The Bottega
For Alimentari Flâneur, New York’s romantic food styling and catering studio, founder Daniel Soares envisioned transforming the vacant ground floor of his family’s East Harlem warehouse into a space for both work and gathering. Together, we turned the small, empty shell into a warm atelier by day and a private dining room by night — a place where his team prepares artisanal baskets, tests new recipes, and hosts intimate dinners. The result, The Bottega, is a 600-square-foot hospitality space rooted in comfort and Old New York charm — an exercise in designing intimacy through purpose and simplicity.
Surrounded by commercial warehouses, the space needed a sense of privacy and softness. The studio introduced hand-made lace curtains to create a subtle threshold between street and interior, and one way reflective glass. Inspired by the layered abundance at the heart of Alimentari, we filled the windows with baskets, dried flowers, and strings of garlic, creating both intimacy and immersion — a quiet Italian moment tucked within a New York building.
The design draws from Old New York, infused with Portuguese and Southern Italian sensibilities — beauty in imperfection, comfort in tradition, and materials shaped by hand. Plaster walls were painted by a Brooklyn craftsman, and Portuguese floor tiles were laid by Daniel's father, weaving lineage and craft into the architecture itself. The studio softened up the space with layers of Italian fabrics, antique objects, family heirlooms, and everyday materials hung from walls and beams.
For a busy catering and styling atelier, an abundance of dishes, trays, vases, and flatware is essential and unavoidable. To organize this collection within a compact footprint, the studio designed custom shelving along the windows and perimeter, maximizing both function and display. Silk curtains and sink skirts conceal utilitarian areas (from storage beneath the counters to access points for refrigeration), maintaining a sense of softness throughout. At its core, the space remains practical and hardworking, designed to support the daily craft of creating and sharing food with care.
The design draws from Old New York, infused with Portuguese and Southern Italian sensibilities — beauty in imperfection, comfort in tradition, and materials shaped by hand. Plaster walls were painted by a Brooklyn craftsman, and Portuguese floor tiles were laid by Daniel's father, weaving lineage and craft into the architecture itself. The studio softened up the space with layers of Italian fabrics, antique objects, family heirlooms, and everyday materials hung from walls and beams.
With the space serving many purposes, the studio approached the layout as a study in flexibility — creating areas for cooking and prep, a spot for the bartender to engage guests, and room for private dinners of up to sixteen. To support these shifting uses, Enso designed a custom Murphy bar with built-in storage for bottles and tools, finished with a fabric skirt that adds a subtle Italian touch. When closed, the bar sits flush against the wall, seamlessly converting the area into additional dining space.
