Sunday 6th of June 2010 10:57:18 AM

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Mirabell kicked off the 5th annual German pub crawl yesterday. Decided to have lunch here, since we had never been before. The location is somewhat obscure, probably accounting for the lack of current reviews. It's a couple blocks east of the Kennedy, and accessible from the blue line Addison stop.

Inside the double door and past the vestibule, you see the bar to the left, and a few table booths on the right. Further back around the corner is the "beer garden" indoors with a skylight and festive decor. A second dining area was closed off, so was the outdoor patio. We sat in the bar room, which seemed to have the highest level of decades-old charm. Wood paneling, carved wooden tables, old BBK lighted signs hanging above the bar. The bar itself was swathed in red leather on the sides, with a wood rail and formica top. There was an impressive collection of steins and krugs behind the bar, decorated with assorted photos and knick knacks.

The large tap tower had a worn brass front, with "Mirabell" impressively etched into it. Taps were the usual German fare, with obscure ones like BBK Dark an Reissdorf Kölsch, also Julius Echter Weiss. Another obscure German beer here was Hartsfelder Meister Pils, which i've never seen elsewhere. Lots of eastern euro stuff on the beer list, like Samson and Zipfer.

Service was warm and friendly. The servers wear traditional dirndl dresses. The bartender/waitress/owner checked up on us several times and made friendly conversation.

The food was hearty and pretty affordable. Their website has a 50% off 2nd entree coupon that saved us a few bucks. Overall i'd say that Mirabell is an overlooked gem.
It's a cozy and friendly place, worth seeking out.