Howells & Hood

Bar, Eatery

435 N Michigan Ave
Chicago, Illinois, 60611-4066
United States

// CLOSED //
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.89
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
36
pDev:
14.14%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by BeerTwigs:
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Reviewed by BeerTwigs from New York

3.74/5  rDev -3.9%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4.25 | selection: 3.5
Stopped in before dinner while I was in town for business. I believe they have over 140 beers on Tap so I had to stop in to see if there was anything interesting. I settled for a few local beers since I was in from out of town. Even though they have a lot of taps most of them are the signature beers from all the bigger craft breweries across the country. Its a good selection but I was looking for some different things I hadn't had before. Fortunately they had a seasonal menu with some nice stuff on it, unfortunately they hadn't tapped about half of them.

I didn't have any food but the service was really good. The atmosphere was pleasant and its hard to tell if they service was good because the bar wasn't packed or if its always that way. Lots of TV's for sports and definitely a nice clean place.

It seems like a good happy hour spot after work and you can definitely find something good to drink but probably not anything rare. I would recommend checking it out. Cheers!
Jan 31, 2014
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.5 by byronic from Canada (ON)

Sep 24, 2018
 
Rated: 4.34 by Monkeyknife from Missouri

May 15, 2017
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Reviewed by vikingpillager from Illinois

3.49/5  rDev -10.3%
vibe: 3.25 | quality: 3.25 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.75 | food: 3.75
Like most of the reviews here already, H&H is an acceptable but unremarkable place.
The beer selection is large (100+) but not great, the food is good but not excellent, the indoor ambiance is mediocre, and the service is very average.
Best things I can say about this place are that the location on Mag Mile and the outdoor patio in the summer are outstanding, and the spinach/artichoke dip is superb.
Jan 27, 2017
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Reviewed by grover37 from District of Columbia

3.76/5  rDev -3.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4 | selection: 3.75 | food: 4
Lots of beer, but not a lot of great beer. Pretty stuffy. Kinda what I expected given the location but could be a lot better given all the tap handles. Prices were on the high side but not outrageous. Food is a touch pricier. Good but not recommended.
Jan 07, 2017
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Reviewed by surfcaster from North Carolina

3.39/5  rDev -12.9%
vibe: 3 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5
Right off Michigan Ave near the river-->100 taps so why not.

Reeked of an old college bar with stale beer. They said the FFF rotational was ZD--ordered--was Alpha King which the guy said, "Oh, yea--forgot"

Beer tasted old, spunky lines. No way again. Go to Hopleaf
Dec 26, 2016
 
Rated: 3.44 by cryptichead from Illinois

Dec 10, 2016
 
Rated: 3.66 by mig100 from Texas

Sep 22, 2016
 
Rated: 4.33 by DrBass from Maryland

Aug 06, 2016
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Reviewed by Beginner2 from Illinois

4.01/5  rDev +3.1%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 4 | service: 3.75 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.25
With a premium location, the outside patio is a good value. I had their standard flight (called Around The World) that had four 6 ounce pours for $16. Such a good value, I selected another four (all Belgians) from the remaining 100+ on tap. While the fair weather patio (in Chicago, 5 months is a good year) is a great urban vibe near the River and Michigan Avenue, the interior is no big deal. But, it does have some thoughtful quotations from famous people on the walls.

The restaurant food is, well, bar food. My advice, eat only enough so you can drink more.
Apr 29, 2016
 
Rated: 4.19 by scxcrunner from Massachusetts

Apr 10, 2016
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Reviewed by DMcGirr from Massachusetts

4.01/5  rDev +3.1%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4 | service: 3.75 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.75
The beer selection here is very good, and the ability to order half pours really helps if you want to try a variety of things. They traditionally have had a pretty good meat and cheese board, but I've been underwhelmed by some of the other food.
Jan 25, 2016
 
Rated: 4.21 by Boone757 from Virginia

Oct 11, 2015
 
Rated: 3.96 by BeerForMuscle from New Jersey

Sep 29, 2015
 
Rated: 4.78 by michiganbeerdrinker from Michigan

Sep 23, 2015
 
Rated: 3.66 by hoponit from New York

Sep 08, 2015
 
Rated: 4.36 by plaid75 from New York

Jul 17, 2015
 
Rated: 4.27 by Shaskins80 from Michigan

Apr 09, 2015
 
Rated: 3.96 by needMIbeer from Virginia

Mar 24, 2015
 
Rated: 3.66 by Canada_Dan from Colorado

Mar 11, 2015
 
Rated: 4.57 by JoelClark from Idaho

Feb 04, 2015
 
Rated: 3.45 by misternebbie from Pennsylvania

Feb 04, 2015
 
Rated: 3.38 by BeerOps from Illinois

Jan 29, 2015
 
Rated: 4.33 by macaw87 from Indiana

Dec 27, 2014
 
Rated: 3.92 by scalffd from Illinois

Nov 30, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by bowzer4birdie from Illinois

Nov 22, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by MidwestBA from Illinois

Nov 19, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by Paulmhauser from Massachusetts

Nov 08, 2014
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Rated by Leej from Illinois

5/5  rDev +28.5%
Amazing beer list. Dozens of each style and category.
Nov 07, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by spycow from Illinois

Nov 01, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by Basoos1 from Oklahoma

Sep 15, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by aussiebeer from Illinois

Jun 20, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by jhhansen from California

Jun 13, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by jophish17 from Georgia

Jun 08, 2014
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Reviewed by jmlewisjr from Massachusetts

2.01/5  rDev -48.3%
vibe: 1 | quality: 2 | service: 1 | selection: 3.5
This place was really sterile...almost like a chain representation of what they thought a "hip" beer bar should be. Its HUGE. Went on a Saturday night after dinner...around 9-sh. Absolutely dead. There were two people sitting at the 40 or so person bar and it took two of us over ten minutes to be acknowledged. The bar area smelled like stale beer. Couldn't agree more with the earlier review that it is a "mass appeal" craft beer bar. I'm not trying to get douchey...just thinking they could get some more local beer. Most of what they had I could get here in Boston. No FFF, only 2-Hearted from Bells, not much from New Belgium...but every Lagunitas offering (don't get me wrong...big fan), multiple Sam Adam's etc. Sure they had Daisy Cutter and a couple of Goose Island and a Revolution or two...but Christ my hotel bar had those. Oh and there was uncleaned-up puke in each the male and female restrooms.
Feb 14, 2014
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Reviewed by emerge077 from Illinois

3.54/5  rDev -9%
vibe: 3.25 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.75
Located in the Tribune Tower, entrance is on the south end of the building, about 500 feet off Michigan Ave. Looks like a huge patio outside with a nice view in warmer months.

Inside there's a large host desk, almost like a hotel reception area. Little sayings were etched into the walls, not sure if that was pre-existing before the restaurant or not. At the bar, the decor was copper panels and faux black gatorskin chairs. Behind the bar was more industrial with steel paneled everything and narrow windows with a view into the keg storage room. Large dining room with modern flair, white tablecloths and large windows facing the NBC plaza. Overall the hotel lobby & restaurant vibe was a little sterile and soulless.

Service was ok, no one else was at the bar so the bartender was able to briefly chat, though it was early in the day and didn't seem to be the standard.

Selection is wide, though there were only 8 seasonals listed. Majority is tried and true craft, mass appeal stuff organized by style in the middle of the menu book, after the food menu. The "sours/lambic/fruit" section didn't list any unsweetened lambics, Jacobins Rouge was the only sour beer. Otherwise there's plenty of safe options to choose from, with solid go-tos like Uinta Dubhe, Greenbush Anger, and Daisy Cutter. They offer small pours for $3ish on average, and don't charge tax on your bar tab (a plus).

Location is good for a place like this, though Jake Melnicks has a better draft selection on the Mag Mile.
Dec 27, 2013
Howells & Hood in Chicago, IL
Place rating: 3.89 out of 5 with 36 ratings