Élan, a Late-Night French Wine Bar With No Wine List, Opens Near Ala Moana

Looking for somewhere to go after 10 p.m. that isn’t a sports bar or a karaoke room? Honolulu has a new option.

Élan, a small French-inspired wine bar on Waimanu Street, soft-opened on Halloween night, Aloha State Daily reported on Nov. 13. It’s upstairs from Hangang Korean Grill House, which Aloha State Daily describes as across from Ala Moana Center. It stays open until midnight five nights a week.

Who’s behind it

Élan is the newest project from Jared Brown. His earlier Honolulu restaurants include Garibaldi’s, Fat Cheeks and Little G Café, and he currently runs Katsu Zen at 808 Center. Brown told Aloha State Daily that Little G closed in May and Fat Cheeks in June, and that he and his wife, Levina Moy, were burned out. They wanted something smaller that would get them excited about hospitality again.

The model is a French wine bar in Manhattan that stayed open until 4 a.m. Brown and Moy were regulars there after late shifts when they lived in New York. Brown says it felt “sexy and comforting,” and he couldn’t find anything like it in Hawaiʻi for late evenings.

What it’s like inside

The room is small: a U-shaped bar plus a few café-style banquette tables, about 28 seats in all. Brown told Aloha State Daily he wanted it to feel like a “French-inflected dive bar” from the old East Village. The music is ’70s and ’80s American and French funk, disco and soul, and the walls have European disco posters and a mural of people partying in Paris.

No wine list, on purpose

There’s no printed wine list. You tell your server what you usually like to drink, and they pick something for you. Brown says the bar has room for about 160 bottles, mostly French with some Italian and Spanish, and the selection changes as small lots come and go.

The wine lead is Abraham Kim, a former sommelier at R. Field Wine Company. Master sommelier Patrick Okubo also helps choose wines, according to Aloha State Daily.

What to eat

Brown is French-trained but calls the food “French-ish.” Most plates are à la carte and made for sharing, and some will rotate. Aloha State Daily reported these opening-night favorites and prices:

• Roll de crabe ($16): sesame buns filled with crab and citrus cream
• Arancini a la truffle blanche ($10): stuffed with mushroom fricassee, Gruyère and herbs, with burnt-lemon aioli
• Le burger ($19): a 6-ounce patty with caramelized onions, peppercorn cream, cheddar and Swiss on brioche

Bigger plates include a 16-ounce steak au poivre (market price), ravioles in clam beurre blanc ($17) and poularde vieille ($23), a chicken dish with maitake mushrooms, tarragon and chives. Expect prices and dishes to change after the soft opening.

Know before you go

• Where: 1236 Waimanu St., upstairs from Hangang Korean Grill House, Honolulu
• Hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 5:30 p.m. to midnight. Brown told Aloha State Daily the plan is to open six nights a week eventually.
• Reservations: None. It’s first-come, first-served, and with about 28 seats, a weeknight is your best bet.
• Online: Instagram @elanhonolulu
• Good for: a date, a nightcap after dinner nearby, or a solo glass at the bar, which Brown says is exactly what he had in mind

More new spots around the island are in our November openings roundup.

Related on Oahu Local: Honolulu Restaurants · New Businesses on Oahu · More Honolulu stories · Two New Honolulu Menus to Try: Katsu Zen’s Solo Japanese Breakfast (and $5 Bentos) and The Dotted Line’s Holiday Girl Dinner

Sources

• Aloha State Daily, “Élan is a new wine bar in Honolulu,” Kelli Shiroma Braiotta (Nov. 13, 2026): https://alohastatedaily.com/2026/11/13/elan-is-a-new-wine-bar-in-honolulu/
• Élan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elanhonolulu/