First Le Mal Nécessaire. Now Luwan. In a matter of months, Chinatown has taken on a different guise, beyond the realm of dim sum, pho, and banh mi. And with the recently opened Midway and Pandore up the street, Montreal's bar and cocktail landscape has tilted. Like Tiki neighbour Le Mal, Luwan has taken over unlikely digs in Chinatown. The refurb job on what was once Ming Do, among other restaurants, features cushy banquettes, dark hardwood, and tropical-esque wallpaper. Cocktails come in at $13.
Luwan owner Raphael Kerwin also runs the Blue Dog Motel bar on Saint-Laurent in the Plateau, victim of a recent brush with the Office québécois de la langue française.