My husband and I choose Café Brauer as the site for our summer wedding and the venue and staff were great! We fell in love with Café Brauer the first time we saw it, it had a beautiful vintage feel and had the indoor/outdoor options we were looking for. We used the South Loggia for our ceremony. It was a perfect space because it was open air but covered to offer shade. The space on the North Loggia for cocktail hour was stunning as it offered a beautiful view of the city. My husband and I both love the Chicago skyline and the North Loggia captured what we love about the city! Café Brauer is pricey, but it was well worth it. Our guests continually complimented the space and truly enjoyed spending the evening there. Unfortunately, because the building is older, the air conditioning is the greatest (especially on a hot summer night) - but we were too busy dancing to worry about that. Additionally when we were at Café Brauer the elevator was out of service. We had several guests that really needed the elevator, but with the help of some staff they were able to get up the stairs and make it to the wedding. I really enjoyed working with Jennifer at Café Brauer. We had several contacts at Café Brauer over the course of our planning, but they all made sure we were taken care of. Jennifer was enthusiastic and very easy to work with. I would highly recommend Café Brauer for people looking for a beautiful, vintage space with indoor and outdoor options. read more

We had our wedding here in June and it was absolutely spectacular. As city dwellers that love nature, we wanted a reception venue that was in our city yet had an outdoorsy feel. Cafe Brauer delivered. It sits on a pretty pond in Lincoln Park Zoo. Our guests enjoyed the terraces during the cocktail reception with the magnificent views of the city skyline. It was breathtaking! As the sun set and the interior lit up, the impressive architecture of the building itself was highlighted. Everyone was blown away by the beauty. We had about 230 guests with a dance floor and live band (read: large stage that took up precious floor space). It can be done! A few tables were removed as the dancing got started, but that was no interruption at all - no one even noticed. The tables and chairs are provided with the venue rental as long as you don't mind the wooden folding chairs (we didn't have a single complaint, they were comfortable). Also, Cafe Brauer provides the alcohol with no exceptions, so make sure you can work the pricey liquor into your budget. For the rest of the event details, they have a list of preferred vendors, but if you are determined to go with someone else, they will accommodate. Overall, it was truly a magical place to have a special event. I absolutely recommend it. read more

Cafe Brauer at LPZ is the place to be. Why am I just finding out about this hidden gem...NOW?! So they have a fantastic patio space on the boardwalk overlooking the pond. This place is not just for events. This is a summer bar, hang out patio. This place is the place to go for socialization. This place is to go for drinks with friends new and old. This place is the place to go for appetizers and even main food dishes. They have a menu, specialty drinks, Goose Island Beers on draft (one is especially made JUST for the zoo), and bottled beers too (even Three Floyds and Two Brothers). Service is fantastic! Staff is friendly and knowledgeable. They let you relax on the patio and do not rush you out. The patio has a roof that is retractable but they leave it open. You have more than enough breeze that comes through the open area. The roof is a nice shade from the blazing sun too. Music playing the background is simply that, a nice background. It does not interfere during conversations and it is nice when the conversation has died down. The drinks here are awesome. They can make margaritas, various flavored mojitos, vodka lemonades, and martinis. They are all tremendously good. YUM! So go enjoy a day at the zoo and follow it up with a visit to this Cafe. It is open until 9/10pm You will find me here enjoying my summer free time because this is my new favorite spot!!! Bike parking north and south of the Cafe. read more

Good food. Even better location. This is a favorite summertime destination. When the weather is nice its great to sit by the pond at the Lincoln Park zoo and enjoy a leisurely lunch. read more

With it's almost storybook-like location between the duck pond by the Children's Petting Zoo and the Lincoln Park Zoo, this cafe is a fine place to hang out and enjoy an ice cream cone or a hot dog, if you can eat such things. However, it rarely seems to be open. read more

Cafe Brauer - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

I ate there last weekend, and staff were terribly rude. The food was bland and basic. I don't think I'll be eating there again anytime soon.

It's a lovely venue in the park. The upstairs is a big open space surrounded with big windows. It was a bit chilly, a first childish day with those windows will do that. But not in terms of temperature, the room feels very warm, due to all the wood. The staff is excellent. read more

Go for the location only and you won't be disappointed. Would be 1000% better if they turned off the generic pop music and let you listen to the birds and enjoy the natural ambiance. read more

This place used to be decent. Fun atmosphere and live music and decent menu. Covid has served up plastic silverware, paper plates and sad menu and service now. Won't be back. read more

Sometimes used as for receptions for weddings because of it's location. It's right next to the south pond at L.P.Zoo. It's open in warm months to the public and serves dogs, pizza, snacks and even beer. Definetly a nice relaxing spot to enjoy the geese as they fly by and watch the paddleboats on the pond. read more

Cafe Brauer - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

My friend booked a reservation here for 7:30 pm the other night for 8 people. I was first to arrive at 715p and the table was all set and ready to go. A waiter came by with menus and took my drink order. Three more guests arrived but our host was yet to arrive. Then it was 7:50 and the kitchen closes as 8p. The wait staff brought this to our attention which was great. We gave them our food & drink order. Host arrived. Then shortly after 8p 2 more guests showed up (over 30 minutes late). We told them the kitchen already closed but then our waiter appeared with menus and they were able to order food and drink. The food served was warm. I had the fried chicken sandwich which was really good and upgraded to Parmesan fries (not worth the $2 upcharge). I also tried the fried calamari and a bite of the Patio Burger and both were tasty. I agree with that the food is overpriced but the scenery makes up for it. The staff let us hang out until after 9p and they never asked us to leave. All in all I had a pleasant evening at The Patio at Cafe Brauer! Since this place gets some negative reviews for the staff I feel that I should give them a compliment! 4 stars service 2-3 stars food quality & price 5 stars for venue 1 star parking read more

My wife and I had our wedding reception here in August and it is one of the most beautiful places to have a wedding. Yes, you have to work within their "preferred" vendor list which was incredibly disappointing, but that is mostly because my wife had very specific ideas of what she wanted and some of those vendors (mostly food) were not exactly up to the task. That being said, Brauer was willing to allow us to use an outside vendor for an exorbitant fee (Lets put it this way - high four digits). That being said - the wedding was perfect. The spaces is beautiful and my wife was happy, which is all that really matters. read more

See all

Sat there for 15 minutes, called upon several waiters and was ignored by all of them. So we left. One of the waitresses was eating lunch at the tables. Snooty and weird. And overpriced. If you're hungry or thirsty in Lincoln Park, I suggest walking a block or two back to Old Town to the billion great restaurants there instead of throwing away your time waiting at this place. read more

I attended a wedding reception on Halloween at Cafe Brauer. The building is beautiful with arts & crafts style tiles on the walls. The couple may have rented table linens and other accents. Even if they had, it only accentuated the facility. The appetizers & main course were amazing, the event may have been catered. I would have to agree with some of the other reviews; the bathrooms lack luster. In fact, the bathroom/plumbing system backed up in both bathrooms after only a couple hours into the event. The staff was quick to cleanup and maintain the bathrooms throughout the night. I would recommend this facility, but I would ask about the bathrooms and maybe add your own touches to the bathrooms, if you are worried about their institutional appearance. read more

Over priced mediocre food with terrible service. Went in for a burger after a bike ride and ended up not getting one. After I got seated I ordered a drink and was told they'd be right back with a food menu. Ten minutes later they finally arrived with my sangria and the menu. I waited for about 35 minutes for someone to take my order before I ended up just leaving cash for my drink and leaving. Not sure why it was taking so long, especially considering there were only 3 other tables and plenty of staff. Needless to say, I won't be going back. read more

Great location friendly waiters

We came here for bfast today with the dog. They are very accomodating, bringing a water bowl (which got flipped over in short order) and a small treat. It's a great calm venue for any meal, but i've only been here for bfast. The service is wonderful, and the food is great. read more

I was looking up various events going on this week in Chicago, and found Locally Sourced. It ended up being smaller than the website gave off, but at Cafe Brauer they had local artists, a very small farmer's market that consisted of a few boxes of kale for sale, and a magnificent jazz trio. We had a drink and listened to the music and then ordered food. They have a good selection of beers and I ordered the mushroom pizza. It was a little salty, but delicious. The fries were also amazing. They tasted more like baked fries than greasy and oily french fries. The weather wasn't terrific, it started raining in the middle of dinner. But it didn't matter because we were under a huge tent and had heat lamps around us. What a beautiful space to visit. read more

For $32 we got two large drinks, two sandwiches, and two fries. Not kidding. But on the bright side we loved looking up close at the architecture from 1908 which is an excellent example of Prairie School (I think of Frank Lloyd Wright but this was by Dwight Perkins). My wife and I thought about it for a while and decided this place was more like paying the prices from a movie concession stand, perhaps to provide some support to the zoo, which does not charge any admission fees. The views are amazing, I enjoyed my rueben sandwich, and when we come back I really want to get into the second floor to see the great room that is so famous for parties and banquets. Be aware there is only one bathroom to share for men and women (there was a line that kept getting longer while we were eating) and with good weather it is a pretty good bet you will be surrounded by tourists and large crowds. read more

Brunch was so delicious that I forgot to check in! Cafe Brauer is located in the old boat house at Lincoln Park Zoo. It is comfortable and you cannot beat the view of downtown Chicago. It is great for meeting friends, family or a date. They are dog friendly and there were many - huge, small and in between. All the dogs were very well behaved. Guess they knew they might get table treats if they were good! The menu has something for everyone. One in our party got Eggs Benedict and raved about it. The hollandaise sauce " had a kick" to it. Lemon. There was a generous amount of shaved ham in the dish. The stuffed French toast was pronounced delicious! It looked scrumptious and there was plenty of fresh berries on it, too. The Patio Breakfast-eggs, flavorful soft and crispy hash browns, toast and ham, bacon or sausage was cooked exactly to our liking. Sitting by the pond of water was delightful. The plants and flowers were beautiful to look at and seeing the panoramic view of downtown was a wonderful bonus. The efficient and polite waiter was very quick to bring our check. There were some empty tables but his message was clear. We did not rush and left when we were finished our coffee...maybe 10 minutes later. Will have to come back for dinner! read more

On Sunday August 4th @ 9:00am I dined here for breakfast. I dined as a single and sat at a table set for 4 with one seat missing. Turns out the 5th seat was being used for an adjacent table of 5. That was 3 humans and two dogs sitting on chairs at the table while their human companions fed them from their plates over the table...The group left while I was eating and the staff cleared their table and slid one of the dog's chairs back to my table. All this mind you without cleaning anything. Another management failure hear which is a shame, this is one of the nicest locations to eat in the city...Avoid PS the health department has been notified. read more

I met a friend on the patio today (Saturday) in the afternoon. The noise level from the roof was deafening, we ordered a drink and left. There was a party on the roof, no distancing, no masks, and the noise (music) extended a couple of miles in either direction. We couldn't hear each other talk, had to shout to be heard, not a good thing during Covid season. I will avoid the place in the future. I assume the servers on the roof also work the patio. A perfect Covid spreading event up there. read more

Impeccable service with a great view of the city. We had a slight problem with our salads and both our server and the manager Benito went above and beyond to make our experience great. The turkey burger is handmade and excellent. read more

I just photographed a wedding at cafe brauer last Saturday and it was spectacular. Cafe Brauer has really good indoor and outdoor space. The space is at its best during daylight so lunch wedding receptions are popular as well as night time receptions. If you are looking to do a non church ceremony cafe brauer is one of the best locations to do so. It feels like you are outside but has all the luxuries of being indoors. One of my favorite spaces in the city! read more

My fiance and I recently looked at this place to have our reception. It was everything we wanted and the rep even said that if we did not like one of the "preferred" caterers, we could simply let her know what we had in mind. So after getting the ludacris price from several caterers, I found a more affordable one and so we presented them to Cafe Brauer. In her terrible attempt to explain away why we could not have the caterer of our choice, she claimed there was a lot of "political red tape" involved. We could not fathom just how politicized picking food for our wedding could possibly be. It became abundantly clear that their preferred list was not preferred at all but rather mandatory. We realized her little speech she gave us while touring was just a LIE. After we met with several of the caterers, they quoted us - get ready - well over $23,000 for food. Mind you this did not include even getting in the door to CB - who was also wanting to nickel and dime us. Thus, while it may be a gorgeous place to attend an event to - it certainly is over-priced and very much relegated to those who are willing to spend a fortune on "vendors". We opted out and let CB know very clearly that we were not willing to have impersonal vendors dictate the hows, whos and whats of our wedding day. My recommendation - don't spend your money there. read more

We had our wedding here in September 2012. The space itself is natural, clean, simple, and elegant. When it is set up with flowers, linen, candles etc. it provides a stunning setting for a wedding. I got lots of compliments on the space. If your budget allows, this will be a beautiful place to get married and have your reception However, couples should be aware of a few things that led to only 3 stars out of five. First, we were outright lied to by the young lady who took us on our site visit and explained the policies. After telling us point blank that only the catering was restricted to a preferred vendor list, we later found that most of our vendors would have to come from Brauer's list. When I got wind of this and emailed the venue to verify I could choose my own ceremony musicians, I was given a run-around. I asked if I could use another vendor, and if there was a fee for going off the list, what was it -- the answer was "you should use X vendor." When I asked via email for clarification on the overall vendor policy, fees, etc. I was asked to do a phone call. Could not help feeling that it was to avoid a written record of the discussion. I was told the photo booth had to go one place, then the booth vendor told me that he had set up in another (better) location just a few weeks prior. I felt I wasn't getting straight answers, one example of overall unclear and sometimes deceptive policy. You will be bound by a variety of rules and restrictions at this venue, because the building is old, but also because as an in-demand Lincoln Park venue they can be rigid and get away with it. The alcohol here is outrageous, and you will end up paying much more than you would at other venues, or if you were able to provide your own alcohol. We had to buy an entire extra case of champagne because they would not sell to us by the bottle for our toast. The bathrooms here are indeed ancient and not handicapped-friendly at all. They can be dressed up by your florist, but it's still like a restroom in a high school gym. Brides be aware that you will not have a real space in which to wait, freshen up. They allow you up into a balcony area, but you have to slump down in a chair to avoid being seen by guests entering on the main level. There are few parking options, other than paying a ton for valet. Bottom line, if you have a big budget and value ambiance, this is a great space for ceremony, reception, and amazing photos. But pay close attention to all the policies, and be very persistent in getting clarification if you plan to work with this venue. It was beautiful, but given the costs I would not book this venue if I planned the wedding over again. read more

Used to be a special place: great view of the city with pretty good food. Now it'a a zombie with no hand towels in the bathrooms, dirty floors and overpriced food (20 for a burger with fries for example). Funny thing is that our sever was a really nice guy. read more

4 1/2 stars (The only hit is for the limited vendor list) All you have to do is walk into Café Brauer to know you'd be hard pressed to find another venue as beautiful anywhere in this city. Add to this the beautiful views in the surrounding area, from the lily pond just nearby to the bridge overlooking the skyline, and you have a recipe for all the beautiful wedding photos you could ask for. There was never any question that this was where my wife and I would hold our reception. The rental on the venue is very reasonable for one of the premier locations in the city, but make sure you book your dates early--we were looking over a year ahead of time, and still ended up booking a Friday because all the Saturdays were taken. Carrie Woods, the manager, is incredibly helpful at guiding you through all the ins and outs of using the venue. There is, unfortunately, a limited vendor list, but Carrie was happy to work with us on all of our needs and give us recommendations for our budget and plans. If you're considering Café Brauer, I can't recommend it more. And if you want an idea of what a reception there can be like, just take a look at this, a timelapse we did of the day there: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mc2IUWv8RjU read more

Cafe Brauer is an event space located in Lincoln Park near the Zoo. It is a very nice building and you can rent it out for weddings, parties and events. I haven't been to an event here but I have checked it out when it was completely empty and I can see how it would be gorgeous once you get the tables and flowers etc inside. It has very high ceilings and two outdoor spaces where you can have cocktails or just enjoy the views of the pond and the park. The only problems I see with it are that the bathrooms are not the cleanest, and there is an odd smell to the place. Not a bad smell but it smells very old- which it is so I really can't hold that against it. read more

Our May wedding was so beautiful - our guests are still talking about how unique and wonderful the venue was. We got a great deal since we had a Sunday evening wedding early May. However, since there is no kitchen on site, you have to bring everything in, which is quite expensive in the end. read more

Cafe Brauer is stunning. If you have an event there, it will be beautiful and will have a magical air about. However, there's something major to keep in mind if you're planning to book an event there. Make sure to review the liquor prices and packages, which are NOT detailed in the contract. This sounds like a no brainer, but we stupidly assumed the prices would be comparable to other high-end and pricey venues in the city, which we'd investigated -- think 5-star Michigan Avenue hotels, museums, and galleries -- only to find alcohol 20%-40% more expensive. Because Cafe Brauer charges per person, by the hour -- not by the drink -- this can result in thousands of dollars difference in what you're budgeting. They admit the prices are equivalent to restaurant prices b/c of the nonprofit status; it's how they make money. We discovered this after the contract was signed and felt that it should have been spelled out. We found out that they were indeed supposed to review pricing with us prior to signing the contact and that it was an oversight. After a discussion -- we were actually considering losing our deposit and going somewhere else -- we did get to adjust the bar package closer to our liking in terms of type of alcohol, as a concession. It wasn't perfect but it made us feel better so we could continue with wedding plans. One other note: they have a comparably extensive list of approved vendors, but they are all in the upper price bracket, so just be prepared to work in that range. We were, so it was OK, but I can imagine it could be frustrating for some people. We loved having our wedding there but regretted the alcohol pricing situation. Just know what you're getting into and you'll be fine. read more

Crap valet staff and security.. wouldn't let my pregnant wife in to pee picking up a relative from the venue

Looking for event spaces for my upcoming wedding, I was so excited to go see Cafe Brauer. I knew I did not want to be in a hotel ballroom and I love the aesthetic and charm of the building--I thought we might have a winner! Not so. Even my so-not-picky fiance said "absolutely not" as we exited the building. Why? --the entire place reeked like a just-cleaned high school gym. We were there as they were setting up for an event, it was not off hours. -the bathroom were disgusting -the elevator was disgusting -the attitude of the coordinators was pretty unhelpful. They have very little ability (or maybe it's just desire) to work with you; the answers to many of our more basic questions were a very crisp "nope." -everything was extra. everything. including use of the gorgeous outdoor space (half the reason I was excited about the venue in the first place). So, there's my feedback. Not for us! Facilities were so not worth the price, despite the truly gorgeous main room. Furthermore, if we're getting an attitude-y vibe form the coordinators when they're supposed to be selling us on the space, I'm afraid what would happen when a problem arises 8 months down the line. We're going with The Ivy Room. read more

The service is fast and friendly. The food is very good and the views of downtown are great.

Service was exceptionally poor and food is overpriced. Never left less than a 10% tip before but left nothing today! I have to attribute this to the apparent mismanagement of the business. read more

My friend had a small,intimate wedding at Cafe Brauer last year and it was absolutely beautiful. It was the perfect spot for a smaller sized wedding and it really is in an ideal locataion. The food was very good as well! read more

The nicest gymnasium you'll ever have an event in. Cafe Brauer is ideally located in Lincoln Park, from the nearby bridge spanning the Lincoln Park Zoo pond there are great views of the city. The short comings of this 'hall' are that 1. awful acoustics (unless you enjoy echo chambers), I've discussed with the management that for less than $10,000 with some strategically placed acoustic panels, the acoustics would be greatly improved, but since the space is usually booked up every weekend anyway why should they waste the money. 2. The light in this space is great,...until it gets dark, again a couple of well placed lights in the iron work would improve the ambiance (after dark) 10 fold. 3. Valet parking only, gets expensive for the host or guest. Good luck tryng to find a spot in summer, and why hold a wedding here in winter? Finally it's very limited for handicapped accessibility. read more

Brauer: There's no doubt, Café Brauer is a very special place for a Chicago wedding. We had our ceremony and reception there... we loved how intimate and romantic it was, but we also loved how everyone could just immediately get up and go out to the loggia for cocktail hour. No several hour gap between the ceremony and reception. All the reviews below are all pretty much spot on... But a couple additional things that stick out to me: 1. We were on a budget. So, we went with a Friday in April wedding, which cut the price in half. It's also tax deductible. Don't be afraid of a Friday, wedding. They're great and don't take up your guests' entire weekend! 2. Great venue for those couples who are workaholics like us and don't have the time to plan a wedding. They have a preferred vendor list for all areas, which I appreciated since I didn't have to wade through the hundreds of vendors online. Work with those vendors and stick to your budget and you can make Brauer work. Carrie was great and helped guide us through the process and vendors. 3. Because of the vendor list provided, we saved $4K by not hiring a wedding planner. 4. I can't say enough about the space and the loggia for cocktail hour. So intimate and unique! We loved being in the park. 5. One thing to keep in mind - if you have a ceremony there, you cannot do a rehearsal for the ceremony there. We just did it where we had our rehearsal dinner. This is the only reason for the 4 stars instead of 5. read more

We loved this venue for our winter wedding. The zoo lights were the perfect touch to a dark winter night. We had our ceremony on the south logia, cocktail hour on the north logia, and our reception was in the great hall. Everything was perfect--heated well and beautifully lit. It is dark, but you just need to bring in lighting! read more

Not impressed. The waitress was very frazzled, didn't know they menu, and was confused by our orders (which were relatively simple). The food was fine, nothing to complain about, but nothing to rave about either. Everything seemed like it was from the store, not cooked in the kitchen. read more