Han Cha
★ 5.0 · 3 reviews Chicago Opened 5 June 2026
Korean-inflected high tea inside the Stony Island Arts Bank
Han Cha opened June 5, 2026, on the ground floor of the Stony Island Arts Bank, the former bank building artist Theaster Gates restored as an arts center. It's a collaboration between Gates and entrepreneur Heiji Choy Black, borrowing the format of English high tea and filling it with East Asian teahouse craft.
Service runs as a two-hour prix fixe at $75 a head, poured into vessels hand-thrown in Gates's own studio, in rooms hung with pieces from his collection. The bar next door, Yunomi, handles the cocktails.
Good to know
- Reservations are encouraged, though a few walk-in tables are usually held back.
What guests say
Reviews by Google-
Claire Rayburn 27 reviews · Local Guide 30 August 2026
We were super excited to come check out this concept, but pretty disappointed by the service and value. Portions were incredibly small, even for tea. While the flavors were delicious and the teas were awesome, each course took nearly an hour for foods that were likely pre-made. We had to wait about 30-45 mins for our check, despite asking several times. Beautiful space, gorgeous ceramics and fun idea for the community, but this missed the mark for us sadly.
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Brysen Kawamura 94 reviews · Local Guide 29 August 2026
I really wanted to like this experience, but some aspects missed the mark for me. The concept is nice and the building is beautiful. The actual experience was soothing and enjoyable, but I left wanting more. I wish you got to choose your teacup, I think that would make the experience more personable. As a ceramicist the pottery was beautiful and it was nice to see that each cup, plate, teapot was different and unique. It was nice to use pottery created by Theaster himself. We were so confused on how many teas we were allowed to try, we had to ask our server several times to confirm and we were still left confused because other guests got a different tea with each course and we didn’t. I wanted the food to be elevated in a way that matched the priced tag. It felt like the food just came straight out from the package. Fresh fruit or a pop of color to the dishes would be more exciting. The flavors were okay, just very literal and expected. I did see one of the servers blow her nose and not wash her hands so that also took away a lot of respect for the experience unfortunately. The experience lasted 2 hours. There is a parking lot in the back, and after your experience you can explore the rest of the building. It seems like the menu changes with the season. We did not try the bar or the alcoholic drinks, but that is an option to add $ on to your experience. I think for what you get I would be happy if the price point was reduced to reflect the experience. It was nice to try once, but left with no desire to come back.
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Honor Finnegan 134 reviews · Local Guide 28 August 2026
Lovely upscale experience.
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Micah Corning-Myers 20 reviews · Local Guide 23 August 2026
I can’t say it’s worth $75/person (that’s before tax and tip). This is the most comically small high tea portion I have ever been given. You get about half a cup of tea for each of the three courses. We were giggling pretty hard every time they put something down. Especially the sandwiches. Two 1/8 sandwiches per person with a thin smear of egg and pimento. That plate in the photo is SMALL don’t be fooled. One more ick is that they do that thing where they ask you if you want sparkling or still but don’t mention the free tap, you gotta do the Oliver Twist on them and ask if they stock the poor people liquid. There’s a lot of good to say. The ambience is lovely, all of the ceramic ware they are serving on is unique and beautiful. Super flowy linen everywhere, and the building by itself is a gem. The taste of the food was nice. Dessert in particular they had some major aesthetics going on as well, not quite like anything I’ve had, kind of like perfect little Michelin dessert bites. They are new and figuring it out
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Adam Whittington 4 reviews 7 August 2026
They did a great job! Would definitely go back
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