Chinato

The drinks are excellent. A personal favorite was easily the Grey Luh, possibly one of the best pandan drinks I've ever had. The Rum and Coco Cola was also fun and refreshing. The atmosphere itself is a good blend of casual but also intimate. Would recommend for groups of 2-4 if you're in the area.

The crew at this place is so welcoming and knowledgeable with their menu items. Tyler was serving drinks this evening, along with his peers, and absolutely knocked it out of the park. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience and atmosphere to enjoy some very unique cocktails. Must stop if you’re in the area!

Ordered a "Tequila" and it did not disappoint. The flavor profile was interesting and the staff had enough time to chat. Vibes were good, although the cool temperature lighting made the place feel quite sterile. Would go back again!

it’s a really cool vibe that’s very LES. pretty ideal noise level (not too loud) and we came on a sat night. i learned i am not a fan of baijiu — the karma & friends and grey luh were pretty good though it felt so difficult to get the wait staffs attention to order and seemed rushed even when the place was p empty (& they forgot an item in our order)

I really enjoyed the drinks. We didn’t have a reservation but they seated us almost immediately. Cozy seating and very intimate with low lights.

Hands down the best bar experience I've had in NY. The drinks are well thought-out, clean, and ridiculously good. The bar itself had a great atmosphere and allows the bartender to interact with the guests and explain the drinks in detail. Danny made our night. He was informative and knowledgeable about everything on and off the menu. Definitely coming back for more, and you should absolutely check this spot out if you're in the neighborhood!

Very solid cocktail bar in LES. Love the vibe of the space and creativity of their cocktails. Friendly service. Wouldn’t necessarily come for the food - good not great - but before or after dinner cocktails are a great move regardless.

I am going to go against the grain by saying that the drinks at Chinato don’t taste good. We ordered what sounded to be fruity drinks based on description, only to find out that they were supremely briny. Everyone on our four person table was unhappy with their drinks and we each sampled each other’s drinks to confirm that it wasn’t a mismatch of person to flavor. I normally wouldn’t bother to leave a negative review and instead move on with my day and but it was crazy how bad these drinks were considering the price! Maybe it was an off day, maybe our palate is off, who knows. Great atmosphere though.

Chinato is a lesser-known cocktail bar in the LES. This was my third time going, and I've never had to wait to be seated which is rare in the city. The vibes are very intimate but also laid-back. I particularly like the bathrooms, which have walls lined with vintage newspaper clippings and advertisements and stuff like that. All of their drinks are based on songs, which is a unique take on a cocktail menu that I haven't seen anywhere else. My favorite drink was the Grey Luh; the Karma & Friends is also a good one for a more sweet option. They also gave us complimentary welcome white wine which was nice. Lastly, service is good and the drinks get made at a bar in the middle of the room. Favorite drink: Grey Luh One word review: underrated

I'm not one to go to cocktail bars but this place is so vibey and intimate. I loved the Karma & Friends drinks and my friends enjoyed the Grey Luh. Upon arrival, we were given complimentary drinks (wine) which was very kind. Will be coming back here for try other cocktails with friends!

Might have found a new favorite bar in the LES. We tried four drinks here, and the drinks are seriously so unique! Also loved the vibes -- was giving intimate, wine cellar vibes, and the drinks were also served so fast. They also welcomed us with a welcome shot! - Gin & juice (5/5): loved this so much. tastes like juice, loved how its carbonated, yet still light and refreshing - Dangerous (5/5): a bit more fruity but also carbonated which is so fun! with the coconut yogurt foam, it was so delicious and a great drink to start with - Karma & Friends (3.5/5): a little too sweet for me, but tasted exactly like fruity pebbles cereal. Get this drink if you are looking for something on the sweeter side with a nice foam and cereal-y taste. - Grey Luh (5/5): this drink was my favorite of the night! I seriously never had a drink like this before; the drink was so complex, with so many different flavors in every sip. Light and refreshing, but also so complex at the same time. If you only get one drink, you HAVE TO get the grey luh!

After dinner, we stopped by Chinato for some cocktails per recommendation. The spot is dark and intimate with a speakeasy vibe --great for a date night. We came in as walk-in on a weeknight close to closing. They sat us right away and was so quick and friendly. It was also not loud, so we could converse with each other. I ordered the Guava & Cheese ($21), which was a nice and smooth drink with fruity notes. Everyone enjoyed their drinks here. Definitely a great bar to check out when you're in the LES area.

This place is so good! It's like a cute speakeasy/cute cocktail type vibe in the LES and I definitely want to come back! They give welcome shots and the service is immaculate. They also let us know they change their drinks on a seasonal basis. I highly recommend the Karma & friends along with the Guava & Chase- so delicious! We also got the mushrooms and tofu and it was so tasty as well. Thank you for an amazing experience!

I'm a longtime drinker of amari and fernet (in particular the latter like anyone who's spent more than a couple of days in Buenos Aires). I had never tried chinato, an aperitif of the same family, until coming to its namesake bar, whose name causes some confusion given its neighborhood proximity. The verdict? I found the chinato cocktail a bit overly sweet in a medicinal way. But I think I would enjoy trying it again in a simpler drink, perhaps just paired with coke as is custom for fernet. The lava tofu was an excellent savory shareable bite. I would probably skip the fries next time, they were peculiarly soft (this seemed intentional, but I didn't love it).

Came here on a really quiet night where we were the only table. We tried two drinks each and they were all unexpected but delicious. You can tell they spent a lot of time taste testing different mixes to come up with the recipes. This place is underrated!

Advertised better than executed. Batched cocktail if it's your liking then it will be okay.

I was not sure if I was going to make it to Chinato or not. I am glad I did. The concept is one of a kind. The bar is located in the center of the dining room(they have a more traditional bar against the wall also). I sat at the bar and watched the bartenders work some magic. I must say, Chinato employed some of the most innovative and intensive cocktail techniques I witnessed in my time in new york. Their bar program is insanely ahead of the curve. I got a karma and friends. It has vodka, I never order vodka cocktails. But, I was in the mood for an egg white cocktail and was curious how the fruity pebbles would be. This had to be one of the best cocktails I got while in New York. The kitchen was closed so they provided myself and the other guests with complimentary chips which were incredible. I think they had some sort of nori powder on them which was great. Salty, umami, slightly funky, a bit herbaceous. I could not stop eating them. I am still in awe of chinato's cocktail program. So creative. Testing the art of what is possible combining the most unpredictable of ingredients into stirred and shaken masterpieces.

True hidden gem! Calm and sleek ambiance and drinks are well balanced, innovative, and phenomenal - I tried grey luh and karma & friends. I highly recommend starting off with grey luh and finishing off with Karma & Friends. My friend also loved his Rum & Coco Cola. The staff is very friendly and knowledgeable. This was one of my favorite bars I visited in my most recent New York trip and I will certainly be returning. I can't wait

Stopped in for a quick cocktail by myself on a Friday night and was able to grab a seat (around 8pm) without a reservation. I ordered a drink that the bartender recommended based on my tastes. The cocktail was a bit pricey but it was delicious! I appreciate the care the bartenders put into taking care of me even though I was just there for one drink. The space is relatively small so I would imagine you definitely need a reservation on the weekend.

Think I found one of my new favorite bars -- the food I'm not sure about. I came here twice and the first time I was BLOWN away - the quality of the drinks, the food that we got, wow. I had been missing my recent trip to the west coast and as a native NYer was wondering what was so great about NYC - until my first visit to Chinato. Bartending expert from Double Chicken Please and original chef from JungSik - how could you go wrong? FOOD SWEET POTATO TEMPURA - this was what I think they serve in heaven. On my first visit, this BLEW me away with the perfect crisp frittery fry, warmth, soft interior and zesty garnish all on its own, but the cacio e pepe whiz was thick and bold with flavor, while somehow light, and the kimchi jam was DELECTABLE. On my second visit, the sweet potato was cut thicker, and purple inside (ube? it was dark), starchy, and lacked that perfect fry, and the cacio e pepe whiz was less viscous, though the kimchi jam was the same and amazing. I wonder if they changed chefs? OYSTER MUSHROOMS - this also was amazing with a frittery crispy fry that I've not known of fried food to date. Really juicy oyster mushrooms. But on my second visit, it was removed from the menu. SCALLOPS - good, we got two orders of them, and the second batch was better just because it was warm. DRINKS Love that they start off with a bit of sparkling wine to commemorate your visit. Such a nice touch. KARMA AND FRIENDS**** My favorite cocktail in the city. That gentle tea flavor with the soft boozy touch of vodka and the strawberry, white peach coming together and that BEAUTIFULLY textured foam with fruity pebble -- a masterpiece. I went back the second time and it hit just as amazingly. RUM & COCA COLA - for a drink that doesn't have coke, it sure was giving coke vibes! Really good as well, and crafted well. REALLY want to know if ZhaoJin Dai is still involved and if the food menu is just undergoing some experimental changes. The sweet potato tempura was PERFECT the way it was -- I hope they can maybe bring that back! The drinks at least are super high quality and the vibe is perfectly intimate as well.

Solid cocktails in LES. I tried the Grey Luh and the Never Say Never, one of their specials for International Women's Month, which for some reason was still available in April. Not sure why this place isn't more popular because both of the drinks I had were really good and mostly unique. We were started off with some sparkling wine. It was sweet and so refreshing. It was kind of loud, so I couldn't hear what it was exactly, but it was great. The bartender was able to direct us to less alcohol forward drinks while making sure that not everything was straight up fruity. The Grey Luh was interesting. I could really taste the notes of shiitake at the end of the drink. Despite it being bourbon based, it was really light. The Never Say Never was light and fruity. The top of the glass was coated in a sugar that made the drink even easier to drink. The alcohol was completely masked. If I remember correctly, it was slightly carbonated. I love the concept of their drinks being inspired by songs. Each of their cocktails seem so unique too. Seems like the drinks change every one to two months, so regulars can always have something new to try.

I loved the 90 minutes I spent at Chinato, everything was so intentionally crafted. Every drink of the menu is named after a song which was a really fun conceI started with "From Eden" which had an array of ingredients but came together as a well-balanced, easy to drink cocktail. My favorite drink of the evening was the "Gin & Juice", it had just a tad of carbonation and was overall a fruitier cocktail with notes of strawberry & grapefruit. The drink was accompanied by a freeze-dried strawberry crisp which almost served as a precursor to the flavors to come in the drink. I also tried a sip of "Grey Luh" which is one of my favorite songs that translated great into this drink. Each cocktail was served very simply but in a way that felt thoughtfully refined. None of the drinks that I tried tasted very liquor-forward which I appreciated. The servers were pretty strict about their 90 minute seating limit so that's something to keep in mind. It's a small, intimate spot so definitely make a reservation if planning to come here.

Flavors are so sublime here. Vibe is cozy & cool & the music is always A1. Staff super friendly & composed too. Always a good time here.

Would definitely go back to try more drinks and even food. Drinks are creative and delicious! One of the service staff wasn't friendly but everyone else is! Place is pretty dark though as their ambiance..

My colleagues and I had just finished dinner in the area, and since it was relatively early we thought it would be a good idea to extend the evening with some after dinner drinks. A quick search in the area brought up Chinato - it's a relatively new place but came at the recommendation of one of my colleagues' friends. It seemed like a good fit, so off we went. Chinato is primarily a cocktail bar, though browsing the menu I saw they do serve small plates as well. The space itself is a decent size - there are tables along the perimeter with the main bar area in the back and what looks like almost a prep island in the middle of the room. The decor is minimal - lots of neutral colors but the low lighting and candles at each table make for an intimate aesthetic. Since we had just eaten, our attention was drawn directly to the drinks. They have a good selection and seemed to have gotten creative with the inspirations for each concoction. I decided to start with the Pancakes for Dinner which was gin-based. It was pretty good, not as sweet as I expected but overall it was fine. For round 2 I got the Vermouth which I liked more - the flavors worked well and the accents really added to the drink. Service was good, but overall I thought the experience was just okay. The cocktails didn't wow me, and for Manhattan prices I feel you can get better ones elsewhere. That being said, Chinato is still relatively new - so I think they need to settle into a groove. I would be open to returning, but after a few months to see if anything changes.

Got in around 8:30-9 on Saturday night and instantly got a seat a the bar. Really loved how dark and intimate it was in there. My friend and I had 3 drinks and all of them were bangers. The staff were incredibly kind and very attentive. Will definitely be adding this spot to my rotation whenever I'm NYC.

So amazing! They are small, sleek, and underappreciated. But the experience is stellar, and I easily grabbed a table at 8 on Sunday with no reservation. The cocktails are incredibly unique and expertly crafted. The flavors are so well balanced. My fave is the rum & coco cola. It has rum, pineapple, and clarified coconut milk, served in a rocks glass with a giant block of ice. I have never had anything like it. It is delicious. Lightly fruity and very smooth. I cannot wait to try more. I always like to snack while drinking, so I was looking for food. Their food menu is small, but the options are nice. The lobster roll bao is my top recommendation. It is a bit expensive at $11 for one, but easily worth it because the flavors are elevated. You get a generous helping of lobster meat, the bun is soft and fluffy, and they really pack it in. They have a pork shoulder bao I didn't have room for but want to sample nect time. The sweet potato tempura is good too if you want more. After experiencing it, I was shocked they weren't packed because it is easily 5/5!

TLDR: some of the most interesting flavor combinations I've experienced. I've a few times now and I can firmly say that Chinato is one of my favorite bars in NYC. Each cocktail is so complex you can tell that a ton of research and experience has gone into creating them. I'm a sucker for clarified drinks so my favorites have been the Gin & Juice and the Rum & Coco Cola. Both are super easy to drink. I also love the Grey Luh. I would have never paired pandan with shiitake but it works! One of my pet peeves (as a southeast asian) is when pandan is listed as an ingredient but I cannot identify it but pandan is very forward here. Lastly, its seasonal but I hope they keep it, the Peppermint. it's cacao butter washed with peppermint and a little coffee. Its not like an espresso martini. It might be my favorite drink here! The space is a tad small so its hard to get a res (besides being good). Its dimly lit and I think its cute enough to be a good date spot. The staff and bartenders are all so friendly and jovial its always a good time! Overall: I wouldn't be surprised if this is somewhere on 50 Best Bars this year.

One of the best cocktail experiences I've had in New York in a long time. If you're looking for a stellar cocktail experience, look no further than Chinato. From the moment you step in, you're greeted with a sophisticated ambiance that sets the tone for the evening. The bar staff here are true mixologists, crafting drinks that are not only visually stunning but also bursting with flavor. If you're looking for something sweet, I highly recommend the Karma & Friends. We also tried the entire non-alcoholic cocktail menu which was equally great.

Really good cocktails and super cute vibes. The cocktails are somewhat pre-batched but makes the taste consistent which I really appreciate. I got the Midnight which literally tasted like a yummy green apple whiskey drink. A def must if you like whiskey!

After experiencing the amazement that is DCP, I had high hopes for this offshoot from an alum. And it delivered! The drinks were crafted perfectly through a theme of musical inspirations and the food menu was comprised of dishes that are unlike anything you have tried before. Ice cream with Parmesan cheese...? I was skeptical. But our waiter provided amazing recommendations based on our tastes so when he suggested we try this dessert, we trusted him. And for good reason!

One of the best and underrated bars in the city. Brought to you by a former bartender at Double Chicken Please, the bartenders here certainly know what their doing and craft lovely drinks. I can confidently say I've never had some of the flavor combinations/pairings that I was presented to here and they effortlessly pulled all the drinks off. My mind was blown and I will definitely be coming back to try more limited or seasonal drinks as well. Our server was attentive, kind, and gave good recommendations when I was deciding between two different drinks. Walked in on a Friday night and there was no line -- it was busy but seemed like there was a steady flow of walk-ins and reservations. The space is small but cozy, and if you don't keep an eye out for the restaurant you'd definitely walk right past without a second thought. It's perfect for pre-dinner drinks or a nightcap! Cannot recommend enough.

Got a 9PM reservation for 3 ppl on a Saturday night. Drinks: 5/5. Very creative, Asian-focused flavors and tasty. Chinato: their take on a Manhattan. Very plum -forward and herbaceous (ie bitter Asian Campari vibes) Midnights: Japanese take on a whiskey sour. Light/and has apple flavors Rum + cola- feels like a rum / coke milk punch that's carbonated Sunflower - old fashioned that has sunflower notes (if you don't like sunflower don't get it) but I rly enjoyed it Grey luh - their milk punch that I enjoyed way more than expected. Most milk punch ends up tasting similarly but this one had a stronger flavor/more kick. Service: 3/5. Service is decent when ordering drinks...however, they rushed us into getting our orders, and once we finished the LAST DROP of our current cocktail they immediately asked up to order a next one. At one point one person had 30% of their cocktail still... Like plz chill let us take a sip of water, chat for a min or two, or use the restroom! Additionally after we finished our last drop of our second round, they asked again and after we weren't getting another round, the check came IMMEDIATELY, and we were ordered to leave. This was 15 minutes before our "90 minute" reservation was up. We would have preferred to at least gotten a chance to sip some water and finish our conversations before being ordered to leave.....

The start of the night left a very sour taste in my mouth. Tried to book a reservation but there was none so decided to walk by since I was in the area. Saturday night 11pm, doorman told me the wait would be 1 hour. I said ok fair enough, put me on the list. Took my name and number down and said oh we have a seat available right now, we (party of 2) enter immediately to literally a half empty bar and crazy part is it never filled up (we stayed until closing). WTF! Okay so they are faking the funk. I guess they don't like paying customers because I could easily see myself say no I am not waiting an hour and leave if I didn't have the time to wait. Why pretend you're so full and hard to get into? It's really gross!! But the problem is the drinks were spectacular, hence the 5 stars lol. I can't even ding them for treating me like dirt in the beginning because the service was top notch and all the drinks were well crafted. Apparently they just opened up 1 week ago and I just know this will be on the top 50 bars in the world next year and their pretending to be full will no longer be a thing because the line will wrap around the corner. I've been to Double Chicken Please and the quality of the drinks are parallel. The waiter helped us out with recommendations, so don't be afraid to ask. Highlights include Rum and Coco Cola, which which was a fun play on the classic and the Sunflower, which was sophisticated and well balanced. The vibes inside were great, small place but great for a few drinks with a small group, love the concept of the immersive bar. Would definitely be back, especially to try the food next time! TL;DR You should know they are pretending to be full and elusive, but when you get in you will be impressed. So I guess worth it!

Small intimate bar with well crafted original artisanal cocktails. Very friendly servers and bartenders with excellent service, kept refilling our waters. We ordered the Chinato, grey luh, playshit, karma with friends. Generally, the flavors were very complex and multi layered with a lot going on. The grey luh was good but almost had too much going on. The playshit was my favorite. Karma with friends was too fruity.

Quality of service and cocktails are amazing. Great ambiance inside. Their mocktails are thoughtfully made -it didn't feel like they had random sodas or non-alcoholic juices thrown on the menu just because. They also provide a small sipping cup of riesling when you arrive.

Cute bar nestled into a quiet corner of LES (yes, hard to believe that I'm using quiet and LES in the same sentence). The drinks here are incredibly inventive and most of the cocktails on their menu had at least one ingredient I'd never heard of before. Thankfully the staff here are quite willing to help navigate the menu and provide recommendations. Their house signature Chinato was an especially revelatory drink - one that manages to marry the herbaceousness of the chinato and goji berries with the fruitiness of the lychee black tea and the spice from the bourbon and baijiu in a well balanced way. If you find yourself dreading the long line outside the Double Chicken Please, definitely try this place instead.

Received reservations for the soft opening of Chinato headed by Ray Zhou, formerly of Double Chicken Please (DCP). Incredible cocktails, awesome ambiance, quality craftsmanship, and excellent service! Of the 6 cocktails we sampled, in order the Tequila, Floating, Rum and Coke, Sugar Mama, Gin and Juice, and Chinato. The Tequila cocktail was out of this world. The various layers of flavors were a unique sensory experience ranging from a bit of a kick to a subtle sweetness. Incredible cocktail. The Floating and Rum and Coke were a close tie for us. The Floating received the slight edge over the Rum and Coke - the pandan itself propelled the Floating over the Rum and Coke, but R&C was a phenomenal cocktail in and of itself. Every single cocktail was exceptional. What a great experience, and I almost guarantee that this establishment will become the next hot cocktail bar in NYC. I'm looking forward to visiting again and also seeing them crack the top 50 bars in the world eventually!

This is a review that almost didn't happen because we were treated to the "club experience" at the door. We didn't have reservations, and were told that the wait would be an hour. Then within seconds of that, we were let in to be greeted by a virtually EMPTY PLACE! Now, as a New Yorker, I'm fully accustomed to the type of abuse exclusive restaurants and bars try to subject us to by creating artificial scarcity for "vibes" but this place is new, so the act felt even more like an insult here! But I am going to give it 5 stars, because once we got over this unnecessary "test of faith" we managed to have four of the most amazing cocktails we have ever had! I'm a Sazerac and Old Fashioned kind of guy, so I went for the Sunflower (so complex, deep and perfumed! Like drinking a finely crafted oak bookcase- just the way I like it! It even comes with a little dropper vial of filtered water to "soften up the wood", which is a very nice touch) and the Pancakes for Dinner (the name tells you exactly how much rule-breaking fun you're going to have!) My fiancée had the Rum and Coca Cola (it's a clarified drink that looks nothing like what the name implies, and that's ok, because it was a beautiful bouquet of flavors) and the Ballerina Valerie (fizzy and funky and dances on the tip of your tongue!) Our only regret, looking back now and doing some research, is that we didn't get any food, which is a shame because it's apparently by a former Jongsik chef and looks firetrucking amazing. If the drinks are anything to go by, I expect nothing less than a riot! ...we will be back for the rest of the cocktails and the food before it gets listed on the Top 50 Bars in the World and the artificial scarcity becomes real. ;)

The second best to the one and only Double Chicken Please a few blocks down the street. Greeted by a wonderful welcome shot of champagne, I wanted to see if this place lived up to my expectations and I can confidently say it was an absolute pleasure. There were a few small tables as well as seats centering the bar in the center of the room. To start off the night, I went for the Ballerina Valerie cocktail per recommended by my server. It suited my taste for something sweet, citrusy, and lighter on the alcohol taste. However the highlight for me was the Black Rice Pudding desert-- beautiful textures of smooth and creamy mango+coconut paired with the black rice and toasted almonds for crunch. Will definitely be coming back to try other drinks and food menu created by Jungsik's sous chef!!!

I walked in with a friend and was able to be sat immediately! It was very relaxed but cute inside. I got the Naked in Manhattan and loved it. Was a small drink but very delicious. Will be going back!!

Would overall recommend if you need to make a "last minute" reservation, as I believe they release 7 days in advance and don't always fill up. The entry experience was strange. For the prices they charge, it was odd that it feels like you're lining up for a club outside the cocktail bar. We had a reservation for 4, but they asked us to wait outside in a line a bit after our time and the bouncer seemed kind of abrasive. When we got seated, they didn't add any time on top of the promised 90 minutes to account for our wait, so it felt a bit rushed. We got the Chinato, Gin & Juice and Barton Hollow. Best was probably the Chinato, and I'm happy to see more bars incorporating baijiu in cocktails. The Gin & Juice was way too sweet and the curry in the Barton Hollow was much more dominant than the espresso and threw me off. Interior is very nice, and I like how the bar is in the center. Pretty good for a night out or when you need a last minute reservation for an occasion.

When we arrived on a friday night we were told there was going to be a wait, but we got a text within 20min when a table became available. This bar was very unique - from the ambiance, the service, and the huge selection of drinks. We got a welcome pour when we arrived, and ordered two rounds of cocktails. They didn't allow standing by the bar, so the environment was calm enough to have convos with your party. I really liked the bar, and will definitely come back again!

Was really excited to visit given all the great reviews, but this fell off the mark a bit for me. Drinks were not anything to write home about, and maybe this is me being petty but I've never been a big fan of pre-made cocktails. Ambiance felt tacky with the black out curtains.

Maybe the best cocktail I've had. Decided to try this place as Double Chicken was just a little too long of a wait. Ended up getting seated quickly, and just as we were looking at the menu, Double Chicken texted saying our reservation was ready. Unfortunate timing, but decided to stick to a less popular spot and I'm so glad we did. I ordered the Karma & Friends which is a slightly sweet and sour drink with The Plum I Suppose spirit, strawberry, fruity pebbles, egg white, and some other soda ingredients. I like sweet drinks so it was up my alley, but the other 3 tried it and were equally impressed. I've had a lot of fantastic cocktails in my existence and I honestly can say this was one of the most memorable. My Gf ordered the Grey Luh which had bourbon and a Pandan taste. Was excellent and so smooth. I used to live close by so returning to the area with this new addition made me so happy and somewhat grateful I'm not tempted to go too often.

You can tell whoever opened this spot has experience with bars. The central bar island makes for efficient service and ambiance. The only downside is that it does take away from the "performance" component of craft cocktail bars since all drinks are in nondescript bottles and the bartender isn't the center of the show. Drinks are unique and worth a stop.

I was here on back to back nights (a Friday and Saturday) a week ago and I couldn't say enough how much I enjoyed both evenings. The Friday night I was there with two cousins from overseas for a 6pm reservation. Cocktails were spot on and the food was great! Music playlist set a great vibe and the staff was very welcoming. The next night I was there with my sister for a later reservation and we had great seats at the bar. The inverted concept with the bartenders outside the bar itself was great. Very easy to connect with and chat with them. We worked our way through all but one item on the main menu. Once again, the food and cocktails did not disappoint. Vibe was cool, good pacing of guest arrivals and very easy to have a conversation and enjoy. If you're in SOHO area, this place is worth checking out!

Went bar hopping in New York and visited Dante and Double chicken please before and Chinato is by far the best in terms of cocktail quality. Ordered 5x drinks and 4x of them are absolutely amazing. Sunflower, pink peach tree, rock salt and nails and ballerina Valerie are our favorites especially if you don't like your drinks overly sweet. The drinks are spirit forward and very flavorful at the same time

Best bar I've ever been in the states. Speakeasy wide, amazing quality and wonderful service! The taste of Chinese Baijiu in the drink Chinato is mesmerizing! Def highly rec!