Etēsia is what happens when the crew behind Hanoi cocktail legend Polite & Co decide to tackle premium wine and Coastal European food - they go full throttle, importing a Coravin system to pour everything from crisp albariños to 40-year-old Burgundies by the glass, and pairing them with light, bright, Michelin-approved small plates to match.
The vibe: It’s Greece meets Hanoi. The sophisticated wine bar aesthetic is tempered by playful design choices: huge woven basket lights cast honeyed shadows, and walls are carved with backlit, organic alcoves to evoke a Cycladic cave house after dark.
The happy hour crowd tends young and international; post-8pm brings the wine cognoscenti. Of course, you can still drop by solo, rest your elbows on that counter, and enjoy some grilled sardines on toast and a kombucha. It’s that kind of place: convivial and inclusive. For the stool-averse, there are a smattering of four tops in quieter corners.
The food: The menu leans Mediterranean but incorporates Pan-Asian touches – wagyu carpaccio on chilled Himalayan salt blocks with crispy beef tendon, or pastis-flambéed prawns with yuzu and finger lime.
While the ingredient lists read as complex, the combinations land with surprising poise. These are complete, composed plates built to pair with wine
The drinks: This is where Etēsia flexes hardest, with 350 labels heavy on Old World nobility. Burgundy dominates (they've got verticals of Chablis going back to '83), but there's serious Rhône representation and grower Champagne, too.
That Coravin means you can enjoy a 50ml ‘taster’ of premium drops like a 2019 Domaine Laroche Chablis Grand Cru ‘Les Blanchots’ for just 490,000 VND without committing to a full bottle and bankruptcy.
Time Out tip: Ask to see the Connoisseurs' Choice wine list - that's where you'll find those 50ml tasters of true gems, many of which are Hanoi-exclusives.