#SWIRL WINE BAR ZIP#
Pre-club, look for a crowd that crosses the map in terms of age, background and zip code.
#SWIRL WINE BAR FREE#
But here’s a Chicago Bar Project tip: check Swirl’s website for printable coupons and RSVP opportunities that offer free or reduced entry. There is a $10 cover for these DJ-driven events, which sometimes also feature live acts. That changes after 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays, when Swirl transforms into a micro club, staying open until 4am and 5am respectively. During my visit, however, this was not enforced in any visible way. There’s no cover, but there is a stated two-drink minimum. Performances feature a range of jazz vocalists, as well as Latin, Samba and Flamenco acts. Swirl is open five nights a week, from Tuesday through Saturday, and you’ll find live music featured on all of them. On Tuesdays, you’ll find $3 tastings and $10 flights and look for specials on the house sangria, which was none too shabby. Swirl offers a small menu of gourmet pizzas, salads, small plates and cheese plates and keeps the kitchen open until last call for those with the post-midnight munchies. They don’t carry any call or house liquors to speak of. Swirl’s bar is strictly Top Shelf all the way, and I mean that literally. Blue-collar beer lovers will be disappointed, but others will appreciate a selection of 40 bottled craft and artisan beers from around the world. Plan on spending between $6-$12 a glass, while bottles are relatively reasonable but can go high enough to get any expense account audited. There are also a number of flights to choose from in addition to their reserve list of wines available by the bottle. There are about 20 selections available by the glass, offering a wide variety of varietals. I know just enough about wine to get in trouble, so I won’t even pretend to give an impression of the wine list, but I think I can safely say that Swirl’s list will satisfy most oenophiles.
TVs are not on hand, so sit back and enjoy the show. This provides an intimate setting for about 50, with anyone else relegated to SRO status, and there’s not a lot of standing room to speak of. A small dark bar running parallel to the tables and a comfy lounge space beyond the band/DJ area provide additional seating. (Note: even during a live set, polite conversation was still easily accomplished.) Curved cocktail booths along the western wall give way to a few high tables before running into the floor-level performance space.
#SWIRL WINE BAR SERIES#
The light-colored brick walls and unfinished ceiling give the place a minimalist look, but the acoustics are maximized by a series of strategically placed speakers. Step through a small foyer and into a narrow, rectangular room dimly lit by candles and miniature chandeliers. Look for Swirl’s glass doors and simple black awning just west of Clark in a spot that in recent years has been the home to Wham Bongo Bar, Tapas Barcelona and Minx. Swirl casts a pretty low profile on an ever-crowded strip of Hubbard Street that contains no less than 15 restaurants, bars and clubs in a three-block stretch. If, however, you like seeing blitzed beauticians from Beloit belting out off-key Bon Jovi ballads, you were probably looking for Howl at the Moon, just down the street. If you like DJs spinning late night club music, but not the club scene thuggery, you’ll probably like Swirl. If you like live world jazz, but not the cover charges, you’ll probably like Swirl. If you like wine and quiet conversation, but not wine bar snobbery, you’ll probably like Swirl. An intimate, dare I say, romantic River North wine bar, Swirl has the potential to appeal to a wide range of revelers.