.
We just returned from out of state back to CT and live west of Hartford now, but have tripped back down to Essex twice lately.
Both times we ended up eating at Black Seal.
Both times we had a great lunch.
My wife had the Cheese Quesadilla and I had their burger.
Awesome grilled flavor.
Service is great and the restaurant has a great atmosphere.

colin A.

I went there for Easter, the drink specials were totally awesome the bar keep was amazing, we ordered wild mushroom ravioli appetizers, very tasty, the three friends I was with ordered the specials and were good, i ordered fish and chips and totally disappointed, the fish was over cooked, the coating was soft and oily and the fish was warm, one bite and I couldn't go any farther, my friends tried it and were not happy with it, the waitress asked how everything was and I said the fish was not good and she just ignored that and asked if we'd like another drink, not sure if the food is good but I do know that our waitress was not good at her job at all, the place was not even busy, that should have been a heads up, I will give them another try my friends eat there regularly, but I will definitely ask for a different waitress if we are seated in her station, on the way out I talked with the bartender and thanked her for the great cocktails she was very pleasant...the fish is in the last picture it looks like over cooked chicken tenders, horrible

Lissy M.

My friend & I are we’re looking for a place to eat and stumbled upon this jewel. We were a little hesitant but we were hungry! 😂 So we went in as soon as we walked in we were greeted. We were then seated quickly. Our waitress was extremely sweet & kind. Our food was sooooo good. Overall we would recommend this place to anyone look for some good food & a good atmosphere. Not to mention all the decorations inside super cute, it has a cozy small town feel. And after you eat and you need all that goodness to settle just a walk in the neighborhood it’s very adorable.

Carrie B.

The Oktoberfest special was good but the fish and chips was horrible but they didn’t charge us for it. Service was excellent and atmosphere was unique.

Yvonne L.

We loved our lunch time meal. My husband ordered the hamburger and I hit the lunch special quesidilla. Food was delicious and the atmosphere was great!!! We will be back in May to eat here again!!!

The M. L. T. L. L.

It was crowded and kind of an old dive style place. I prefer darker lighting and louder music but otherwise not a bad place. I had the Red Snapper with mash and asparagus, it was pretty good. My friend had the tenderloin and said it was excellent! For a wealthy town I was surprised when my draft toasted lager was only $6, not bad. Our meals were between like $25 and $35 and they were served up pretty quick, nice place!

Forrest ?. P.

I had a great meal and drinks when I went. Very friendly staff and nice selection of beers and spirits. Can be pretty busy because of its central location so time your visit accordingly or reserve a table.