La Vite

The cozy La Vite is the latest wine bar to grace the city center, offering good prices on booze and tasty snacks. Owned by a cheerful Harbin native (also a partner of small wine bar Le Vin on Jinxian Lu), this narrow, 10-table space has been attractively renovated, the sexy darkness lit with pretty lights made of colorful crockery and glass jars, the floor a mosaic of amaranth-accented tiles. To give the evening a bubbly mood, decent glasses of prosecco (RMB39/glass, RMB239/bottle) are a pretty great deal (if you get in before July 4, they offer all patrons a free glass). Goblets of house wine (RMB42) are also poured with a generous hand; we’d skip the musty pinot grigio, but both reds (a syrah and merlot) are remarkably good.

As for snacks, La Vite calls itself an osteria. As such, it currently offers just five sharing platters, including cold cuts of Parma ham and salami (RMB88) and a pile of smoked salmon and greens (RMB58). Grilled vegetables (RMB58) come drenched in good olive oil, a verdant mix of artichoke hearts, eggplant, olives and sun-dried tomatoes just begging to be mopped up with baguette slices, which are brought in from Caf?Montmartre down the way. On a sultry evening, it is a great pleasure to relax here, nibbling on food, chatting with friends and surrounded by the pleasant, happy hum of a comfortable neighborhood bar.

See listing here.