Stopped by Castaways Beach Club for the first time today after spending some time out on North Avenue Beach. Overall, had a pretty solid experience. We headed upstairs and were seated right away, which was great especially since we were able to grab a shaded table on a sunny afternoon. The service was friendly and fast, which made the whole visit super smooth. Like most beachside spots, prices are definitely on the higher side. Mixed drinks were around $15, beers about $10, and apps/entrees in the $20 range. Not surprising for the location, but something to keep in mind. That said, we decided to go for the frozen espresso martinis, and they totally hit the spot. I already love espresso martinis, and the frozen version is perfect for a hot beach day. Since we weren't trying to do a full meal, we split the chips and guac for $15 and honestly, it was a great value. Huge portion of guac, tons of chips, plus a side of salsa and even some fried plantains, which was a nice surprise. Even with the beach-inflated prices, I'd say the vibe, service, and drinks made it worth it. Would definitely come back to Castaways the next time I'm at North Ave Beach and want a fun spot to relax with some drinks and light bites. read more

Castaways Beach Club - Frozen Espresso Martini - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Went here for lunch and was quite excited to try this place! We get there and there are some stairs you have take to get up to the main level. One of the people in my party is on the heavier side, not obese but overweight. So obviously, she was a little out of breath from walking up, we all were. The manager looks at her and says "you know next time you can take the elevator we have". Just completely rude especially to a paying customer. Food and drinks are way overpriced for what you get. Would not recommend going here!!! read more

Food was decent because of the view. Prices are pricey but there's an exceptional view that makes it worth it. Seating is limited during dinner hours so you might need to wait a bit like we did. Drinks are delicious and fun. There's an elevator if you need it that's not for everyone to use unless necessary. Waitstaff minus 1 star. It's a hit or miss and obviously ours was a miss this time. Probably cause we came with a young child and not everyone likes kids. Still. You should try them if you're hungry for more than hotdogs and burgers. read more

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We were party of 4 on a Monday afternoon. Amazing beach front location with plenty of beach facing seats with shade. We ordered the Carne Asada fries, salmon ceviche, fish tacos and the buffalo bites. The fish Tacos and the buffalo bites were the best, followed by the carne asada and Salmon Ceviche. Service was prompt and excellent. read more

Castaways Beach Club - Buffalo bites, salmon ceviche, fish tacos, carne asada fries. - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

If you're looking for that Lake Michigan meets spring break energy, Castaways is the spot. Perched right on North Avenue Beach, it's part beach bar, part people-watching goldmine, and all summer vibes. I came with friends on a sunny Saturday and we scored a great table overlooking the sand and skyline. The drinks are classic and strong--yes, they're a little pricey, but hey, you're paying for the experience. We shared a few apps--wings, nachos, and fries--all solid for beach bar food. The music was bumping, the servers were super sweet (and somehow calm amid the chaos), and the crowd was giving "beach day meets day party." Is it a little chaotic? Absolutely. But that's the charm. Come here for a no-stress, high-energy day with your friends. Just don't wear heels (you will regret it), and bring your best sunglasses--this place was made for photos. read more

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Castaways is has undergone QUICK the renovation. I did not even recognize it when my friends and I went this summer! Food and drinks are definitely solid. The pricing is insane, but it's on North Avenue Beach, so you get what you pay for due to location. Definitely a fun atmosphere in the summer! read more

Castaways Beach Club - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The atmosphere was nice but drinks are insanely overpriced. 12 bucks for a can of beer. That's Cubs Stadium prices. Also the hours are whack , two different times I showed up and they were closed when website said they were open. Cycle down to cafe Oliva for better food, drinks, and atmosphere read more

Though on the pricier side, the portions, service and quality of food are all pretty great for a beachside bar. We enjoyed the lovely views and shared a big tasty nachos appetizer, which had lots of great toppings. I also got a refreshing mule cocktail. The Asian chicken salad was also huge and really tasty. My friends' Ceasar wrap and buffalo chicken salad were both very good too. read more

Castaways Beach Club - Nachos - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Did a two hour cabana here over Fourth of July weekend, highly recommend for any large groups! The deal is it is a food and beverage minimum based on the time you book, we did a weekend so it was $800+ tax and tip. You have to do at least one bottle, and then there is a bottle service menu with buckets and large format drinks + a cabana food menu you can order off of. You can order individual drinks or food items but I don't think they count towards the minimum. We had 13 people and ended up spending about $1200 total and it was absolutely worth it for under $100 per person. It was a little slow to get food and drink flowing to us but they let us extend an extra half an hour so no complaints there. Our waitress was so attentive, she stayed on top of making sure we had enough food and drinks and clearing space on our table. Also shout out to the bussers / other staff who helped bring stuff out and clear stuff away! Everyone was joking around and just seemed like really pleasant people. The cornhole and giant jenga were fun. But the absolute best part was the misters above the cabanas, such a life saver on a hot day. The dj was fun, played a good mix of songs to sing along to and bouncy beach music. As long as you have 8-10 people at least it is absolutely worth it for the cost, plus you are right there on the beach for after you finish up! read more

Constant loud bass from events that last for 6 hours at a time and can be heard from long distances. It is disruptive to neighbors.

Cool location on the beach, but the restaurant itself is no good. Food was equivalent to a mediocre school lunch and not priced wonderfully. Service was poor. We had to get our own waters from a self serve spigot and were only checked on in an effort to clear our food before we were even close to finished. Bathrooms are the disgusting ones open to the public on the beach, so being a customer gets you no benefit. It's a food source if you're dying, but just about anything else will be better. read more

Honestly the view and the outdoor seating area was the only thing good about this place... food was very overpriced, which is ok if it was but, but it was terrible. You are paying for the view. Fries weren't crunchy. Burger was bland. Chicken was dry. Our appetizer never came out. We saw our waiter once after he took our order after having to wave him down for a while to get another drink. I couldn't even get a side of ranch cause i couldn't find any workers for a while. read more

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I recently ate at the rooftop restaurant at Castaways and had a fantastic experience. We ordered the elote fries and the loaded nachos with chicken--both were delicious and perfect for sharing. Our summertime frozen drinks, a piña colada for me and a spicy mango margarita for my partner, were excellent and refreshing. The sunset views over the beach were absolutely stunning, and we loved relaxing afterward in the lawn area with comfy chairs and a full bar. The service was friendly and it's great to have this option in North Ave., Beach and we will definitely be back. read more

Castaways Beach Club - Piña colada - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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First let me say that I love that it is directly off the lake front! The music is a vibe, and the view of the city is soooo pretty! I went on a Wednesday evening so I got to see the Navy Pier fireworks from where I sat down! The food was actually pretty good, I ordered Tuna Tartare and chicken tenders. I also had a strawberry daiquiri which was pretty good as well. Despite other reviews service, I had great service and it was my server's first day working there and she did a great job! I will definitely return! read more

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Castaway is a must visit during summers. They so much seating, that you literally would never need a reservation except for the air and water show. They have recently renovated the place and I really liked the renovations. The food menu is limited but not too bad. They have a decent array of seltzers, beers and cocktails. The view, however, is unbeatable. You have a great view of the north Avenue beach and the Chicago skyline. My only complain is the service. Hire less cranky servers maybe? read more

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My boyfriend and I went at about 8:45, they close at 10. We ordered two lemonades, the Bavarian crème donut, peanut butter brownie sundae. It took about 20 minutes to get the lemonades. It took another 20 to get two desserts, one of which was extremely simple. The donut was good, however, they got the sundae wrong and brought the wrong dessert. Once it finally arrived, it wasn't great. No chocolate in the "brownie." It was like a slab of baked peanut butter served with grocery store ice cream. They also didn't bring forks, knives, or napkins, so that a server had to be tracked down to ask for these things. You would think that close to closing they would be rushing things a bit more but they sure took their time serving us. read more

To start off you are paying for the view and location. Went there to celebrate my birthday with some friends, and the host was very accommodating when I asked if we could have a different table for a better view of the fireworks. The drinks were good and came out quickly, expensive, but expected. I recommend getting the piña colada in the pineapple, it's nearly two drinks and it comes in a hollowed out pineapple. However the kitchen seemed to be very slow, my friend ordered the peanut butter brownie, and it took almost an hour to come. We had to ask the waitress multiple times about the food. Overall, go for drinks and the view. Perhaps eat somewhere else. read more

My group went on Thursday and it took me a few days to figure how to review Castaways because the entire experience was, for lack of a better term, just weird. Upon getting there, staff was confused about the reservation even though someone from their team had emailed me to confirm my guests names (no idea why?) and replied to me Thursday morning. The manager came out and was super nice and walked us over to our cabana but she also seemed confused to see that someone had a reservation for Thursday afternoon. There were some good things, the food and most drinks were really good! But even with a drink I tried to order, first staff was confused when I said the name of the drink, then when I showed them on the menu they said "oh yeah it's a new drink we just added, but great choice it's so good". Only to then 10 minutes later be told that they didn't have the drink because it was very popular and sold a lot the couple of days before? Lastly, this was probably a glitch in their system, but when I made the reservation it said $0 bottle service minimum. That was a big reason why I booked it instead of Shore Club. Only to immediately be brought a bottle service menu. When I brought it up to the manager, she said she could move us to a table instead if I didn't want to pay the $300 minimum. When we had already sat down, had food and drinks on the table, and we were literally the only people there lol. Our group had planned on having a nice day at a cabana so we decided to just pay the $300 so it would still make our celebration feel special. I should've taken a screenshot of the $0 minimum but I thought that was just the norm for a weekday night. All in all, the manager was nice and helpful, part of the reason I gave them 2 stars along with the food. Staff was nice overall, but just confused at times. We felt kinda rushed and more like it was an inconvenience to be in the cabana. Even though we were the only ones there the whole time. read more

The food and drinks have a unique and exciting beach twist to them. The view is beautiful. It is dog friendly. How (and perhaps it's due to the time of day I visited, or maybe someone just called off) there weren't many servers, so it took a while for someone to take my table's order. But making up for that, the drinks and food came out very quickly. Good to know: contactless and card payments o ly, cash is not accepted. read more

Castaways Beach Club - Cucumber and jicama salad. Marooned Mule. - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The service and views are nice but the food is overpriced and severely lacking. I had the fish tacos which were deep fried with very little fish, and served on flour tortillas with minimal to no accompaniments. It cost a pretty penny too. There is just no point in eating here - enjoy the beach and head somewhere else for food in my opinion. read more

The location, food, drinks, and views of the lake and skyline were awesome. Great place to watch the summer fireworks from the pier. I had a strawberry daiquiri, tuna tartare, and chicken fingers with waffle fries. Service was excellent and fast. I'd definitely return to enjoy the music, ambience, and summertime vibes. read more

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The food was great and the drinks were awesome. The dj was okay. Our group had a cabana for the day on a Saturday. We expected to be fuller but it was a little empty. If could be because Vollywood was happening. The servers were great though! read more

Castaways Beach Club - Cheese curds - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I actually went there for lunch yesterday, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the quality and portions definitely measured up to the higher prices you would expect to see in an area like this. Had a very relaxing lunch overlooking the beach, and the food was honestly great. Highly recommended. read more

The only thing this 3 million dollar renovation has going for it is the ambience and view. The service was fine after 20 minutes of waiting before our server arrived. The food was exceptionally disappointing. It felt/tasted/appeared very much prefabricated and basic. The drinks were fine, though with bottled wine and frozen drinks they also do not require much effort or skill. It was probably the most disappointing dining experience of my life. read more

This summer Castaways has become our regular spot after a day in North Ave beach. The staff is inviting the location ideal and the drinks and food are perfect. read more

Wasn't sure why this place even bothered to renovate, they basically just repainted the whole place and that's it. Just go here for the drinks and don't bother ordering food, they're mediocre at best. read more

Castaways is a must visit especially if you are going to be playing sand volleyball at North Beach. A close walk from North & Wells and always a blast! read more

The service was great, the views are lovely, but frankly I am disappointed after the renovation that it is not nicer. Sadly the food and drinks were overpriced and terrible quality. I will not be returning. read more

Service was awful. Took ten for a server to come to our table and we left when it took over 20minutes for our drinks to come. Server didn't show urgency and was rude. Don't recommend, shore club is better. read more

Beautiful view! Food was filling. I ordered the nachos and lollipop wings buffalo flavor. The flavor of the wings isn't your normal cheese and salsa flavor but still good and different. The wings went well with the nachos for a balanced flavor short of 5 course but very satisfying !! (served with carrots and celery.). Music was good for the vibe and there's a couch seating area with a bar where you can sit and look at the beach waves, volleyball, and city after eating. read more

Great view and the food, drinks & service were good. But the restrooms are disgustingly dirty. I will not be back because of the restrooms which are shared with the beach-goers. The restaurant needs to figure out how to add restrooms for their customers. read more

Made a reservation at 6 o'clock at castaways for our anniversary. Well, we traveled over an hour to get there and we got off and made our way over and it was all blocked off,You could not park there.!! so then I tried calling the establishment to find out where we could park and you can't talk to anyone, You have to email them. I'm just really confused how the heck you're supposed to get over there? Anyway, we're not gonna go back down there again. read more

As a table full of industry members fully aware that this was the opening day, we were absolutely floored by the behavior of the management staff. Our server Mel was a doll and took great care of us, but when our $16 full cocktail in a plastic cup flew off the table the manager was so incredibly off putting, acted like it was our fault for their cheap glass wear flying away and asked us if we thought it was something that should really come out of his pocket (on the club side, totally understand the need for plastic cups, on the dining side not so much) (our tab was also over $500+ so not like we were just looking for a freebee) It's such a beautiful space with great floor employees, hopefully management can get themselves together and gain some table presence in the coming weeks. Definitely would recommend taking the walk over to Shore Club!!! read more