08 Feb Grab a glass of wine with friends at Oriel Chinatown

Looking for a place to meet for drinks? Try Oriel Chinatown. Just north of Union Station on Alameda Street sits a building just below the raised train tracks. First a tire shop and then a nail salon, the space is now home to Oriel Chinatown, a French-themed modern wine bar and bistro. Oriel Chinatown is an oddly-shaped building with a few tables in the covered entrance and a few more to the right of the entrance, which lead to a patio. To the left of the entrance is the bar and a few more seats. The walls are white with pink and purple floors and furniture that are illuminated by the low lighting to create a rose-hued space. Oriel Chinatown is a project of Dustin Lancaster, who has opened Bar Covell and Augustine, two other wine bars in Los Angeles. At Oriel Chinatown the focus is on French wine.

There are twenty wines by the glass, ranging from sparkling and white to rose and red. Many of the wines may be unfamiliar to most but the staff is knowledgeable and friendly and happy to offer tastes of any of the wines by the glass.

We started with glasses of the crisp, mineral-driven La Part du Colibri Folle Blanche 2015. And then we enjoyed glasses of the pale, light, floral and elegant Dom de Reuilly Pinot Gris Rose 2016 with notes of apricots and stony minerality. While exploring the wine list at Oriel Chinatown, you can enjoy a classic French bistro menu that includes cheese and charcuterie, croque monsieurs and French onion soup. We shared Olives & Nuts, an Artichoke with rouille, Bone Marrow with parsley, caper and shallots and Duck in a Jar, a duck pate with warm spices, shallot and port. Oriel 1135 N. Alameda St. Chinatown, Los Angeles, CA