Rustic Dining Complex Opens in Echo Park, Starting With a Natural Wine Bar

One of Echo Park’s most long-awaited restaurant spaces is finally coming to life right on Echo Park Avenue. The bow truss building has been under construction for more than three years, but will soon arrive under the known name Etti, an Italian neighborhood restaurant — but there’s a wine surprise in store before that happens.

First to come to life at 1507 Echo Park Avenue is Tilda, a lunch-through-dinner wine bar and casual restaurant space with light, airy vibes and an all-California natural wine list. The tight build-out (which offers a standing bar as well as bartop tables and a welcoming banquette up front) will also include a retail wall where customers can grab bottles to take home, including a section dedicated to sub-$20 finds. On the craft beer side, Tilda will focus only on producers from Los Angeles County.

Food-wise Tilda will operate as something of a pop-up space to start, potentially with rotating collaborations for the first few months at least. Regardless, expect lighter bites that can be combined to create a reasonable meal. Tilda’s wine curation comes from Carrie Funk, formerly of Ostrich Farm, and will lean into California’s many small producers. While Etti is still a little ways off, Tilda looks to open by mid-November.

Etti first got some attention back in 2016, when The Eastsider noted its incoming arrival by way of owner Jason Goldman and Stayner Architects, co-owners and designers behind the property. Little was known about the restaurant beyond its eventual opening, though now Eater has learned that the project will focus on rustic Roman-style Italian food that should include pizzas, pastas, and main courses alike.

Meanwhile, wine bars and wine shops continue to crowd this part of town. The new Lolo’s in East Hollywood only opened this week, and Tilda will connect with the likes of Psychic Wines, Bar Bandini, and even Cosa Buona on the natural wine front in the same neighborhood. Better still, the location — tucked away well off Sunset Boulevard in the neighborhood — should give Tilda and the upcoming Etti the ability to play to its immediate community, hours Wednesday through Monday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Tilda/Etti. 1507 Echo Park Ave., Los Angeles.

• Folks From Bar Bandini Plan New Wine Bar in Glassell Park [ELA]