Concur with other reviewers that this is a great happy hour spot. My two coworkers and I came on a Thursday evening, luckily with a reservation, because it was busy! The crowd was lively, but also contributing to the atmosphere was the music. I would actually say it was a little too loud for the time of day, since most people were trying to talk not dance. But nevertheless, still a fun place to grab drinks and bites. We had the korean fried chicken, eggrolls, and mussels to share. Although the mussels were good, I don't think the portion warranted the price. The eggrolls were a happy hour special and my favorite out of the 3 dishes but none of the food was extraordinary. For drinks, I tried the market caipirinha and the chilcano. Both were awesome. I've found that a caipirinha can be really hit or miss depending on the place, but Arbella nailed this one. Service was also on point, which just made our experience even better. read more

Arbella - Caipirinha - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Went here for a couple of drinks after eating a light dinner at the Peruvian cuisine nearby. There were two areas and we were luckily sat in one of the quieter areas. I believe they have a system where one side is for groups / parties and the other side is for more intimate situations. Wasn't too crowded and got immediate service when we sat. The atmosphere was cozy as expected. I ordered the "Espress yoself martini" and my girlfriend ordered the "van down by the river". Approximately $16 each so it was pretty worth. Mine wasn't all too special, came as is tasted pretty good. The "van down by the river" was a pretty cool experience since the liquid was in a separate bottle and the ice was infused with the hibiscus. Definitely worth it! Next time I go to Chicago, would want to stop by for sure! read more

Arbella - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Stumbled across this hidden upstairs bar tucked away off the busy street of Grand Ave. My friend and I made reservations for dinner on a week night, and we were seated promptly at the bar. The bar area was not too crowded until later on in the night, so was overall a comfortable place to grab a drink and a bite. The highlight here is definitely their around the world drink menu, which features different liquors made in trademark cocktails tailored in international styles. I had a orange blossom water infused high ball while my friend had a vodka punch with hints of chai, which were both great. The bar food options were varied and Asian fusion inspired, we went with the waiter recommended pork belly baos and Korean fried chicken. Recommend as a good place to check out after work if you're in the River North area, especially try to catch their deals for happy hour (4-7 PM). read more

Arbella - Korean fried chicken - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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This place is fantastic! Great chill vibes for a classy night out. The drinks are unique and delectable. The truffle fries were to die for. Service was friendly. Would definitely come back again. read more

Arbella - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Wow. What. A. Gem. 10/10 My friend and I came here on a whim and boy were we pleasantly surprised! The drinks are one of a kind and uniquely crafted. They are delicious, strong, and worth every cent. The music is amazinggggg with old and new Hip Hop vibes. It is classy, cute, and definitely an experience:) read more

Pretty crappy. For the reviews and ratings this bar sucked. TERRIBLE service. Would absolutely not return. read more

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Have been coming here for years. I love the cocktails, the bartenders are well skilled in creating some of the most delicious cocktails I've ever had. My meals vary but my favorites on the menu are the croquettes, fig flatbread. The staff is friendly and attentive, although they are popular and get busy sometimes. Regardless I have always been treated well, which I why I go back over and over again. Also the 2nd room is great for dancing. Highly recommend for those who care about carefully crafted cocktails in a great environment, often with an excellent deejay. read more

One of my favorite cocktail bars in the city. It's in River North so parking is a bit tough to find and watch those meters- trust me! But this place is worth it. On weekend nights there's a dj playing a live set and the vibe is super cool. The lights are really low so it's dark and chill with candles. The drinks are delicious and definitely picturesque! They also have food which is pretty tasty but we usually go for drinks. I recommend this spot for sure but try and make a reservation ahead of time as it gets busy. read more

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Visited this spot on a Saturday night for after dinner drinks. It's cute with a great vibe for drinks. We got there right before their rush and we were seated quickly. Definitely would go back for their creative cocktail list. Everyone in the group got a different drink and was happy with their pick. The server was knowledgeable and helpful and steered each one of us in the right direction. I got a Smokey bear drink made with mezcal. It was both delicious and cutely displayed. Look forward to going back! read more

Arbella - Inside the bar - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Wasn't overly impressed based on the amount of other options in the city. The drinks were meh and the service was very cold. Wouldn't recommend. read more

This place is perfect for a date!! The ambiance and music is perfect! The energy is great in the building and the staff is very helpful with making sure you get seated. I made a reservation and they were on top of it. When getting our seat the menu had man options. From drinks to food. The drinks were a lot of fun!! The small bites were really good as well. If you are looking to gather a group for a night out for drinks or you are looking for a place to take a date then this is the place!! read more

Arbella - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Great drinks, great bartender. Just a note that this is more a cocktail bar than a restaurant, but they do have good snacks. I had a great time here read more

The Music, The MUSIC, THE MUSIC...Yoooo the vybe was incredible because of the intimate candlelit booths and...THE MUSIC. I'm talking about those lesser known jams from Anderson.Paak, Kaytranada, JODECI, and Frank Ocean mixed and layed over House Beats and not-annoying EDM pulses. I asked for the DJ's name, and I think I heard "DJ Quicktastic" ...the music is really loud in there, but I'm also getting older, so whaduai know. I was beyond pleasantly surprised to see they have this "Traveling Old Fashioned" list. That's all I drink! I was in Heaven. I got the Lagos, Nigeria one first. It came in a cool, smoked out potion bottle accompanied by a tumbler holding a clear rectangular block of ice. Now THAT'S presentation. And it was amazing. Smoky, slightly sweet. Perfection. I tried the Oxacan next, and it was a total 180, but just as good. This is a dope place. Gotta have a reservation. Tipped well and even dopped a five spot to the doorman for being a nice guy. read more

Arbella - the ambience - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Amazing food. Service was good as well. Great location. Awesome music and vibes. Would recommend. read more

Arbella - Waygu sliders - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Not my favorite bar. Drinks were average and mine was watered down with crushed ice. Servers didn't want to be there or even help us. If you're looking for a friendly and inviting scene, spend time and money elsewhere. read more

Updating my review to 5 stars after my 2nd visit here! Vernon, who checks your temperature and makes sure you get seated is great! He's the perfect person to have greet the customers at the door. Also our server/bartender Eric was amazing as well! Everyone is super friendly and I will definitely keep coming back! read more

Arbella - The Smokey bear! - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I initially came to eat dinner, but my afternoon deep dish pizza was still expanding like a burgeoning unchecked metropolis in my stomach and insisted on no further development. I had an open table reservation and informed the host that I would most likely not be eating and would just opt for a cocktail at the bar. His genuine warmth struck me immediately and that was just the first of the general tone of all the employees I would have the pleasure of encountering during my visit. My second visit I came hungry, hankering for their KFC, but arrived after the kitchen closed. Joseph, quickly wrote down a list of available food options in the area. Once again I was just blown away by the graciousness and elevated level of service. Three different cocktails (old fashioned, funky chicken, rising sun) by three different mixologists over two visits were all exceptional and perfect; the old fashioned being the best old fashioned I have ever had...EVER! Olde industry folklore speak would point out that you can give the same recipe to different individuals, have them each follow it flawlessly, yet the finished product will taste different given the energy of the individual. Those who like doing what they are doing with a creative passion and like their working environment produce a superior product. Yes, truth! And superior it is here! The natural organic flow is palpable from their enticing world map approach to libations, to the dark, sultry, sexy ambiance with just the right type and volume of music. Just get there and enjoy the magic! read more

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Strong drinks with good balance of flavor (we tried the Lagos and Havana old fashioned). Thursday night around 10:30 pm it wasn't too busy but the dance floor was going and it was very loud, so wouldn't recommend if you're trying to have an intimate date night. The late night bites were okay. Ordered the Korean fried chicken tenders, crab Rangoon, and truffle fries. Flavors were good but the chicken was a little over cooked. Crab Rangoon was okay, but some of them weren't filled right so it was mostly the wrapper peeling away from the filling. I wish the truffle fries were a little crispier. $100 tab for all that. I'm nit picking here, so take it with a grain of salt. If I needed a fancier night out with friends and wanted to dance, I would come here. Great customer service, no complaints there! read more

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Small, yet hippy little bar, I happily walked in to celebrate the end of my 21st birthday. Since it was a Tuesday night, it wasn't too busy, and we were all seated right by the bar in semi-circle booth seating. Our waitress was so sweet and was kind enough to explain the different cocktails and drink specialties to us since it was our first time. We tried four different cocktails: Jungle Kitty (5/5), Legends Never Die (4/5), Van Down By The River (4/5), and Smokey's Cousin (5/5). All of their cocktails were unique and delicious -- definitely on the strong end as well. As usual, prices are a little steep but that is what you get from drinking in the city. This is a perfect spot for a cozy date, and I'll definitely return here when I'm back in the city. read more

Arbella - Smokey's Cousin cocktail - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We stopped to this bar after visiting Chicago again. The drinks were amazing!! The decor and ambiance wonderful et waiter very nice and giving good recommendations. I will come back again read more

Came here just for drinks. Got abandon ship, my husband got Istanbul. They were great drinks, bartenders were really nice. Music was great. read more

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I am so impressed! When searching for a dinner spot, we found this place pretty randomly and decided to go for it and I am so happy we did! First of all, it was such a cool environment. I would give it 5 stars for the ambience and dark lighting alone. (I hate dining in bright, awful lighting). But then, I was even more amazed when I received my food! I had the stuffed peppers, and while they were very small, they were packed with flavor! I was so in love with the flavor that I had to place a second order of them. So good and gluten free! I also drank the rotating mule which was fresh, tasty, and just slightly sweet. I would order it again! Most of all, this place was a great, cozy spot to meet up with friends and enjoy good conversation. It's open late and we already talked about coming back for a night out. Definitely check out Arbella! read more

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Love this place. The food is great the bao is my favorite. The atmosphere is dark and moody and the sound in this place ya incredible. They have some high end sound system or something. The music is good and the vibe is right. I have had some interesting cocktails here. From Whiskey to gin and the mezcal Aviation is next level! Get ready to take flight! Cheers~ read more

From the outside, you'd never guess that this cozy, lowly lit place was on the inside. Very unassuming. We had a great experience here, and I remember the drinks here being very specially made as well as the appetizers being extremely tasty. I would 100% bring a date here. It's also just a great dinner spot to have intimacy in general. I'll for sure come back here! read more

A very small bar, but very cozy. There is a second room where a DJ plays. Not a bad place.

We went there pre-dinner. We weren't impressed. There's better food and weekend happy hour not far from Arbella. read more

Arbella - Cast iron octopus with mushy coconut rice, meh - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Came in a bit past 9:30-10pm. Great place! Good vibes and yummy espresso martinis! Service is great too! The workers are so nice

Came in for Happy Hour drinks. The place was pretty empty when we got there. The HH foods didn't really interest us. A bunch of flatbreads and such. All of the HH drinks had rums and sake, which is not exactly my favorite go tos. Wished they had some with gin or tequila, but the rum cocktail ( The Chingadera) was still quite good. I don't usually like rum, but it was delicious! There was a massive amount of ice though and I wished it could have lasted longer. Clean and attentive service throughout. read more

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Arbella is a nice hidden cocktail bar in the heart of river north. It's quite intimate and small, but the cocktail options are certainly not. The bartender was really knowledgeable about his art in craft cocktails and made me something that was pretty tasty, but I couldn't finish it because I could taste some whiskey (sorry- can't do dark liquors!) As for food, we decided to dine here also and ordered a bunch of items to share between three people: Cha gio: these are fried egg rolls, tasty, hearty, not bad at all, great to share Short rib bao: yummy and soft buns Korean fried chicken: similar taste to the real thing, flavorful and tasty, sweet and slightly spicy Edamame: had some curry spice taste to it, I liked this while some other people did not As for dessert, we had ordered the donut holes based off the great description the waitress gave- homemade custard that is inside the donut holes- but it ended up taking FOREVER. And then, when they came out- there was nothing inside. Sooo of course I said something because that was what all the rave was about! And it took forever to "make the homemade custard". But the waitress just got mad and told us they couldn't make it right so they would take it off the menu. Couldn't they at least warn us ahead of time so we didn't have to wait for an extra 45 minutes?? Very unprofessional on their part. The food and cocktails were okay- nothing to rave about- but this experience left me with a bad taste. Sorry arbella! read more

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Really delicious shareable plates and unique drinks inspired by cities around the world. Came here for dinner and drinks on a weekday night and were delighted by the drinks, food, and overall atmosphere. It was pretty dark inside and had a sophisticated, chill vibe. We started off with a round of drinks and ordered the stuffed peppers, bao buns, calamari, and healthy-ish pasta. The plates were on the smaller side, but served in such a way that made it easy for sharing. The pasta was the first item on the menu to catch my eye, and it lived up to how delicious it sounded. I also thought the stuffed peppers were a nice, bite-sized snack, and they paired perfectly with the balsamic glaze they were plated with. Their cocktail menu has a life of its own, where each drink is inspired by a different city. They do a good job of categorizing the drinks based on strength and generally what to expect. They're on the pricier side, but worth trying a few! The only downsides to our dinner was the service, which overall was good, but it was on the slower side, and at one point, one of our dishes got mixed up, and we had to wait longer for it. I'm guessing it was a busy night, and I don't think it was our server's fault--it just happens sometime. Overall, they've done a great job with the food and drinks at Arbella, and it makes for a nice dinner spot, or place to grab a drink, if that's all you're in the mood for. read more

Excellent cocktails and the barber tenders are awesome. The music is always incredible. The vibe is very chill and the servers are extremely polite and professional. I strongly recommend making a reservation before you go. read more

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Visited pre-pandemic but thought this place was lit! Amazing cocktails, vibe and decent food- you shouldn't be coming here to eat anyway, so no biggie. read more

Absolutely stellar. The moment you walk in you are transported. The vibe is on point, a classy hole in the wall with cool drinks, and yummy food. And great music! Come here for a good time read more

This place is prefect drinks and lights apps, their happy hour is amazing, and you will 100 perfect feel their drinks they do not water down here, I really enjoyed the ambiance and dj! Great spot for later night drinks or happy hour!! read more

The cocktails are tough to beat at a fair price. Not cheap, but well made as expected for the price. The happy hour prices are very good. The food offered is called small plates but what is offered is a decent amount. The food is excellent. What I really like about this place is the ambiance is funky, dark, and cool. The staff is also excellent. The staff really cares about you having an enjoyable experience. read more

Arbella - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Atmosphere: check Drinks: check Vibes: double check The KFC Tenders has no business being so tasty. Perfect amount of sauce to crunch ratio. If I didn't live 700 miles away this would be a GO-To spot. read more

Perfect happy hour and so cute! Staff was super attentive, and the chicken tenders were bomb!!!! Amazing truffle fries and cocktails. read more

Arbella - Cute atmosphere - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Came here for a before dinner cocktail. Interesting list of cocktails but I stayed with something tried and true. The atmosphere was lively, the service was terrific, the music was good and the decor was interesting. The best thing about the evening was talking to one of the bartenders about whiskey. He wasn't condescending, acting as if I knew nothing because I am a woman. This happens all the time with whiskey and beer, I would not hesitate to come again. read more

Arbella - Kentucky old fashioned - Tapas/Small Plates Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Without a doubt one of my go to choices for a cocktail in the loop. The "Around the World" Old fashioned series could keep you coming back over and over. Intimate and vibrant ambiance that leans a bit clubby, but an outstanding experience. read more

Great cocktails! One of those "all tables are reserved" type spots. We sat after no one being up front and got tossed back to the bar-- despite at least 8 tables open with a Reserved sign for more than an hour. Solid music, maybe a little too dismissive for my taste. read more