Chicago Visit

binnys south loop and local option and half acres

 

With Binny's, you can order online, but you can not pay until you pick up your order.

 

With some search you'll find what you are looking for.

I am not from the city but there are quite a few links I'm sure someone can post that will help you find you way.

There are some incredible bars in the city. Fountainhead, Hopleaf, Map Room, Bangers & Lace, Local Option... The list goes on. These are bars you can't go wrong with. Not to mention the brewpubs, tap rooms and such to visit. It's a great town to visit for a week.

 

The problem is that most of the best beer bars in Chicago are not going to be walking distance from the loop, where I am assuming your hotel will be located. For something close to the Loop/Michigan Ave. stuff, Jake Melnick's is a decent option but not the best beer bar in the city. If you ask me, spend the $10 and take a cab up to Local Option.

 

Where did he say he'll be staying in the loop?

If you do some research, on where these places that people are naming are located, you'll see most of the good bars are north of downtown. Hopleaf, Local Option, GI Clybourn, Beer Temple are all north.
And it's not like L.A. or something where you literally have to take a cab/car everywhere, the farthest you'll be walking to a bar from downtown is maybe at most 4 miles, to me that is not unreasonable.

Hot Dougs is a quarter mile from beer temple, ftr.

 

Try for a room at Longman & Eagle. They're probably booked, but maybe something will open up. If you're fine with no frills, consider Holiday Jones in Wicker Park. Both are Blue line adjacent and well situated for a host of beer stops.

 

Most of the good beer bars are spread around the local neighborhoods to the the north of the Loop and River North areas where u will find most of the hotels. Id recommend getting to know the el (train) very well. tons within walking distance of the el stops.

 

as lame as it is, the crappy days inn/holiday inn in lincoln park at clark/diversey/broadway serves as a nice spoke to chicago beer. Walking distance to dry hop, goose, local option and northdown. A short bus west to revolution tap room or brewpub & map room. A train/bus to the north to half acre and hopleaf. There's tons of other stuff too but public transportation is great, its safe and you can get anywhere you want to go to drink beer. And as an added bonus if you stay at that terrible hotel in the unfun part of town, its where Kurt first had relations with courtney, so you can tell your friends.

 

Instead of a hotel, have you considered a bed and breakfast or someone's apartment through airbnb? That can put right in a neighborhood of your choice instead of downtown.

Don't be scared of the CTA though. As mentioned before, lots of places are a less than a 10 min walk from the train (Revolution Brew Pub, Revolution Tap Room, Map Room, Small Bar Division, Goose Island Clybourn or Wrigley, Local Option, Small Bar Logan Square, Longman and Eagle, Emporium, I could go on and on)

If I was coming to Chicago, here's where I would personally focus my time (in order of preference):
Bars:
Hopleaf
Local Option
Map Room
Honorable mention: Small Bar (both locations), Fountainhead, Bad Apple, Bangers & Lace, Fat Pour (kinda douchey but lots of beer), Rocking Horse, High Dive, Quencher's

Breweries/Brewpubs:
Revolution
Goose Island Clybourn
Half Acre
Haymarket
Dry Hop

Stores:
Binny's Lincoln Park
Beer Temple

 

There's a good list of solid bar suggestions here. Don't forget that you can get a cheap subway pass and pretty much get anywhere in the city really easily. Definitely do that instead of paying cab fares. Save your money for the beer. I also advise getting a hotel room is Wrigleyville, if possible. You'll be right in the heart of all the good beer action.

My personal favorite is Local Option. It's a little bit of a walk from the subway stop, but it's worth it.
Hop Leaf has amazing food and beer, but it's pretty remote. It's probably a mile or more walk from the closest subway stop. Though if you want good food, that place is a gem.
Sheffield's is also one of the best beer bars in the city.

If you want an interesting experience, check out Delilah's. It's a punk rock scotch bar, so it's dark and grungy, but that's what makes it awesome. They have plenty of beer, but if you want to see what a $1000 bottle of scotch tastes like, this is the place.

 

lol Local Option is 3 blocks from the armitage stop on the red line. not a bad walk at all.

 

Armitage isn't a stop on the red line. You have to go one further north to Fullerton. It's something around a 5 minute walk. I did say "little bit" though.

 

For a pub/bottleshop/brewery crawl area in Chicago, I'd suggest Andersonville/Lincoln Square:

http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/chicago-over-springbreak.156421/#post-2204422

The problem is, there are no hotels in the neighborhood. You either use AirBNB to find a room/house in the area, or use cabs/public transport form the loop. I'd suggest the former.

Cheers!

 

Brown line stop is what I meant. Also going to Fullerton it's the same distance from both stops.

 

Sure okay, my point still stands though. It's about a half mile walk from either stop.
To some people that are already drunk, that could be a concern.

 

If you can't walk 5-6 blocks drunk or sober, don't even bother leaving your house.

 

I went to DePaul. Drunk plenty of times. Never a concern.

 

Cool story... Then obviously you didn't need to worry about catching the train after 3am, or ever.

Not sure why you keep tip-toeing around the point here...