I was really looking forward to trying Estes since they had stellar reviews on Google, so I was a bit disappointed with some parts of the experience. We had made a reservation, but when we arrived we were seated in the bar area at the very back corner. Once another party sat next to us, I could barely maneuver my chair to get in and out of my seat because the table was tucked tightly into the corner. For appetizers we ordered the focaccia with whipped ricotta and the potato leek soup. The focaccia was just okay. The texture was a bit dense compared to the focaccia I typically enjoy—it’s nothing like Ligurian focaccia—and the crust was a bit too crunchy and actually hurt the roof of my mouth. The whipped ricotta itself was very good though. The potato leek soup had a very strong, overpowering flavor (I’m not quite sure what it was) that I wasn’t particularly fond of. I also think it could have used a touch more salt. For the mains, I had the kale balanzoni, which was one of the best dishes I’ve had in a while. It was absolutely delightful and generously stuffed with ricotta. The mushroom broth it was served in was also excellent—I’ve never had pasta served in broth before and it was honestly a game changer. I drank every last bit of it. We also had the pork ragù pasta, which was good—slightly sweet with a bit of spice. The pasta itself was cooked perfectly al dente. It wasn’t my personal favorite dish, but it was still enjoyable. The tiramisu was divine. I do wish it had a slightly stronger coffee/espresso flavor, but everything else was fantastic. The ladyfingers had a thicker, cake-like texture that I really enjoyed, and the cream was perfectly balanced—not overly sweet. The drinks were also very reasonably priced, which I appreciated—$5 beers and $12 cocktails. I do wish they offered a cocktail menu since they have a full bar, but that might raise drink prices, so I understand the tradeoff. Overall, I’d definitely come back for the kale balanzoni and the tiramisu.
