Chicago's Hidden Cocktail Room, Lit Low and Poured with Care.
We stir quiet, serious cocktails for the after-dark crowd.
Make a reservation
Rated 4.9 by 1,180 guests
Walk-ins at the bar
Open till 2am
Family-owned since 2016
Ring the bell at the back of the lamp shop.
Avondale, Chicago
How a night works
Find the lamp shop. Ring the bell at the back.
There is no sign on Elston, just a lamp-repair shop with its window lit. Ansel still fixes lamps in the front by day. After 5pm, the door at the back opens onto one long bar.
01
Find the lamp shop
3157 N Elston Ave, Chicago, IL 60618. The light in the window is always on.
02
Ring the bell
At the back of the shop, beside the brass switch plate.
03
Give the password
We text it to your cell by 4pm on the day of your reservation. Walking in? The person at the lamp counter asks you one question. Any honest answer works.
04
Take your seat
Booths are yours for two hours. Bar seats are walk-in, first come.
The menu
Six house cocktails, and every classic you can name.
Mirela writes the house list twice a year. Real ice, cut by hand every afternoon. Tell the bartender what you like, and you may get a drink that isn't on the menu at all.
House
Low & zero
Classics
Bites
Tungsten
$18
Rye, Italian amaro, smoked demerara, orange oil. Stirred, on one big cube.
Edison Sour
$17
Bourbon, lemon, burnt honey, egg white.
Blue Hour
$17
Gin, blanc vermouth, lavender, a float of blue tea.
Ballast
$18
Aged rum, cold brew, banana, walnut bitters.
Short Circuit
$17
Mezcal, grapefruit, chile, a salt rim.
The Dimmer
$19
Cognac, sour cherry, sweet vermouth. Served up.
Low Voltage
$14
Fino sherry, blanc vermouth, tonic. Low proof, long and dry.
Pilot Light
$11
Smoked tea, honey, lemon, soda. Zero proof.
Ground Wire
$10
Cold brew, tonic, orange peel. Zero proof.
Any classic, stirred or shaken
$16
Martini, Manhattan, Negroni, Daiquiri, Last Word, an Old Fashioned the way you take it.
Early Light happy hour
$12
Tuesday to Thursday, 5pm to 6:30pm. Every classic on the list.
Spiced bar nuts
$7
Warm, with rosemary and brown sugar.
Marinated olives
$8
Citrus peel, chile, fennel.
Deviled eggs
$12
With trout roe and chives.
Soft pretzel
$12
With beer cheese for the table.
Dark chocolate
$9
A bar of it, broken, with sea salt.
Most ordered
Tungsten, $18
Rye and amaro over smoked demerara, finished with orange oil. Our first house drink, still on every list since 2016.
Since 2016
Mirela has spent twenty years behind Chicago bars. Ansel fixes lamps. In 2016 they put one long bar behind his shop, kept the lights low, and never put up a sign.
Tungsten
Edison Sour
Blue Hour
Ballast
Short Circuit
The Dimmer
Low Voltage
Pilot Light
10
years behind the lamp shop
46
seats: eight booths, fourteen at the bar
4.9
stars from 1,180 reviews
212
bottles on the back bar
Every week
Six nights, each with its own sound.
The bar is the same every night. What is playing, and who is pouring, is not.
Tue
Early Light
Happy hour at the bar: every classic $12 until 6:30pm.
5pm–1am
Wed
Guest bartender night
A different Chicago bartender behind our bar each week, with three drinks of their own.
5pm–1am
Thu
Vinyl night
Records from the shop's back shelf, played start to finish.
5pm–1am
Fri
The trio at the back
Piano, bass and brushes, from 9pm to midnight.
5pm–2am
Sat
The trio at the back
Two sets, from 9pm to 1am. Reserve a booth early.
5pm–2am
Sun
Bench Class, then the bar
Make three cocktails with Mirela at 3pm, before we open.
5pm–12am
Monday we are closed. The lamps rest.
The room
Low light, real ice, and nowhere to be.
Rated 4.9 by 1,180 guests who found the door.
We walked past the lamp shop twice. Then the bell, the password, and the best Old Fashioned I've had in this city.
Priya, Irving Park
The trio on Friday, a booth at the back, two Blue Hours. We know where every anniversary is going now.
Marcus, Avondale
I asked for something with mezcal and not too sweet. Mirela made me a drink that isn't even on the menu.
Jen, Albany Park
The Workbench
Our back room, for your people.
The Workbench seats 18 and stands 24, with its own bartender and a door that closes. Birthdays, rehearsal dinners, the team that finally hit its number.
Ask about a date
Tuesday to Thursday
Weeknight back room
from $900
food and drink minimum
The Workbench for the evening, a bartender of your own, bites for the table.
Friday to Sunday
Weekend back room
from $1,800
food and drink minimum
The same room on the busiest nights, with the trio audible through the door on Fridays and Saturdays.
Any night but Monday
The whole bar
from $6,500
food and drink minimum
All 46 seats, the long bar and the back room, for up to 80 guests standing.
Sundays at 3pm
Bench Class
$75
a person
Ninety minutes with Mirela. You make three cocktails and drink them. Up to 12 guests.
Before you come
What people ask at the lamp counter.
Anything else? Call or text (773) 555-0163. A bartender answers.
Do I need a reservation?
For a booth, yes. Booths seat two to six and are yours for two hours. The fourteen bar seats are walk-in only, first come, first served.
How do I get the password?
We text it to your cell by 4pm on the day of your reservation. Walking in, the person at the lamp counter will ask you one question. Any honest answer works.
Is there a dress code?
No. Come as you are. We only ask that phones stay on silent and the flash stays off.
Is it 21 and over?
Always. We check ID at the back door, every night, for everyone.
Do you make drinks without alcohol?
Two zero-proof drinks are on the menu, and the bartenders will make you something of your own if you ask.
We are more than six. Can we come?
Groups of seven or more book the Workbench, our back room. Call or text and we will find you a night.
Reservations
Every strand of the night leads to one lit bar.
Reserve a booth for two to six. We text you to confirm, and the password follows by 4pm on the day.
Request a booth
Request my booth
Rather talk to us?
Call or text (773) 555-0163
hello@filamentbar.com
3157 N Elston Ave, Chicago, IL 60618
Mon
Closed
Tue–Thu
5pm–1am
Fri–Sat
5pm–2am
Sun
5pm–12am
Bar seats are always walk-in. Booths cancel free up to two hours before; just text us.