Published Feb 21, 2026 Last reviewed Mar 30, 2026 At a Glance Address 251 E Georgia St, Chinatown, Vancouver Neighbourhood Chinatown Price Range $$$ Best For Cocktail obsessives, dates, baijiu first timers Signature Baijiu cocktails and flights Hours 5pm to late, Tuesday through Sunday Style Hidden cocktail bar Reservations Book ahead via laowai.ca Plan your visit Get Directions Ask Our Team 251 E Georgia St, Vancouver The Pitch Our Take on Laowai At street level, 251 East Georgia reads as a Chinese deli. The actual destination sits behind a freezer door at the back: a low lit room styled after 1920s Shanghai, where velvet booths, copper fixtures, and malachite green panels absorb the noise of Chinatown outside. Scout Magazine covered the opening as a hideaway, and the description still fits.
Laowai holds 11 brands of baijiu, which Eat North reported as the largest listing in Canada. That single fact tells you who the bar is for. Anyone curious about Chinese spirits gets a serious education here; anyone hunting a casual pint should walk two blocks west instead.
The room runs small and dim, with seats for a few dozen at booths and a marble bar. Vancouver Magazine groups it with the city's best speakeasies, and the build quality backs the billing: leather, brass, and a glow that flatters everyone in it. By 8pm on a Friday every seat holds a reservation.
Drinks price at the premium end of Chinatown, and reviewers on Yelp note that neither food nor drinks come cheap. The craft justifies it. Regulars treat the menu as a tasting course rather than a session list.
Early evening brings cocktail industry people and food media; later sets skew toward dates and small groups who booked weeks out. The room stays conversational because it physically cannot fit a rowdy crowd. Sunday evenings run quietest.
What to order
- 01
Baijiu Flight
- 02
Lychee and Sichuan Peppercorn Cocktails
- 03
Dim Sum Style Snacks