Oriel Chinatown

"Chinatown’s Oriel is a French wine bar and bistro with floor-to-ceiling windows and an intimate patio. At night, find the inside illuminated mainly by candles, and the outside by a soft red neon glow that adds to the romance. They also take reservations and offer a happy hour, so there’s no need to wait for a table with the right preparations. Start with an order of bread and butter along with some wine, and if the date is going well, try the bavette, or something off the dessert menu. When the train whizzes by in the background, make sure to gauge one’s opinion on public transit." - Rebecca Roland, Matthew Kang

"Chinatown’s Oriel is a French wine bar and bistro with floor-to-ceiling windows and an intimate patio. At night, find the inside illuminated mainly by candles and the outside by a soft red neon glow that adds to the romance. The restaurant also takes reservations and offers a happy hour, so there’s no need to wait for a table with the right preparations. Start with an order of bread and butter along with some wine, and if the date is going well, try the bavette, or something off the dessert menu. When the train whizzes by in the background, it only adds to the charm." - Rebecca Roland, Matthew Kang

"Oriel is basically Romance Central - if a meal here doesn’t get the gears turning on this potential relationship, you just might be the two least-compatible people on Earth. With a slightly hidden location under the Gold Line tracks, entering this dimly lit wine bar in Chinatown is like stepping into a New York film noir, or a scene from Chinatown. In addition, all of the French food at this casual date spot is fantastic (get the bavette steak), and the wine list is full of interesting and well-priced selections that will hopefully get those romance gears working harder and faster than Scarlett Johansson’s PR team." - jess basser sanders, brant cox, kat hong, brett keating

"You could argue that Oriel is just a wine bar with food, and you’d probably be right. Regardless, we’re still going out of our way to eat French onion soup and bavette steak at this laid-back Chinatown spot any chance we can get. In a tiny space underneath the elevated Gold Line tracks, Oriel feels closer to a well-designed diner than a Downtown LA wine bar, and that’s ideal when you’re looking for a first date spot you haven’t been to a hundred times already." - brant cox, sylvio martins, arden shore

"Because of its slightly hidden location under the Gold Line tracks, entering this French wine bar and bistro’s patio in Chinatown is like stepping into a New York film noir: everything has a moody reddish glow to it, and the romantic drama is palpable. In addition, all of the food is fantastic (get the bavette steak), and the wine list is full of organic and biodynamic reds, whites, and sparklings that will help break the ice." - nikko duren, sylvio martins