A treat, if you can find it

I don’t know about you, but I love dragging friends to some out-of-the-way little place and surprising them with either interesting food or an unexpected scene. Grill Lyon in Little Tokyo for Japanese French cooking, Sunnin Cafe on Westwood Boulevard for Lebanese meze or the Hungry Cat in Hollywood for East Coast seafood are some addresses on my current list. I’m up for a detour to Philippe for French dip sandwiches or Langer’s for a classic pastrami just about anytime too.

If you’re into holes-in-the-wall too, here’s a new wine bar in Hollywood to add to your address book. Tucked in a scruffy strip mall at the northeast corner of Melrose Avenue and Vine Street, between a laundromat and a nail parlor, it’s called Lou, after owner and wine aficionado Lou Amdur. It takes some finding, but that’s part of its appeal.

Behind the vermillion flowered curtains is a cool modernist space with tea lights flickering on the tables and chocolate-and-cream lamps shaped like box kites strung overhead. Tables covered with Italian tile are lined up in front of banquettes cushioned in dark leather. On one wall, the list of 25 wines -- sold by the glass, taste or bottle -- is written on a blackboard in a beautiful hand.

Wines are all hand-picked and as eclectic as they come. Amdur’s mission is to ply guests with wines they may never have encountered, from obscure appellations or little-known producers. You might start with a lovely cremant rose, a sparkling wine from Burgundy, or a prosecco from the Veneto. Among whites, Amdur has an Albarino from Spain, a Gruner Veltliner from Austria and a mineral-y Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire Valley. Lou has been open, quietly, for a couple of weeks. This week, Amdur has added two samplers of three 2-ounce wine tastes -- one, dubbed “make it snappy,” features crisp whites. The second (“voyage to the center of the Earth”) proposes three earthy reds, two from France, one from Spain.

As an educational experience, Lou couldn’t be more fun. Taking a cue from neighborhood wine bars in Paris and elsewhere, Lou serves some grub too. Amdur and Lori Frystak, a veteran of Grace and Jar, have put together a short, smart menu.

Of course, they’ve got charcuterie, in this case the highly seasoned salumi from Armandino Batali in Seattle. (That would be New York City chef Mario’s dad.) There’s also “pig candy” -- squares of caramelized bacon, which are positively addictive -- and salt-cured Catalan anchovies with escalivada, or roasted sweet red peppers.

Mmmm. Add a killer salad of fine wisps of frisee and a perfectly poached egg and a farmstead cheese plank, and it’s a keeper.

Hot dishes usually include a soup -- right now a cream of mushroom -- but also occasional wonderful surprises, such as a steak and Stilton Cornish-style pasty. There’s a single hot main course, usually something braised or long-simmered, that changes every couple of days. Recently it was a chicken in the pot with short ribs, turnips, carrots and a rich broth for a rainy evening. Another night, it might be braised lamb shank with beans, beef braised in Barolo, or coq au vin.

Lou is so congenial and low-key, you may want to move right in. I’ve run into people from the Hollywood ‘hood who have already been back several times for a glass of wine, a snack, supper with friends. Or simply a dessert and a glass of sweet wine.

I’d come back for the adorable walnut baby cake with whipped cream, or the thin and crispy chocolate espresso cookies warm from the oven.

Lou is something unique in Los Angeles, a haven for anybody who loves wine and values conversation over a headbanging soundtrack.

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Lou

Where: 724 Vine St., Los Angeles

When: 5 to 11 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 5 p.m. to midnight Fridays and Saturdays

Cost: Appetizers, $5 to $13; salumi plank, $12.50; farmstead cheese plank, $12.50; chicken in the pot, $14; desserts, $6. Wines by the glass, $7 to $10; wine flights, $8 to $12.

Info: (323) 962-6369