Natale stopped in Ferrara in 1975. He never left again.
The Foundations
Natale Raiti arrived in Ferrara in 1975, during his military service. He never left again. Together with Anna he opened a small shop in Via delle Scienze: a wood-fired oven, a handful of recipes, and fresh bread every morning.
Natale cooked and baked. Anna welcomed guests: she was the host, the first face of Estebar for everyone who walked in. The ragù was hers, made the way her mother made it, without changing a thing. That recipe is still the same today, fifty years on, without a single gram of variation.
The shop grew slowly. Whoever came once, came back. Whoever came back, brought someone else.
Hands That Speak
As the children grew up, Estebar grew with them. But it never changed direction - it just gained more hands.
Francesco
Francesco is in the kitchen every day, from opening to close. His knives carry his name engraved on them, not out of vanity but belonging. Every dish leaves the kitchen with the same care he's brought since taking over the section.
The ragù still follows his father Natale's recipe, unchanged for over fifty years. For him, the work that matters is the part the guest never sees but tastes in the dish: the preparation, the selection, the consistency.
"Make people understand the work behind it."
Marco
Marco grew up inside Estebar, literally. His earliest memories are of the restaurant, between the counter and the oven. He makes the classic dough the same way his father does, never having changed the method.
But he's pushed his own research forward: he introduced a biga, prepared 24 hours before each dough, and replaced classic 00 flour with a percentage of semi-whole wheat in every dough. Tradition hasn't stood still. It has evolved with intention.
"It was born right in here."
Mattia
Mattia personally chooses every wine on the list: he goes down to the cellar, tastes, and selects only the ones that truly convince him. When a guest sits down for the first time, he introduces himself, asks how they are, makes them feel at home without ever being pushy.
He inherited his way with people from his mother Anna: the smile, the natural warmth, the ability to make everyone feel welcome. He used to work as a surveyor; he chose Estebar because, for him, it isn't a job - it's the place where he has fun.
"I don't go to work, I go to have fun."
In 2025 Estebar received the "Bottega Storica" (Historic Shop) recognition from the Emilia-Romagna region: fifty years of continuous activity by the same family, in the same place, here in Ferrara since 1975.
Over fifty years, in one book.
We collected our story in a book. We keep it in the dining room. Anyone curious to browse it is welcome. Available at the entrance (€20).
"We want people to understand the work behind it."