Cigars and Stripes BBQ Lounge

Cigars and Stripes BBQ LoungeCigars and Stripes BBQ Lounge
Cigars and Stripes BBQ LoungeCigars and Stripes BBQ Lounge
Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

6715 Ogden Ave
Berwyn, Illinois, 60402-5413
United States

(708) 484-1043 | map
cigarsandstripes.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.66
Reviews:
9
Ratings:
11
pDev:
5.15%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by InsaneBeerLover:
Photo of InsaneBeerLover
Reviewed by InsaneBeerLover from Illinois

4.81/5  rDev +3.2%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.75 | service: 5 | selection: 4.75 | food: 5
Not your typical bar, this place is great. Awesome beer selection and outstanding smoked wing and rib tips. The entertainment in this place is pretty good as well so if you are looking for a good relaxing and enjoyable time this is the right place to be at in the Berwyn Illinois area.

I found this place about a year ago and i have not stopped going there ever since.
Really enjoy going to this place every week and releasing some of the entrees from work. I feel like a kid at a candy store with all the craft beer selection on Tap, Bottle and Can. =)

By the way try the smoked wings with your favorite beer.
Jul 31, 2015
More User Ratings:
Photo of Phyl21ca
Reviewed by Phyl21ca from Canada (QC)

4.54/5  rDev -2.6%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.25 | service: 5 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4.5
Restaurant located off the main strip in Berwyn in an old house. Décor is wonderful with plenty of horror artworks and other funky artifacts. Beer selection is quite good and food offering is limited by of high-quality. Waitress was really nice and knows how to handle the place. Worth a stop for sure if you are in the area.
May 29, 2016
Photo of tompalka
Reviewed by tompalka from Illinois

4.66/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.75 | service: 4.25 | selection: 5 | food: 4.25
Fun place. No typical beers on tap. (Not your regular "big 3" bar -Bud light-Coors light-Miller light). You'll enjoy the big selection of micros on tap. Large beer list includes bottles & cans too. Bartenders are up on beer knowledge, which is a plus. Taps change every so often which keeps thing fresh & different. In addition to the beers, they have a small but tasty menu of kick-ass wings and barbeque items. Entertainment includes everything from stand-up comics and bands to live trivia and more. Come for the beers, stay for the everything else. Recommended.
Jun 17, 2015
 
Rated: 4.5 by Knoxrb12 from Illinois

Jun 09, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by Nihilistkid from Illinois

Dec 07, 2013
Photo of NewGlarusFan
Reviewed by NewGlarusFan from Illinois

5/5  rDev +7.3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 5
" A strange place for nice people" and it seriously is, but strange in a good way. Ronnie the owner is a horror film buff and the decor shows it. He hand bult the place, painted everything inside, and the food is wonderful. Great craft selection on tap. Everyone in the bar is friendly. Kelly the bartender is sweet, pretty, and funny. They run a great place. Best bar in Berwyn. Just watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0ZQ8oVWaIc

Go here and have a great time!
Aug 29, 2013
Photo of mryuk
Reviewed by mryuk from Illinois

4.53/5  rDev -2.8%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5
I work close to here and needless to say there are not very many good beer bars in the area. After hearing about this place I had to check it out and it certainly did not disappoint.

The only things this place had were: cigars, wings and great craft beer but really what else can you ask for.

The bar is dark and unique. All kinds of Halloween looking trinkets on the walls. Ronnie is great and we never leave without some interesting encounter.

The beer selection is close to one of the best I have seen in the city for the number of taps they have. They are continually rotating and adding current beers. Great Lakes, FFF, Sierra, Dogfish, Bells, etc. I don't always agree with Ronnie's opinion of a beer but I will without fail find something I love.

Try the smoked wings. They are great.

One of the most interesting things about this place is the unique cross section of people I have run into. The neighborhood is a little rough so meshing that with craft beer is not always the best fit. There will almost certainly be someone at the bar only drinking miller light bottles or PBR which is fine by me but they don't know what they are missing.
Dec 18, 2010
Photo of electrojosh
Reviewed by electrojosh from Illinois

4.4/5  rDev -5.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 4
This is certainly Berwyn's only serious beer bar, and is possibly the best bar in the near-western Chicago suburbs (an area normally known for an abundance of cheap Miller Highlife places).

Owner/proprietor Ronnie has taken great pains to make Cigars & Stripes a full service bar and entertainment destination. In my opinion, there are probably TOO MANY things going on in this bar. But I've never been bored there. My favorite events are the movie nights and the ever rare "Metal Mondays."

The beer selection is simply outstanding. The tap selection is NEVER ordinary. And there are always beers coming and going. Ronnie is as passionate about his beer offerings as he is his entertainment calendar, and it shows. There are also a good variety of cans and bottles in the cooler. But there is never a printed beer list, so you may have to lean over the bar to see what's in there.

Lately Ronnie has had a smoker setup out back, from where the bar staff produce some pretty awesome hot wings, complete with a variety of hot sauces. The hot sauces come from the small store in the front of the bar, where 300 year old Laddie sells a nice selection of hot sauces and cigars(!) when he is not asleep in a barcolounger by the entrance.

When you are weary of all the comedians and musicians and special events that Ronnie has going in the bar, you can retreat to the game room in back, where you'll find a pool table and nice sofa to pass out on. There is also a fenced in beer garden out back, where you can drink up in peace and quiet while enjoying the aromas eminating from the smoker.
Oct 01, 2010
Photo of marcobrau
Reviewed by marcobrau from Illinois

4.45/5  rDev -4.5%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4
Okay, I'm pretty much in agreement with the previous reviewers, but this place demands more attention. I've been in this bar (technically the Hammerhed Lounge) a few years ago at the beginning of the beer selection transition from macro to craft, but geez....the place is really tryin' to hit outta the park now. The taps are all craft. There aren't a lot of taps, but the quality is amazing with such gems as Founder's Backwoods Bastard and Dogfish Head Olde School along with five-dollar pints of Three Floyds Alpha King. The bottle selection includes some treats, too. Let it be noted that this place focuses on quality, not quantity, along with exceptional ambiance. Of course, "ambiance" is a much too pretty a word for the mixture of biker couture, beer signs and monster movie mayhem that is strewn about the place. This is not necessarily a biker bar, but those fond of their iron horses will find parking spaces just for bikes. Oh, and there's plenty of tobacco, too.
Dec 26, 2009
Photo of salfordtedd74
Reviewed by salfordtedd74 from Illinois

5/5  rDev +7.3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5
This place is a true hidden gem and I am glad to review this place for all the beer lovers in the area, to let you all know about this place...My first experience at CIgars and Stripes was the week of Halloween, when i attended the Freaktoberfest beer tasting...and since ....well i have been there at least ten times since....when you walk in there is a small cigar shop up front that you walk through and than a small bar and a few coolers with package goods...the tap selection is great, with a nice balance of American craft, Belgians and seasonals....they also have a great selection of bottles, also running the gamut of brews....one night i was surprised that they had Hand Of Doom on tap....to me it seems like they tap something new or rare about once a week....prices are very reasonable with lots of specials and they let you sample a beer before you buy it, which is a nice touch...its a very diverse crowd and everyone is friendly....the one thing that really bumps this place up a notch is the owner, Ronnie....i have never met an owner so passionate and dedicated to serving great beers....he is a funny, friendly guy who is quick with a joke, a story or info on beer....something always is going on there, whether its open-mic comedy(wed nights)...Movie nights( tuesdays)...live music(varies) comedians..(sat nite)...once you hunker down, its like drinking in your uncles basement...if only all our uncles were as cool as Ronnie!...they dont have a full kitchen but they have great "bar" pizza....with lotsa hot sauces to try it with...Frankie the bartender/beer man deserves special mention for doing a great job keeping patrons informed aboiut beer..i have seen him take extra time to chat with people about the beer they are drinking, giving tidbits of info about whatever brew they are drinking....if you are looking for a great place with great beer...this is it!
Dec 03, 2009
Photo of emerge077
Reviewed by emerge077 from Illinois

4.33/5  rDev -7.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
There were no expectations when I walked in, but I was really impressed by this place. It's clear that the owner and staff are really into craft beer, and have gone to great lengths to create a unique establishment.

Unique is an understatement...just look for an 8 ft. cigar puffing zombie on the road, and pull over there. Inside, past a small cigar and curio shop, under a hanging Chimay sign, there's a room with a U-shaped bar. Further back there were some tables and small outdoor patio with hanging beer signs and flowers. If Svengoolie was a regular here, I wouldn't be surprised...there was a menagerie of oddities, from the leopard print on the wall, tiny mounted game trophies, a painting of frankenstein, rock and roll art, and a motorcycle parked on top of the to-go cooler. It was a psychotronic cult movie come to life as a bar in Berwyn.

Frank was the bartender, and he was great. Really friendly and full of information about beer. He offered a couple draft samples right off the bat, and chatted about their selection. They serve up 6 different 10" pizzas for $8.75, but that's it for food. Sausage & jalapeño was tasty.

They want to expand their draft lines and coolers in the near future he said, maybe adding 10 more taps. Currently there were 11 taps and maybe 50 bottled beers. They had a draft list with descriptions and ABV listed. DFH 90, NB Dandelion, SN Bigfoot 08, DT, St. Bernardus Wit & Abt 12, Unibroue Ephemere, and several others. No bottle list, but they were visible in the coolers behind the bar. Strong Belgian trappist focus, full line of Chimay & St. B, Orval, Urthel Hop-It & Samaranth, Duvel, and several others. US craft was in another cooler, they had Founders, DFH, New Holland Dragons Milk, a total of about 30 US crafts. I was told they rotate 3 Floyds drafts, but didn't offer any bottles currently. FFF's aesthetic would certainly fit right in here. They also had a to-go cooler with limited craft options like SNPA, Lagunitas, and Bells.

A few in the crowd had craft beers, but more were probably drinking macros or mixed drinks. People were young & old, an eclectic mix. The jukebox had lots of rock classics, with some punk & blues thrown in, with XM filling in when it was not in use. They host live music and weekly comedy nights on wednesdays. I left with a couple bottles of hot sauce from the shop in the front, they had a pretty good assortment, and also a humidor if that's your thing.

Highly recommended if you are passing by on I-55.
Jul 10, 2009
Cigars and Stripes BBQ Lounge in Berwyn, IL
Place rating: 4.66 out of 5 with 11 ratings