Letter of Recommendation Los Angeles
Vandell Is the Cocktail Bar Los Feliz Has Been Waiting For
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I didn’t realize how much I missed New York cocktail bars until I walked into Vandell.
Located squarely in L.A. and more specifically, in my own neighborhood of Los Feliz, there’s something about this new bar on Hillhurst Avenue that immediately feels familiar to me, a former New Yorker. There’s nothing overtly “New York” about it, but it evokes a feeling, a nostalgia I have for the buzzing, unpretentious neighborhood bars of Brooklyn—the type of place I admit I still miss after five years in L.A.
Turns out, I’m not alone. “We had so many people in the first few days tell us: ‘it feels like New York, it feels like another city,” says co-owner Michael Francesconi.
Vandell is brought to you by owners Francesconi and Matthew Glaser of Park Hospitality, the same hitmaking team behind Donna’s in Echo Park, the perpetually packed red-sauce Italian spot that pulls more overtly from East Coast nostalgia. They teamed up with Republique cocktail alums Vay Su and Shawn Lickliter to open in Los Feliz, a neighborhood they valued for its walkability and sense of community (the same reasons the ex-New Yorker in me also chose it ).
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The space on Hillhurst where Vandell resides had also been home to another favorite of mine, Nossa Caipirihna Bar, which sadly closed at the end of 2024. The offer to take over the space came somewhat unexpectedly from the previous owners and presented Francesconi and Glaser a rare opportunity to open quickly in their ideal neighborhood. “We had all been talking about Los Feliz being our top choice, so it felt like kismet,” Glaser says.
Luckily for them, a proper cocktail bar is exactly what the neighborhood desperately needed: Vandell opened in early December to lines out the door (and they are still going strong). But the winning vision wasn’t immediately apparent until the team came in and sat with the space. “The space informs the concept. To us, it really felt like a neighborhood bar,” Su says.
The team made some key design changes before opening to make the room feel more intimate. The original high ceilings and an open footprint were impressive, but not particularly cozy. The team chose to rework the room entirely, reshaping it into a series of smaller, more personal areas. “We knew we didn’t want to keep it as one big boxy room where everyone feels exposed,” Glaser says. “We wanted a few more intimate experiences within the same space.”
Working with architect Brian Moran of Aero Collective, they lowered ceilings, divided the room, and created pockets that feel distinct. The design draws inspiration from mid-century California as well as classic European and New York bars from the 1930s and ’40s.
Wander to the back behind the main bar area and you’ll find a moody red room tucked into the corner of the layout that feels like you’ve stumbled upon a secret nook (complete with its own private bartender). It’s like the bar’s own mini speakeasy. (Jones Hollywood, which also has a few semi-private bar seats, served as a key inspiration for Vandell.)
Vandell offers a sizable list of about 30 different cocktails, but the menu is organized and divided into categories that won’t leave you feeling overwhelmed. On it, you’ll find a mix of signatures named after produce (i.e. the Smoked Tomato and the Green Pepper), classics made with vintage spirits, a thoughtful zero-proof section, as well as twists on old-timey forgotten classics like a gimlet and a Saratoga.
“When it comes to the beverage program, we didn’t want to exclude anyone. We wanted cocktails to be affordable and options to be substantial,” Lickliter says.
The food program shows a bit more restraint. Vandell isn’t trying to be a restaurant in disguise. Instead, it offers a tightly edited menu of about 12 shareable dishes designed to support the drinking experience rather than compete with it. “We wanted food that makes you want another drink,” Glaser says.
You can order a crudo or a well-made bar burger (we’d expect nothing less from the team behind the great one at Lowboy) without committing to a full meal — an increasingly popular way of dining in L.A. (as we’ve previously noted).
Operationally, Vandell makes another choice that feels almost radical: it is largely walk-in. While some Resys are available, walk-in guests join a waitlist if necessary and are encouraged to explore the neighborhood while they wait. At the door, three experienced hosts manage the room, including a maître d’, an old-school role that once defined great hospitality.
“The host sets the tone,” Francesconi says. “That first interaction matters more than people realize.”
It turns out maybe I wasn’t longing for New York after all — just for a bar that understands how to make people feel at home.
