Annie Shi, co-owner of King and Jupiter, is venturing out on her own with a new wine bar called Lei in Manhattan’s Chinatown. Inspired by her upbringing in Queens, where she frequented Flushing’s markets and restaurants, and influenced by her Shanghai and Dailan roots, Shi aims to create a space dedicated to Chinese food and wine.

Located in a small Doyers St. storefront above a mah-jongg social club, Lei, named in tribute to Shi’s late sister Hannah, is set to open in June with 28 seats. The construction, managed by Shi in Mandarin, has already garnered attention from the local community, reflecting the neighborhood's close-knit nature.

Lei will primarily focus on wine, offering a 300-bottle list that includes selections from France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Portugal, and Spain. Shi is also incorporating Chinese bottles from the China Wine Club, featuring producers like Emma Gao of Silver Heights in NingXia, known for a sparkling blend of pinot noir and Chardonnay using rice wine for dosage, as well as honey peach cider.

The food menu, developed in collaboration with Patty Lee, formerly of Mission Chinese Food, avoids typical choices like dumplings and hand-pulled noodles to highlight unique flavors that pair well with wine. Offerings include a local take on rubing, a goat cheese from Yunnan, and Jinhua-style ham from Lady Edison in North Carolina, sliced like jamón. Lee’s understanding of traditional flavors allows for tweaks that enhance the wine-pairing experience, such as a reengineered scallion-pancake recipe.

Designed by Rachel Jones, a childhood friend of Shi, Lei features a warm interior with cherry-stained mahogany, deep-green tile on the curved bar, and wine storage tucked throughout the space. The decor includes art from female Chinese artists, a curtain dyed by ​​Hsien Hua Li, pieces from Jia Sung, and a mural by Ivana Štulić reproducing a 16th-century woodblock print of “Journey to the West.” In the bathroom, wallpaper by Dominique Fung features cranes seemingly enjoying wine, adding a playful touch to the chinoiserie-inspired design.