Best Restaurants that are Worth The Drive in Old Lyme

We love this resturant year-round! Never disappoints! We have several servers who are outstanding but Kevin is our favorite. Always welcoming & knowledgeable about the menu. And we enjoy his interaction with us and his humor. The menu is perfect & changes with the seasons. The chef is very consistent. The dishes are always on point. The atmosphere in the dining area is comfortable, and the deck is outstanding in the summer with the sunsets. The bar is large and the bartenders are very friendly. It’s a full bar and I’m sure they can make any drink you would desire. Love that it’s so close to my home. I try not to go too much!

A fantastic, romantic restaurant! We drove down from MA and had the best dinner. Our server Scott was great. We sat on the bridge and it was the perfect winter night!

Our server and other waitstaff were fantastic! We had a leisurely dinner and never felt rushed. Dinner was lovely but dessert was the winner tonight. Decorated beautifully for Christmas…greens, wreaths, so many candles glowing and the twinkly lights everywhere made it feel like a Christmas wonderland (side note) because the lighting is dimmed so can enjoy the decor was a big hard to read the menu at the table Maybe an extra little table lamp would help 10 out of 10 experience The Coast Guard is is consistently at the top of the list. You can always count on a great meal and a great experience with some of the best wait staff in the state.

Our dinner with friends at The Essex was beyond expectations. Service was friendly, knowledgeable, and well paced. We opted for the three course price fixe and were pleasantly surprised by the appetizer course we were served before the salad course. At $79 per person the dinner was very reasonably priced for the quality and quantity. Our first and main courses were outstanding. My strip steak perfectly cooked to medium rare and the whole table enjoyed the frites. The halibut and scallops along with the sauces and vegetables were excellent. Dessert choices were very generous although I hit my limit after a few bites of the baked Alaska. The menu was heavy on seafood which restricted our friend who has a fish and shellfish allergy. But once aware of that and a nut allergy, every dish was carefully adjusted for nuts. Dining at the Essex is a wonderful treat. We will be back.

Great experience. Service and food first class. Pricey but well worth it. Hand duck, wife had chicken scallapini , son had bass. All outstanding. Some of the best service I ever had