2019 Visiting Chicagoland Resource Thread

Hi all. I'll be coming into Chicago Sunday 9/22. Can you recommend some suggestions for a sports bar with good beer selection to watch some football? Have to catch my Jets playing the Pats that day.

 

Do you know (roughly) what part of town you'll be staying in?

 

Sorry that would help-staying in the "New East Side" area.

 

I have never heard it called that, but google maps believes you.

I guess I’d say timothy o’tooles?

 

Yeah, I was pretty sure you were incorrect...but google says it exists!!

Jake Melnick's isn't too far, they usually have good stuff on draft.

 

When the f did the East Loop become the New East Side?

Take the Riverwalk down to Lasalle St then walk over to Monks Pub....

 

LOL, I've only been to Chicago once but yes was going by Google Maps, thanks all!

 

I went to Cruz Blanca on Sunday and DO NOT GO THERE. THE BEER IS GROSS AND THE FOOD IS AWFUL. Especially the barrel aged beer...don’t be fooled at how easy it is to obtain. It’s awful and horrible and definitely not super underrated and tasty as hell.

 

Monks is closed on Sundays..... so maybe Timothy O'Tooles or make the short walk to Rock Bottom.

 

The Night Chicago Died....



(and Paper Lace lied)

 

An AFC East matchup? *yawns*

Haha, jk. For sports viewing, I'd recommend getting out of the downtown Loop area (which includes New East Side) and heading out to one of the north-side neighborhoods like Wicker Park, Lincoln Park, or Wrigleyville. Those areas will be more fun & have clusters of bars, many of which support various non-Chicago teams.

My go-to sports bar in terms of beer list & TV setup is hands-down Fatpour Wicker Park (I prefer the upstairs), and I don't even live in the neighborhood. There is a new Fatpour McCormick location by Soldier Field that I haven't been to. However, their current taplist doesn't look as good as Wicker Park atm, and they're both about equidistant from New East Side. Hopsmith Tavern in the Gold Coast neighborhood is owned by same group (I've never been). They all use beermenus.com for taplists.

Sheffield's in Wrigleyville is a decent sports bar (as are most bars in Wville) with an extensive taplist. The StL Cardinals will be in town battling the Cubs for the Central Division crown, so Wville will be popping. Should be a super fun atmosphere.

A quick google search shows Country Club (Wrigleyville) & Butch McGuire's (Gold Coast) are both "Jets bars." Country Club appears to be the official one & specifies games w sound:
https://www.thecountryclubchicago.com/jets/

Country Club is near Sheffield's, while Butch McGuire's is near Hopsmith, if you wanted to watch your game with sound, and then catch the 2nd wave of NFL games at a different place with good craft beer lists. Both Jets bars appear to have Three Floyd's & Maplewood draft options in addition to Chicago staples like Revolution Anti-Hero or Half Acre Daisy Cutter. (May want to call Butch McGuire's to verify they're still a Jets bar).

And you don't have to worry about getting beat up for wearing an out-of-state jersey around town like you might out there on the East Coast lol. You can feel free to rock your Mean Green colors with pride! Joking aside, I'd say people are pretty friendly to opposing fans in this city.

In the West Loop (directly west of New East Side), Haymarket brewpub has good sports viewing (I prefer back bar). Green Street Local has a nice tv setup & plenty of craft options. Ballast Point Brewing's Chicago location has quite a few TV's, seems it'd be a pretty decent spot for catching games, & has 40+ Ballast Point beers on tap. There are tons of sports bars on Madison St (not far from United Center) such as Crossroads, Third Rail, & many more. Not all have extensive beer lists, but you're gonna find craft beer at almost all places.

As previously suggested, Jake Melnick's in River North (north of Near East Side) has decent taplist, lots of tv's, and some of the best wings in the city. FYI- Jake Melnick's is 0.6mi south of Hopsmith & Butch McGuire's. Timothy O'Toole's Pub is another option, which is a little closer to New East Side. If you're trying to stay in actual Near East Side, you could try Sweetwater Tavern & Grille. Super nice place, but I prefer a more laid back spot for my sports viewing.

Use Untappd or beermenus.com to check taplists beforehand to help you make your decision, especially if particular beers available is important to you.

And if you'd like more options to ponder, check out:
https://chicago.eater.com/maps/best-bars-football-chicago-nfl-ncaa-college

Also, sports bars were discussed in last year's "Visiting Chicagoland" thread:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/commun...hread-autumn-winter-2018.586964/#post-6164460
Update: Derby (mentioned in my post) has since closed; while Fatpour Wicker Park switched from Wisconsin (mentioned in a prior post) to a Michigan bar starting this 2019 football season.

Be sure to report back, and have a nice trip, cheers!

 

@dscott421 Watching the Kentucky-Florida game right now, and have to say you guys look pretty good- def not just a one-year-wonder team last year. Great game so far, pulling for you guys. Anyway, after being refreshed on the sports bar discussion from last year's thread, I was reminded how you took some (friendly) shit for being a Kentucky football fan. Well, you guys went on to have a great year, making the Top 10 at one point, & beating Penn St in your bowl game. So, how you like them apples lol. Thought of that irony a few times last year haha... If you recall, what bars you end up hitting while in town? Try any noteworthy beers?

Man, this game is going down to the wire, good luck!

 

I appreciate all of that info, thank you! At this point, I do NOT want to watch that Jets/Pats Game!

 

Ahhh that Florida game and the two games since.... yuck. Our QB going down took the wind out the cats sails and I’m afraid that this year will be a wasted year. Oh well, we got our one good year!

We ended up staying right beside forbidden root and that was our go to. Grabbed a few pours of BA pipeworks around the city, always great IMO. Chicago has a great scene and it’s always a pleasure visiting.

 

Any beers of note I might want to look for while in town to [straightens tie, raises eyebrow] pick up my second-straight Henna win. Recent releases, no style preference. I'll probably be dipping into Chicago-proper for a Small Cheval burger, so anything near the Parks Villa or Wicker would be ideal.

 

If you can find Imperial Coconut Jones Dog from Pipeworks, it's well worth it.

 

Thanks to y'all for putting this thread together-- it's great. We really should have something like this for DC.

I'll be in town next week for a conference, staying downtown and then in Wrigleyville. Two questions:

1. Any wet hop beers to look out for?
2. Are Pipeworks beers available on draft much? Not really seeing them on tap lists...