Why everyone in LA is talking about Café Tondo

The space occupied by Oriel in Chinatown is now a cool Mexico City-inspired day-to-night cafe and bar. Called Café Tondo, the Downtown LA spot's been brought to life by Abraham Campillo, co-founder of the multi-disciplinary design firm Mouthwash Studio partners, along with Mackenzie Freemire, Alex Tan, and Ben Mingo; Mike Kang of Locale Partners; and chef Valeria Velásquez. This creative group of artists and designers – behind campaigns for brands ranging from Nike to Thom Browne – has brought new life to this swath of converging urban streets, from lingering meals by day, to dancing into the wee hours after the sun sets.

Wallpaper* dines at Café Tondo, Los Angeles

The mood: a Mexico City café with DTLA urban grit

Look for the neon-lit Streamline Moderne building underneath the elevated Metro line, across the street from Homeboy Industries, for this transportive café designed by Aunt Studio. The six distinct rooms – each layered with scuffed floors, painted brick, exposed wood and metal ceilings – remain intact, with new elements of earthen red plaster surfaces embedded with traditional Mexican tiles, niches for artworks, ceramics and artefacts handpicked by Campillo, who drew inspiration from Casa Mexicana, the design and architecture book by Tim Street-Porter.

The space also features custom wood tables, chairs and stools handcrafted in Mexico by Christina Moreno’s OMBIA Studio, incorporating playful details such as a wine bottle holder built into a table leg and skirted metal bar stools, along with a curved red velvet curtain partition for private events.

The food: all-day Latin American buzz

This is the first head chef position in the US for chef Velásquez, who hails from Bogotá, Colombia. But her pedigree includes stints at Amass in Copenhagen and Rosetta in Mexico City. The Mexican capital inspires her menu. In the morning you'll find a bar pastry case holding pan de elote. For a heartier breakfast, order masa pancakes with piloncillo caramel or chilaquiles piled high with fresh avocados, alongside a Michelada, if you're in need of a hair-of-the-dog cure.

The menu is a reflection of the communities that shaped Velásquez's path as a cook, including day-to-night offerings of slow-simmered beef bone broth infused with herbs and spices, empanadas, tortas, lime-squeezed chicken milanesa and steak frites with chimichurri. At night, a wash of red lighting transforms the atmosphere, and the front patio is packed with revellers after hours who want to dance and drink under the stars to live jazz bands, DJs and salsa.

Café Tondo is located at 1135 N Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90012 United States.