In an America with 73,608 pages of tax code and confusing dress code names like "Reef Casual," sometimes you just want to throw in the towel and get a little tipsy. Molly Wizenberg and Brandon Petit's new cocktail bar in Ballard is the perfect place to do it. The drinks here, unlike tax codes, are refreshingly simple. Options like the Queen Mary, an upgraded Bloody Mary adjusted to suit the after sundown crowd, consists of largely house-made ingredients. This from-scratch ethos can be observed in nearly everything coming from behind the bar and out of the kitchen at Essex. The growing crowds, flowing in from neighboring sister restaurant, Delancey are a testament to how the extra effort is paying off.