Esters Wine Shop

What Esters Wine Shop does

Esters Wine Shop & Oyster Bar was a single-location wine bar and retail wine shop operating from July 2015 to 2025 at 1314 Seventh Street in the Telephone Building, a 1937 Art Deco landmark in downtown Santa Monica. The company was organized as 7th Street Wine, LP, co-owned by Kathryn Coker, her husband Tug, Josh Loeb, and Zoe Nathan as part of the Rustic Canyon Family Restaurants group. The establishment offered wines by the glass and bottle from a program emphasizing planet-friendly selections from small producers, with deep Burgundy cellar stock and hundreds of bottles from around the world, complemented by a full bar serving seasonal cocktails and mocktails, an all-day farmers' market-driven menu, and a raw bar with oysters and seafood towers.

Esters generated revenue through a diversified mix of streams: on-premise wine and food service, retail wine bottle and curated gift box sales (priced $60-$195), in-store gift cards ($25-$200 denominations), private events and catering, and third-party delivery via UberEats, GrubHub, PostMates, Caviar, DoorDash, and ChowNow. The technology stack was standard hospitality SaaS, including Resy for reservations, Toasttab for takeout and digital gift cards, and Mailchimp for email marketing, with no proprietary AI or ML capabilities.

The company earned James Beard Award semifinalist nominations for Outstanding Bar in 2023 and 2024 and was named Best Wine Bar in Southern California by the Los Angeles Times in 2017. Despite these credentials, Esters operated a single location throughout its ten-year history, did not raise institutional funding, and closed permanently in 2025.

Name

Esters Wine Shop

Legal name

7th Street Wine, LP

Website

https://esterswineshop.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Esters Wine Shop & Oyster Bar was a Santa Monica wine bar and retail shop offering natural wines, oysters, and curated gift boxes from 2015 to 2025, as part of the Rustic Canyon Family Restaurants group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Monica

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. On-site dining and bar service: Revenue from wine by the glass, cocktails, and food served at the Santa Monica location during regular operating hours and happy hour.
2. Wine and gift box retail sales: Direct retail sales of wine bottles and curated gift boxes including Valentine's Day Box ($120), Cheers to You! ($90), Thursday Night Special ($60), Sweet Sipper ($100), Fish & Sips ($100), Kathryn's Kitchen Sink ($165), What the Kids are Drinking ($75), Classic California ($105), and Taste of the Cellar ($195).
3. Gift card sales: Sale of gift cards redeemable in-store at denominations of $25, $50, $100, $150, and $200.
4. Private events and catering: Revenue from hosting private events including birthday parties, private tastings, company cocktail parties, and bridal showers. Catering services with cheese and charcuterie boards are also available for pickup and delivery.
5. Third-party delivery: Orders placed through third-party delivery platforms including UberEats, GrubHub, PostMates, Caviar, DoorDash, and ChowNow.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Esters Wine Shop operates a wine bar and retail wine shop in downtown Santa Monica, offering on-site dining with wines by the glass and bottle, seasonal cocktails and mocktails, and an all-day farmers' market-driven food menu featuring oysters and seafood. The retail side sells hundreds of wine bottles from around the world, including a deep Burgundy cellar selection, alongside curated wine gift boxes and gift cards. The business also hosts private events, catering services, weekly wine tastings, and delivery orders through third-party platforms.

Product overview

Esters Wine Shop & Oyster Bar is a wine bar and retail shop offering a unified experience combining on-site dining and retail wine sales. The core offerings include the dine-in wine bar serving seasonal cocktails, mocktails, and farm-to-table dishes alongside a retail wine shop with hundreds of bottles and deep Burgundy cellar selections. Additional products include curated wine gift boxes (Valentine's Day Box, Fish & Sips, Classic California, Taste of the Cellar, etc.), in-store gift cards, catering services with cheese and charcuterie boards, private event venues, and weekly wine tasting events. The establishment specializes in planet-friendly wines from small producers and positions itself as a neighborhood gathering place for wine enthusiasts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wine Gift Boxes Curated wine gift boxes featuring selections from small producers, with themed packages ranging from $60 to $195, including Valentine's Day Box, Cheers to You!, Thursday Night Special, Sweet Sipper, Fish & Sips, Kathryn's Kitchen Sink, What the Kids are Drinking, Classic California, and Taste of the Cellar. Sold to retail customers for gifting and home consumption.
• Esters Gift Card
• Dine-In Wine Bar & Restaurant On-site dining experience featuring wines by the glass and bottle, seasonal cocktails and mocktails, an all-day farmers' market-driven menu, a raw bar with oysters, seafood towers, and cheese and charcuterie boards. Served to walk-in and reservation guests at the Santa Monica location.
• Catering Service
• Private Events & Venues
• Retail Wine Shop
• Wine Tastings & Events

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ResycoreTechnology or IntegrationResy provides the online reservation platform for Esters Wine Shop. Customers make table reservations through Resy's booking system which collects personal information for booking confirmations and post-dining feedback.
• UberEatsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party food delivery platform partner for order fulfillment.
• GrubHubminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party food delivery platform partner for order fulfillment.
• PostMatesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party food delivery platform partner for order fulfillment.
• CaviarminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party food delivery platform partner for order fulfillment.
• DoorDashminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party food delivery platform partner for order fulfillment.
• ChowNowminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party food delivery platform partner for order fulfillment.
• ToasttabminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorProvides online ordering platform for takeout orders and digital gift cards.
• Rustic Canyon Family RestaurantscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEsters is part of the Rustic Canyon Family of Restaurants, a portfolio of affiliated restaurants including Rustic Canyon, Huckleberry Bakery & Cafe, Sweet Rose Creamery, Milo & Olive, Cassia, Tallula's, Birdie G's and The Dutchess. The group shares resources, branding, and operational infrastructure.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Total Wine & More: Largest US specialty retailer of wine, beer, and spirits with hundreds of stores nationwide. A broad incumbent that competes with Esters' retail side on price and selection breadth but lacks the curated, single-location wine-bar identity.
• Wine.com: Largest US online wine retailer offering national delivery and curated selections including natural wines. Comparable to Esters' retail/distribution ambition at scale but operates purely online with no on-premise wine bar component.

Direct peers

• K&L Wine Merchants: Major US wine retailer with flagship stores, curated small-producer focus, and frequent in-store tastings and events. Directly comparable to Esters on wine curation philosophy and event-driven customer engagement.
• Sherry-Lehmann: Legendary New York fine-wine shop with deep cellar inventory, tastings, and a club/subscription program. Comparable to Esters on premium wine retail, deep Burgundy/old-world focus, and curated small-producer mix.
• Wally's Beverly Hills: Iconic Beverly Hills wine retail store with an attached restaurant/wine bar offering curated global selection, in-store tastings, and gift programs. Highly comparable to Esters as a wine-shop-plus-restaurant concept anchored in the Los Angeles market.
• Bottlerocket Wine Merchant: Independent New York wine shop combining a curated bottle selection with a small on-premise wine bar/tasting space. Directly mirrors Esters' wine-shop-plus-bar hybrid format.
• The Wine House: Long-running Los Angeles wine retailer in West LA offering a curated global selection, in-store tastings, and food pairings. Closely comparable to Esters in geography, premium positioning, and event-led retail programming.
• Chambers Street Wines: NYC wine retailer focused on natural, low-intervention, and small-producer bottles with frequent in-store tasting events. Closely mirrors Esters' small-producer, European-style neighborhood wine bar/shop model.
• Flatiron Wines & Spirits: New York City wine shop known for natural and small-producer selections and recurring in-store tastings. Highly comparable to Esters on the planet-friendly/small-producer curation thesis and tasting-driven retail format.
• Morry's of Smithtown / Morry's Wines & Spirits: Specialty wine retailer with locations in the New York metro area offering curated global selection and tasting programming. Comparable to Esters on curated independent retail and event-led engagement.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/esterswine
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/esters-wine-shop

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Esters Wine Shop