The Room
Estela opened in 2013 above an Eileen Ford modeling-agency-turned-cocktail-bar at 47 East Houston Street, in the SoHo-NoHo border. The dining room is small, low-ceilinged, dim — banquette seating along brick walls, marble bar at the back, and a kitchen that's more glimpsed than seen. Ignacio Mattos and partner Thomas Carter built the room as the proof-of-concept for their Mattos Hospitality group (Altro Paradiso, Lodi, Corner Bar followed). The Michelin star arrived in 2017 and has been retained.
The dining room seats 65 across the main floor and the bar. Service is small-team and floor-warm. The booking window is three to five weeks for weekend evenings.
The Food
The kitchen runs Modern American with strong Mediterranean and South American influences (Mattos was born in Uruguay) — pillowy ricotta dumplings with thinly-shaved raw mushroom and Pecorino Sardo; an endive salad with walnuts, anchovies and ubriaco rosso that the New York Times has called 'simply perfect'; the burger that locals know to order at the bar.
Wine programme is small but intelligent — natural and small-producer, with a serious Italian and Loire bench. Cocktails before the meal are at the bar.
Best Occasion Fit
First Date: Estela's dim SoHo bistro is the Manhattan first-date for the diner who wants the night to register as 2013-cool-kid-confident. The endive salad is the order to share.
Birthday: Birthdays at Estela are warm-and-low-lit — the kitchen sends out a small dessert; the bar continues afterward.
Close a Deal: Estela is the SoHo deal dinner for the agreement that wants intimacy rather than spectacle.