Coobah

The Scene – It's a pretty tight squeeze into Coobah, a dark, smoky Latin spot where sexy bartenders mix mojitos and caipirinhas for a crowd of Southport hipsters. The decor provides plenty of eye candy too, with rust-colored terra cotta walls, metal clamshell light fixtures, and fans waving breezily back and forth above the bar. Friendly, on-the-ball service makes up for long waits at the bar. – – The Food – Coobah's pan-Latin fare pops with flavor, from piping-hot queso with duck chorizo to chilly, chunky ceviche that starts out cool, then packs a mean red…

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Editor's Tips

What to Drink:: The wine list is short and reasonably priced, with a good selection of Chilean and Spanish reds in the $30-$40 range.
Save Money:: Drink specials: Mon two-for-one martinis; Tue $5 sangria pitchers; Wed half-price bottles of wine; Sun half-price mojitos and $3 Red Stripe bottles.
Parking:: There's a lot behind the restaurant that has space for about a dozen cars, a boon on this busy street.

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User Reviews (30)

ambiance	91.66999816894531% positive	“Fortunate for Coobah, the food and late night atmosphere is enough for me to look past the very mediocre table service (which has been the case on each of my visits which now total about 6).” “All in all a great restaurant you should definitely check out if you enjoy Latin food and a unique atmosphere.” “love the patio and atmosphere at Coobah!” “The ambiance was fun, kind of trendy but not a bunch of snobs.” “Coobah has an amazing atmosphere.” “Perfect atmosphere!” “They had a cuban jazz band playing live music throughout our meal, which just added to the already cool ambience.” “Service was good, food was excellent and the atmosphere is very pleasant.” “If looking for a truly unique menu and an awesome dinner/lounge atmosphere, then Coobah is one of the best additions to the baby-stroller express lane known as the Southport Corridor.” “The decor is warm and inviting and the staff was very friendly.” “The atmosphere at Coobah was incredibly unique and tasteful.” “loved the atmosphere!”
drinks	65.0% positive	“Overall a great upbeat place to hang out at the bar and listen to the dj or grab a bite to eat.” “Second visit on a Friday night--poor food, below average drinks, poor service.” “But after tasting their food and drinks, I looked passed their cramped interior and indulged in their yummy offerings.” “The rum was pretty strong, drink is full of tiny limes, and you can add strawberries for a $1 -- avoid using the straw that comes in this drink.” “The highlights of our bad experience involved: not being seated until 45 minutes after our reservation, having to ask for refills on drinks/more beverages as the waitress was walking away, small tables and waitress bringing appetizers and entrees out at o” “Intimate, funky, great music, relaxed service, Eclectic wine list and some of the best cocktails in Chicago - especially the Mojito.” “The drinks were decent, but pricey for what you got.” “Much needed breath of fresh air to the Southport bar/restaraunt scene too!” “The food, service and drinks are pretty good-- though not great.” “Sure you can get a great drink and a great meal, but there's also something going on in every corner that provides its own unique entertainment value.”
food quality	86.66999816894531% positive	“The food, service and drinks are pretty good-- though not great.” “The food is very authentic.” “The highlights of our bad experience involved: not being seated until 45 minutes after our reservation, having to ask for refills on drinks/more beverages as the waitress was walking away, small tables and waitress bringing appetizers and entrees out at o” “But, if you're patient and like the scene, the food is well worth it!” “Great flavor, and a GREAT trio of homemade sauces to dip whatever you want - one spicy, one smoky, one sweet.” “Much needed breath of fresh air to the Southport bar/restaraunt scene too!” “Menu has wonderfully interesting dishes - but vegetarians beware!” “For $8.50, the sandwich is an incredible value, as well.” “Amazing food!” “real "foodie" tired of the "big names" and "big boys" somehow winning with sub par food, plastic atmospheres, etc.” “Fortunate for Coobah, the food and late night atmosphere is enough for me to look past the very mediocre table service (which has been the case on each of my visits which now total about 6).” “Service was good, food was excellent and the atmosphere is very pleasant.” “In general all the dishes were unique due to the combination of spices and flavors.” “Sure you can get a great drink and a great meal, but there's also something going on in every corner that provides its own unique entertainment value.” “Chilis and fruits paired with beef and/or great whitefish dominate the menu.” “The appetizers are smaller portions but pretty tasty and the main courses are pretty decent as well.” “They had a cuban jazz band playing live music throughout our meal, which just added to the already cool ambience.” “But after tasting their food and drinks, I looked passed their cramped interior and indulged in their yummy offerings.” “The food is quite good.” “Coobah serves up pretty decent cuban food.” “The saltiness of the chicken, combined with the sweet bananas, and the crisp radicchio which leaves a fresh taste in your mouth, is awesome.” “The Sangria was great and most of the food.” “The food was AMAZING!” “Onto food -- The Sangria was nothing short of great, just make sure to keep the ice coming with the pitchers or else it might get a little warm with the temperature.” “Second visit on a Friday night--poor food, below average drinks, poor service.” “All in all a great restaurant you should definitely check out if you enjoy Latin food and a unique atmosphere.” “The food was not good and it came out cold.” “The wait staff was pleasant and attentive, and although the portions were modest, the food was quite tasty.” “Awesome food, awesome service” “had the jerked jibarito and the chicken negra which were not too bad.”
menu variety	100.0% positive	“Chilis and fruits paired with beef and/or great whitefish dominate the menu.” “The eclectic menu with influences from Spain, Cuba, Mexico and the Phillipines is unique and is so much more than just Latin.” “If looking for a truly unique menu and an awesome dinner/lounge atmosphere, then Coobah is one of the best additions to the baby-stroller express lane known as the Southport Corridor.” “Great, unique menu” “One of the best and most unique appetizer selections I've had, EVER.”
overall	100.0% positive	“Overall a great upbeat place to hang out at the bar and listen to the dj or grab a bite to eat.” “All in all a great restaurant you should definitely check out if you enjoy Latin food and a unique atmosphere.”
service	68.17999839782715% positive	“As guests arrived I had to track down our server and ask if we could order appetizers.” “The highlights of our bad experience involved: not being seated until 45 minutes after our reservation, having to ask for refills on drinks/more beverages as the waitress was walking away, small tables and waitress bringing appetizers and entrees out at o” “Intimate, funky, great music, relaxed service, Eclectic wine list and some of the best cocktails in Chicago - especially the Mojito.” “The wait staff was pleasant and attentive, and although the portions were modest, the food was quite tasty.” “Service was also great as our waitress couldn't have been more friendly and knowledgeable, even giving out vintage shopping advice!” “The food, service and drinks are pretty good-- though not great.” “Awesome food, awesome service” “Food is great but the service was horrible.” “The decor is warm and inviting and the staff was very friendly.” “Fortunate for Coobah, the food and late night atmosphere is enough for me to look past the very mediocre table service (which has been the case on each of my visits which now total about 6).” “Second visit on a Friday night--poor food, below average drinks, poor service.”
value	81.25% positive	“Sure you can get a great drink and a great meal, but there's also something going on in every corner that provides its own unique entertainment value.” “The drinks were decent, but pricey for what you got.” “But, if you're patient and like the scene, the food is well worth it!” “Overall, poor value.” “The appetizers are smaller portions but pretty tasty and the main courses are pretty decent as well.” “It's a shame as the little restaurant that's doing it right doesn't have the "money" and "big names" behind them to solicit votes.” “For $8.50, the sandwich is an incredible value, as well.” “The wait staff was pleasant and attentive, and although the portions were modest, the food was quite tasty.”
wait time	0.0% positive	“The highlights of our bad experience involved: not being seated until 45 minutes after our reservation, having to ask for refills on drinks/more beverages as the waitress was walking away, small tables and waitress bringing appetizers and entrees out at o”

03/27/11

Very Disappointing Service

by foodieinthecity83 at Citysearch

After serving in the restaurant industry for nearly 6 years, I was floored by the poor level of service we received at Coobah this past Saturday.

We started off with an order of chips & gauc and magaritas. The waitress seemed a little impatient that we weren't moving on to the main course right away, but we let it go and ordered another round of chips & guac. Not even a minute later, we wanted to change that to a different appetizer and the waitress rolled her eyes and said, "Well, I already put that order in." So we apologized and asked if we could just switch it out. She turned to look back at the kitchen and said, "Yeah, well it's already on it's way out so did you just want to order the other appetizer on top of that?"

Seriously? You can't put the chips back in the basket and the guac back in the bucket?!

Apparently not.

So we ordered the additional appetizer on top of the 2nd round of really-not-that-great guac and chips that we really-didn't-want.

A few minutes later, I accidentally spilled my husbands margarita on the floor. I was super apologetic as I felt terrible that people had to come and clean up my spill. The manager was nice enough about it and when I told our server (who had not been there to witness the event), she just said, "Okay, so did you want to order more drinks?" Betting on the industry standard of a "spill tab" in which bartenders expect to replace a few drinks a night from spills, I figured she would just bring out a new one and not charge us.

I was wrong. She did charge us for the spilled drink and the replacement.

After our so-so meal and more eye-rolling from our big-haired waitress, we looked over the check and saw that we had been charged for the drink as well as the chips & guac that we didn't really want (no surprise there tho). So, our bill was split up and while my uber-generous friends were kind enough to tip her 20%, I (as the experienced server), simply tipped her 10% (subtracting the overpriced drink we never got to drink) and wrote a note explaining the reasoning behind the poor tip.

Imagine my surprise when we stood up and she collected the checks while we were STILL standing at our table (Any higher-end establishment has serious etiqutte rules against this kind of behavior). She then looked at our bill and began to argue with me about the tip!!!!!! I was floored. She claimed she didn't charge us for the drink and then went and got the manager to defend her case.

I was so shocked that she would do that (and that the manager would not tell his server to stand down and then apologize), that I handed her more money! Honestly, I did NOT know what to do, I just couldn't believe it was happening.

All this to say, I NEVER write bad reveiws of restaurants, and I really do understand how hard it is to be a server, but this was beyond unacceptable, especially when you are paying for a $150 meal.

Coobah, please do something to better train your employees in customer service and basic etiquette (especially the mid to late - 30 year old waitress with big, black hair and a giant flower pinned in).

I'm sorry to say, we won't ever be back. And neither will our friends.

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01/23/09

Something Special on Southport

by ofhisspace78 at Citysearch

Let me start by saying, if you haven't been to Coobah you need to check it out. A couple friends and I wondered in on a Thursday for dinner. What a pleasant surprise! They had a cuban jazz band playing live music throughout our meal, which just added to the already cool ambience. The decor is warm and inviting and the staff was very friendly. The bartender was quick with a couple recommendations--try the Caipirinha with strawberries or the delicious Pisco Sour (wasn't on the menu, but the manager mixed us up one). Oh, and Thursday is $5 mojito night. So, needless to say, we sampled all of their variations. Food was outstanding. I'll be jonesing for the Clam and Chorizo Chowder until I can get back there. We had a jerked chicken and plantain dish and spicy mussels for appetizers(both great). For entrees we had the Hanger steak with chipotle mashed potato, the pork tenderloin with shrimp and bacon, and a chicken dish with chilaquiles. They were all so good, we just passed each dish around the table and sampled.

For dessert, a spicy chocolate mousse infused with Patron XO tequila--Awesome!! I will most definitely be back.

Pros: Ambience, Cocktails, Food, Live Music, Service, Parking lot,
Cons: I want a Coobah in Wicker Park.

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11/01/08

Real, Chicago, Cuba, Yummy

by danm900 at Citysearch

As someone who frequents Chicago restaurants I am not easily impressed. Coobah really strikes the chord on all the notes. The older you are, the earlier you should arrive. There is a 'happening' quality to the experience. Sure you can get a great drink and a great meal, but there's also something going on in every corner that provides its own unique entertainment value.

I never liked plantains but Coobah's plantains were cooked so skillfully that I couldn't get enough. The service is true Chicago, if you like them-they like you. If you bring it, they're entirely capable of returning the favor. I like that. It feels very real. So real that you completely forget that you're on Southport Ave.

From the start, any place that refills your water glass quickly maintains a certain level of training and professionalism, I use that as a baseline for quality service. It is clean yet comfortable. Overall the service is observant and acts appropriately for each table's situation.

The food is quite good. I would highly recommend the place, bring your own party.

Pros: Food, service, bar creations, wine list
Cons: parking, although I hear they have a lot in back

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01/23/08

lackluster

by lburro1 at Citysearch

The atmosphere at Coobah was incredibly unique and tasteful. However, the food was lackluster and disappointing. Their signature dish, the pork, was unimpressive and flavorless. I do not understand why it is receiving such rave reviews.

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01/21/08

Amazing food!

by jetsetter9 at Citysearch

Went to Coobah a few nights ago with a party of 5 and LOVED it! The appetizers and entrees were amazing! Their pork tenderloin is out-of-this world...a great fusion of flavors that leaves you wanting more. In general all the dishes were unique due to the combination of spices and flavors. I thought the sangria was too sweet, but besides that I will definitely be coming back soon!

Coobah

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What People Are Saying About Coobah

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Editor's Tips

03/27/11

Very Disappointing Service

by foodieinthecity83 at Citysearch

01/23/09

Something Special on Southport

by ofhisspace78 at Citysearch

11/01/08

Real, Chicago, Cuba, Yummy

by danm900 at Citysearch

01/23/08

lackluster

by lburro1 at Citysearch

01/21/08

Amazing food!

by jetsetter9 at Citysearch

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