Alulu Brewery and Pub

This tiny space was made for Sunny warm days.
Just a store front on Laflin has a hidden upstairs brewhouse, but the space really opens up with the sun and warmth. Classic Chicago sidewalk hawkers with a refreshing beverage. Upbeat eclectic latin-leaning music lifting spirits. Just fun. Seats inside for maybe 25, and standing room at the bar, but in good weather with the garage door open, everyone feels like they are outside, and tables for another 20 outside are clearly involved in the party.

Service is mostly on your own, but they will answer questions, are friendly, intelligent, and encourage fun.

Beers have good range. Nice bright flavors on the hefe and berliner Weiss, the dry stout is well crafted, but the beer of the day was the roasty porter: Doon Sparrow.

Food is encouraging. The brussel sprouts with smoked pork belly is good but more bacon than belly and would have benefited from more fire time.

Come for the fun.

Fun neighborhood bar elevated vibes, love the outside space too and the alleyway entrance, fun. Beers are good all around, nothing crazy but reliable which is nice. Service is attentive and helpful, no flights or small pours so choose wisely before committing. The selection is honestly unexpectedly great, variety of styles including N/A options, many taps, and there is non-beer for those heathers who are into that too. Will be back next time getting tacos in pilsen

Stopped in here after a quick bus trip west from Lo Rez. The place could not be more different physically: a small, tight space, heavier woods, those damn Edison bulb lights (HGTV ruined these for me, I swear), a slab concrete bar, and longer tabled seating inside in front of the bar and some patio seating out front. Place was pretty busy at the time, but I got a seat at the relatively small bar. Kinda loud inside, but nothing too major. Menu-by-way-of-wooden slats above the bar displayed a couple dozen offerings, but, to my chagrin, most were actually out, no notation as to which. I'm sure this is not a common occurrence, but it's something that rankles me a bit these days. The handful I was able to procure were pretty solid, including a Czech dark and an Italian pils, so it's good to see that things have improved since emerge's visit a while back. Staff were all friendly, seemed to know the suds, but I didn't interact much with them (it was busy, after all). Food smelled good, but I did not partake. Pricing seemed about on par with the City these days. Overall, an interesting source of suds for the area, a place I need to drop into again to see if things actually are on tap (as well as to, y'know, try them).

 

2022: Tried and failed to give them a second chance. Went in at 9pm on a Friday, stood at the bar for 5 minutes. Some guy comes up, not even the bartender, and tells me last call already happened, despite their hours listed as 12am on their website and elsewhere. Said no to-go beer either, so I left. Not planning to return, I was looking forward to their various lagers too. Lo Rez got my money down the street instead.

2018:
Wandering through Pilsen during Día de Muertos is trippy. Alulu was one of the few open businesses in the area, save for El Milagro around the corner. They stay open until midnight during the week, which seems pretty late. The area was pretty deserted, aside from 18th Street.

Entrance is through a narrow side gangway, well lit with hanging lights. There's a roll-up garage door in front and a patio for warmer weather. It's a narrow, small space with the brewing system upstairs, along with additional seating. The actual bar only sat 6-8. The decor was pleasant, lots of reclaimed wood and edison bulbs, heavy wooden tables.

Service at the bar was timely and friendly, it was slow so they were able to chat.
The brewer was also at the bar, and offered a sample of an upcoming NE-style DIPA that was very good. I mentioned that the Marzen was oddly cloudy and he was quick to switch the keg for a fresh sample.

The beer was all over the place. There were nearly 30 house drafts, which sounds good in theory but was a little maddening, since they all had nonsensical names. Highlights were the NE-style DIPA sample, a DDH IPA, and a dark ale on nitro. The Brett APA was basically undrinkable, with a solvent-like taste. Peach saison was similarly astringent and jarring, the porter had a little diacetyl. The brewer I met was recently hired, and said he planned to change things up a bit, which hopefully improves the beers. His NE-style DIPA sample was a good sign of things to come.

Overall it was a little hit and miss, but if you haven't been it's worth checking out if touring through Pilsen. Not really worth a special trip though. Easy to make a day of it, with many nearby attractions in the neighborhood. For local food and beer, I highly recommend Carnitas Uruapan or Don Pedro, El Taco Azteca, El Milagro, La Chaparrita, and for beer stores, Moreno's and Evans St. Brewery-wise, Marz and Lo-Rez are my other go-to's for the surrounding area.

Brewery #200

Food was great, would like to see more beer selection, good service.