Stella 34 Trattoria

This was not our first visit to Stella. The location is convenient if traveling in and out of Penn Station. Enter through Macy's to the 6th floor to find the restaurant behind bedding. We ordered drinks to start. The glasses of wine were less than half full and the Frose was not as pictured. We ordered a second glass of wine halfway through our meal and it arrived about 45 minutes later after we had finished eating. Service was very slow. We ordered the eggplant and another pasta dish. Both were very good. However the gluten-free pasta was not at all similar to it's equivalent pasta dish. For dessert, the affagato was just ok. More coffee than ice cream. The ice cream dishes were tiny servings but good. Would definitely not rush back. First visit (pre COVID) was much better than this time around.

Stella 34 Trattoria, is a truly incredible experience. My family and I were visiting New York for a birthday, and based on a previous recommendation we decided to try this establishment. We called to make a reservation a few days in advance (we were ecstatic there was an opening since we had a larger party), and upon making said reservation we were given the option to list all allergies in our party. This is extremely important to us as multiple family members have different ailments/allergies that are extremely volatile. To name a few we have a nut allergy, seafood/shellfish allergy, Celiac Disease (wheat allergy), lactose intolerance, and fructose intolerance ( this intolerance covers 50+ ingredients, fruits, sugar alcohols, etc.). We were surprised by the extremely detailed questionnaire we were able to fill out, and above all else we were delighted to see our family member with Celiac Disease could eat without a worry. We received a call from Stella 34 a day before our specified reservation. The woman who called us wanted to confirm our reservation, and before I could even finish my sentence to clarify the wheat allergy the woman quickly rambled off all the allergies we listed. We were overjoyed to know how seriously these allergies were being taken, and we were informed that the head chef already had our information/allergies ahead of time. This put us at ease immediately. A day later we arrived to get our table. Promptly when they opened we were immediately taken back, and we were given an incredible rounded booth table that comfortably fit our large party. It had a stunning view too. Later on an incredible Santa arrived to say hi to everyone, and it was a pleasure to take pictures with him. It truly amplified our family members birthday experience. Our waitress was kind, and extremely helpful when it came to explaining the items that were ok on the menu for the members with allergies. Our food arrived in a timely manner, and it was delicious. The rotisserie chicken was moist, tender, and extremely flavorful. This is the option our family member with Celiac Disease got. She was overjoyed to know she was safe to eat it, and they took the upmost care in making sure all the other ingredients didn’t affect her other allergies. The majority of us got the Chicken Pagnottella with an aioli. The chicken had a crispy crunch, a flavorful breading, and it was extremely tender. The arugula salad was lightly dressed with a lemon vinaigrette, which did not over power the freshness of the arugula. It added a level of freshness to the overall richness the aioli provided to the sandwich. There was a nice balance of acid (lemon) for the aioli in the sandwich. The pairing of the arugula really amplified freshness for the dish. The bread was toasted, and tasted freshly made. The pickled red onions on the sandwich also helped the balance as well. Overall it was perfectly sized for a lunch portion, and extremely satisfying. The majority of our party ordered this sandwich, and there were no complaints. Towards the end after asking for a check we were surprised with a dark chocolate cake with a perfect ganache, which was paired with a coffee ice cream. This was provided free of charge for our family members birthday. I will mention it was incredible, and I highly recommend their deserts. Furthermore, I want to note for being an extremely nice restaurant (especially in NYC) it’s prices were very fair. It took us all by surprise, and we can not thank the staff at Stella 34 enough for the incredible service! Moreover, I highly recommend, Stella 34 Trattoria, and it truly made an everlasting impression on us!!! After describing our experience a group of our friends are visiting Stella 34 next week! We will be returning again, and I highly recommend it!