I've been there x3 times when The Red Room events are happening. Very fun and very well run.

The Blonde lady with the big nose at the bar doesn't have a good attitude towards latinos, i paid $15 for 2 drinks and she was incapable to give me HALF of glass full of juice. She gave me the leftovers of the can that was almost empty. Next time, i hope theres someone else at the bar to serve me bc this lady is cheap and low key r*cist. read more

I really like it there. But there's something going on with the money stuff. Definitely some confusion on how to charge things I bought a Glass of wine. The price on the menu was $10. It was a very small pour, but, I don't need a lot. I gave the woman behind the bar at 20 dollar bill. She gave me nine dollars in change. that confused me. I wasn't aware and still don't believe that sales tax is 10% In Arcata. maybe somebody can clarify this for me? I asked someone behind the bar how it happened that I got nine dollars back for my 20. She told me" that's the way we do it here" read more

Great music , drinks and food. Very safe and fun place to spend your evenings. Great location right off the plaza. read more

The Basement - Chocolate paradise - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Arcata, California

Consistently good music scene. Cocktails are great, usually just crowded enough. Not really an after work, show up in sawdust kinda place but Humboldt has 100's of those places. But you can show up as dressed up as you want and you will fit right in... which is a nice break from the norm up here. Probably as close to a club vibe as Humboldt has since Nocturnum closed. read more

Back to a great space for music and drinks and friends. Loved the visit and will remember to return.

Went here for a friends birthday. I was the first one to arrive of my group for this basement burlesque show, so I order food super early right when the doors open so I could proceed to drink some more throughout the night and share with everyone. The event I went to said, "Enjoy, for one night only, a theatrical variety of dance, burlesque, drag, music, and FOOD at the Basement Arcata 21+" So I'm super excited to watch the show and drink and enjoy some food. So I check on the lady that took my order a couple times at the front throughout the night to make sure my food is coming. After 2 HOURS of patiently waiting, I went and got my money back and left. The place is great for drinking, I enjoyed the show, but if you advertise food, there should be food. I mean, if you're serving alcohol, you definitely should be serving food too. For that, this place gets one star for basically false advertising. I would NOT recommend this place. read more

I like what they did with the old Abruzzi location. The atmosphere was great for someone wanting to go out, but looking for something different from the Arcata bar scene. Just be careful when checking your bill. We opened a tab and when we closed out we weren't able to look over the bill before running the card. When we got the itemized receipt and our credit card receipt to sign, we were overcharged around $30. It was definitely our bill because the items were correct, but somehow one extra drink was added to each type of drink we had. We then had to wait to get the charge reversed and to pay the correct amount. Even then we weren't given a new itemized receipt, just the credit card receipt to sign. I think The Basement should be more careful in their process for closing out a tab and not charge the card until patrons can see what they are paying for, read more

Great Environment location amazing Love having snacks with my cocktails and once the waitress shaylen D got my drink order correct the bartender didn't disappoint with my surprise cocktail Shaylen D needs a little more practice not sure I will return which is a shame read more

Wow! Just got back from hearing the Claire Bent group tonight. Fantastic!! What a gift to have this alternative on the Plaza in Arcata. Drinks are good. So good the tab can be eye popping, but support this space! It's heads and tails above the typical plaza bar. read more

I came in for my first time and I will never go back because their bartender, Shane cursed at me, yelled at me, and called me names in front of the other customers. Here's the bizarre story: I ordered the Hanky Panky and after one sip I knew I couldn't finish it. I came back to the bar with it to buy a different drink. Shane the bartender ignored me for about ten minutes until I finally managed to get his attention. "Can I get a rum and coke?" I asked. He pointed at my the martini glass in front of me and said, "You already have one." "This is the Hanky Panky, I would like a rum and coke please," I said. "For who?" Asked Shane. "For me," I said. "You can't have two," he said. "That's ok, I just want the rum and coke," I said. "Then I have to take this one," said Shane. "Yeah that's totally fine, you can pour it out in the trash or sink and I can pay you for a rum and coke," I said. "Well if you're going to be a f*cking a**hole then you can get out of here," replied Shane, much to the dismay of myself and the rest of the patrons at the bar. "I just want to buy a rum and coke, I don't mind paying for it," I said as I pulled out my credit card. He snatched the Hanky Panky from me and sloppily rushed a rum and coke out to me. I was still holding up my card as he slapped the drink down in front of me but he didn't take it. In awe I continued to stand there with my card out as he persisted to ignore me for another five minutes. Eventually he came back and said, "I'm not taking your card, take the drink and get out of here." Now this entire experience was mind boggling for a few reasons: I'm very confused as to why Shane decided to treat me as if I were a drunken bum who had been causing trouble and hassling him all night when actually I had only spent around ten minutes in his bar and the only alcohol in my system came from the sip I took off the Hanky Panky. I'm also shocked at his behavior because I have worked customer service my entire life and have never, NEVER cursed at a customer or called them names. And I have had to deal with some crazy customers in my career. No matter how difficult a customer is being, you don't treat them that way. And the fact that I wasn't being difficult at all and merely trying to buy a new drink makes Shane's behavior inexcusable. I pray that I am not writing this review in vain. My hope is that a manager uses this as a teachable moment. Perhaps Shane was just having a bad night; it's also entirely possible that he just needs some guidance. Regardless, I'll never get to find out if his behavior is corrected because I have absolutely zero intention of coming in here again, which is a shame because it looks like a really cool spot and I was very excited to hang out with my friends here until my interaction with their bartender. read more

7/14/19 The basement has very poor service. Twice my friend and I weren't served drinks at our table, which is customary. Instead he had to go to the bar to order drinks. Once there, he was overlooked and not waited on. An excellent waitress quit last month and the men who replaced her are inefficient and lackadaisical. My friend and I enjoy the jazz music but are concerned if the bands are even paid, they beg for tips profusely. We are considering not patronizing The Basement. read more

Great music and ambiance!! What a brilliant addition to the Arcata music scene. The quintessential atmospheric music space. Great cocktails. Love it. read more

This is my new favorite venue for live music and cocktails in Humboldt. Dimly lit with low ceilings and a classic jazz club vibe, The Basement has local talent playing Wednesday nights through the weekend. The cocktail menu and food is limited but focused. read more

Very well done. Former restaurant turned jazz lounge. Nightly music , great drinks, cool vibe. I highly recommend this place. They have light appetizers such as charcuterie and mezze plates. Not the typical plaza crowd. Lovely little place. Quite enjoyable. read more

Love this spot. Formerly Abruzzi Restaurant, this is now a swanky jazz club. You can also rent for private events. Our friend threw a bday party there and it was such a great venue. If you eat upstairs at the Plaza Grill they will reserve a table downstairs for you! read more

Rude service, mediocre jazz and VERY expensive drinks. We went and visited the Basement for the first and last time. The place itself is set up nice, however the drinks are Extremely expensive. 20$ for an Irish coffee! When inquiring about the cost ( as the reciept only printed the total amount) the bartenders responded smugly and berated us for only leaving a 2$ tip for two drinks. I am usually a good tipper as I am myself a server, but the service was extremely slow. I watched my drinks sit on the bar for about 10 minutes before they were brought to me. Furthermore, the rudeness of the bartender was astonishing as he replied to our questions with "come back never " I DO NOT recommend this place if your wishing to find a laid back jazz spot. read more

The only reason I will be back to The Basement is to get a refund for the overcharge on my card. After charging my card twice for the TWO drinks we ordered we were told we had to come all the way back to The Basement so they could refund THEIR mistake. They claim to not have the ability to punch in a card number to submit a refund when they screw up. No, I do not want a gift certificate. No you don't get anymore of my money. I wonder what they do with out of town guests? Or is this their schtick? Yes, I'm a little upset. Overpriced and poor service. Too bad. I was hoping for better. read more

I was hoping to show some support for the basement. I was pretty excited that there was going to be a spot close by in Arcata where I could come and listen to jazz, maybe have a couple drinks. What I learned, is that if you'd like to drink and listen to jazz at the Basement, drink before you come. I ordered an irish coffee, which I expected to be around 9-12$, but it was in fact $19. I drank my drink, although confused about the cost of it, but overall, just curious as to what a $19 cocktail tasted like. To my surprise, it tasted like any other Irish Coffee. I went to ask about the price, thinking that perhaps there was a mistake. I was shown an actual printout of the overall receipt, and I learned that a cup 3/4 full of coffee with a little bit of Jameson and Baileys, amounts to $10 for Jameson, and $9 for the Baileys, but I guess at least the coffee was free. When I asked about how they could charge those amounts, one of the bartenders told me sarcastically that "He'd get right on changing those prices just for me." And added "See you again..never" with a joyful look. At the time initially, I was ready to take the loss as a $20 lesson to always ask what I'll be charged at each place I go to now to order something due to my foolish assumption that I'll be charged a reasonable amount for something easy to make. I've worked at a restaurant before that charged up to $34 for an entree, but at least that took skill and effort to create. Imagine paying $29 for an Irish Coffee and Hot Cider, then being treated like you're a bad person for only leaving a $2 tip, because that summed up my experience enough, but some context is needed so you the reader can truly grasp this frustration I had been coping with last night. After learning that at Disneyland, (a place well known for upping the cost on even a bottle of water) only charges about $12 for what I consumed last night, as well as the disrespect that followed, it's difficult to not be frustrated enough to leave this review. It's a shame how one bad time can ruin a place for you, but I guess it's common sense to not want to swim in a pool with a turd in it. read more