My favorite fest of the summer this year, hands down! Thanks Candice for hooking up the tickets for the VIP Tasting. It was amazing, awesome, fantastic and everything I'd want in a summer event. I will absolutely go back next year and now I'm dying to try Chuck's restaurant. When we first got there we thought it looked a little shady and were put off by the parking. It was in a super gravel-y parking lot and they literally had us park in a spot which was weeds up to my hips. I was like...errrr...what the heck is this?! On a good note with the parking, it was free. Every other event I've been to has charged extra for parking. Upon check in, we were greeted by a super friendly lady who explained things to us and handed us a program. The program was very helpful throughout the night so I was thankful for that. Plus we were given a glass large shot glass. I've been given plastic at all other events this summer so I felt super classy (or as Michael Scott would say declase) with this sipping cup. We walked into the event and I was so happy to see that all of the food and all of the beer was housed under tents! It makes a world of difference to drink beer tastings in a nicely shaded area. The lines were short or non-existent throughout the whole beer tasting time and everyone I encountered at the booths was very friendly. It's not super fancy but it's very well put together. I was able to try so many new beers, liked them all and fell in love with a few! My favorite of the entire day was Lizard and Grass from 5 Rabbit Cerveceria with 5 Lizard pulling ahead for me. I've never heard of this brewery before and it's right in Chicago! Apparently they will be opening a tap room in 2013...awesome! Another favorite of mine was Leifman's Fruitesse, super fruity with like 5 different fruits in it, yum! And Timmermanns Strawberry was another berrylicious beer I really liked. They had a ton of food for purchase and with four people we were able to sample a lot of the tasty fare. One disappointment was the deep fryer was broken which meant no deep fried oreos....Sad face. The pulled pork sandwich ($4) was very tasty and I loved the Fried Alligator ($6). I've had grilled alligator before but this was deep fried in a chicken nugget style. It was much better than what I've previously had and the batter was perfect! I was shocked and surprised that I love alligator! Good music was playing, Chuck was doing food demos with free samples, over 100 craft beers, overall just a chill event that I will definitely be attending next year! I advise others to do the $45 VIP Tasting and next year I think I'll stay the evening for the music (we dipped out at 4pm this year). read more

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Hold up - there's CANDY beer?! Okay, it's not exactly marketed as such - but the swoon-worthy guy representing Brooklyn Brewery teasingly corrected me when I asked to sample the Liefmans Fruitesse. "Oh, you mean the candy beer" [insert wink and smile]. Bright red in color, refreshingly fizzy (rather than burp-inducing foamy), and with a tart cherry flavor - it really was like sipping candy from a glass! When I returned for seconds, I almost left with a bit more (Mr. Brooklyn Brewery generously offered me the shirt off his back after seeing how disappointed I was that there were no giveaway tees left) - but was content with another glass of the sweet stuff. I learned that the Liefmans Fruitesse is a 'Belgian Lambic' style of beer, which I coincidentally ended up sampling at the Windy City Brewers booth - this time in the form of the Timmermans Strawberry. Not quite as sweet and candy-esque as the Fruitesse, but pleasantly light (and pink!) - and the Strawberry taste was unmistakable. I delighted in a second glass of this as well - and my hubby concluded that we had "found my [style of] beer!" Good to know that I can enjoy beer like a grown-up - outside the world of Corona Red (I know, I know). But wait...is candy/fruit-flavored beer considered grown-up beer by most? Maybe not, but it made me happy...and thus I will continue to seek it out! To be fair, I did sample and like some other styles as well (definitely took advantage of the VIP tasting session!). Southern Tier Brewing Company's Crème Brulee, an 'Imperial Milk Stout,' was very dark and heavy (my tummy definitely felt full after a glass of this) - and unlike the Lambic, the alcohol taste was obviously present. However, the Crème Brulee flavor - sugary and thick with caramel - was surprisingly evident (and very true to the actual dessert's taste). Definitely yummy, but much too heavy for me to go back for seconds. Samples of some of the Pale Ales were easy enough for me to drink, but I think the Belgian Lambic may have ruined me for all beer going forward. Oh, and the FOOD! Chef Chuck Pine is amazing! Watching his demo, we could barely stop ourselves from rushing the stage and tasting some of the goodness he was cooking up. Something as simple as chips and salsa - DELICIOUS and so fresh (I'm sure a benefit of using veggies and herbs grown in his garden). We had four (okay, five) helpings of that alone. Mmm and the mussels - holy wow were they yummy! They quickly ran out of the tasty mollusks (not surprised!), but we managed to sneak a mini second-helping before the pot was empty. He finished the demo with the jambalaya, a comfort food indeed! I don't usually go for rice-with-stuff-in-it dishes - but this smelled so delicious, I couldn't resist (even broke my seafood-only diet for a taste of the andouille sausage - so worth it!). To sample the rest of the food, we bought $20 worth of tickets ($1 = 1 ticket) which got us an order of ribs, two tacos (fish & pork), corn-on-the-cob, and a coconut banana cream pie (which was more like a parfait). And bonus -- a family asked me to snap a photo of them, and generously gave me five tickets for my trouble (score!) - which I took right over to the funnel cake tent! While everything was tasty, I thought that the best food actually came out of Chef Chuck's demo (Though, in all fairness - he was able to take his time preparing the dishes as he was demonstrating, while the food tents were busy and trying to keep up with demand all day long). To complete the fun equation (food + drink + entertainment = fun) - the live music rocked! 90:99 (a local 90's cover band) opened the stage with crowd-pleasing-covers of Pearl Jam, Greenday, and Bush songs (to name a few). We left for a bit after the 90:99 set, and came back in time for Local H and Candlebox (yay!). The sun had just set -- and the difference between the fest-in-the-daytime and the fest-at-night was, well, like night and day. The early hours crowd (cheerfully buzzed, personal space still intact) quickly gave way to a nighttime crowd that was obviously drunk (and potentially under the influence of other, er, substances) - and who had very little regard for their fellow fest-goers. Though I suppose that such is to be expected when alcohol is involved! After holding up all day, the rain clouds finally burst on the Candlebox set. We stuck it out to the pouring end, and were rewarded with their fan-favorite - "Far Behind." When they struck those first chords, it didn't matter that my flip-flops were soaked or my jeans uncomfortably damp - I sang along happily. And then quickly rushed to the car for cover! Chuck's Fest = a Saturday well-spent! Thank you Candice G. and Yelp for the opportunity to find my beer-drinking niche, sample some of Chef Pine's specialties, and for an all-around good time! read more

Chuck's Fest - My fave beer of all - Liefmans Fruitesse (aka 'candy beer'). - Food Near Me - Bridgeview, Illinois

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This event was awesome! Probably one of my favorite events this year. Thanks Candice & Yelp for hooking up the VIP tix! Everything was very well organized and we hardly ever waited for anything. The last 2 beer festivals I went to both had paid parking and long lines at each beer vendor. Here the parking was free and I could easily hit up 3 beers in a minute. Plus Chuck's Fest hooks you up with some nice mini tasting glasses... none of that plastic crap. But the best thing was the layout. The beer tasting was in a nice tent to shade us from the hot sun, there was plenty of seating, and the food/stage was spaced a good distance apart. Plus the bathroom situation was nicely handled - plenty of porta-potties and probably the cleanest I've ever seen. They even had outdoor sinks setup. The beers were fantastic and I got to try a great variety. My memory is fuzzy now, but I had this one beer that smelled and tasted just like strawberries. Then I remember an IPA poured from a small wooden cask. The 5 Rabbit Lizard & Grass were also really good. There was just too many beers to name them all. Chuck was also cooking up some Mussels and Jambalaya. I only got to try the Mussels, but they were delicious. Actually all the food was really good and I can't wait to go to Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe. We bought a bunch of food tickets (credit cards accepted) and had a feast. My favorites were the Fried Alligator and Jalapeno Cheddar Hushpuppies, but everything was solid. Pulled Pork, Jerk Chicken Wings, Bananas Foster, Peach Cobbler, Coconut Banana Cream Parfait - all delicious. Tragedy struck early that day when the deep fryer broke... I really wanted to try the fried Oreos. Sadly I couldn't stay to watch Local H, but the 90:99's kept us entertained. They're a cover band that does a pretty good job sounding just like Staind, Green Day, and Weezer (woot). I had a blast and can't wait for Chuck's Fest '13! Actually I can't wait to pig out at Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe. read more

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So torn! I was super excited about this event when I heard about it waaaaaay back when. Mainly because Local H was gonna be performing and for only $5 entry fee! I was also stoked because I've been to Chuck's many times and really like their food. How can this fest NOT be awesome???? I'll break it down. The Good: -food was delicious! -LOTS of beers to taste! -Local H! -$5! -free parking! The Bad: -parking situation. For future reference, do not have a Fire game going on at the same time! -Long lines. The entrance was a hot mess! Nobody knew what was going on and the food/drink ticket area should be separate from the entry. Has the person in charge ever gone to a festival before??? Food line was almost always long and it looked like you can only enter one line for a certain list of food but this was not true! -the MC sucked Sigh. I ended up having a decent time but it could've gone better. I really hope they learn from this event and get it right next year! read more

Chuck's Fest - Honey Chipotle chicken. Really tasty! - Food Near Me - Bridgeview, Illinois

I thoroughly enjoyed Chuck's fest! This was my first time out, thanks to Yelp and Candice G., for the VIP tix... I brought a bud along and he brought another bud,( both craft beer fanatics) and they also seemed to have a great time as well. The 12 pm to 3pm, beer tasting was freaking fantastic!! There was easy access to each and every vendor, no lines, and lots of cool people hanging out. I was trying to keep count of the number of beers we tried, but lost count after five or so.. (I didn't realize I could get buzzed so fast by sipping 2.5 oz's of each beer, lol..) Several beers in, we felt the need to soak up some of the beer with some food.. We ventured out to the food tent and found the ladies working there to be very accomodating. We were pretty much free to try any dish we wanted (two thumbs up!) Boy oh.. boy!! Chuck's did not disappoint!! My favorites were the jalepeno cheddar hush puppies and the BBQ ribs, but the cochinita pibil taco, aligator bites, red mole quesadilla, and pulled pork sandwich were all very good. I have had Chuck's food before and I was concerned the quality might take a hit at an event like this, but I was really happy with the food. Mental note: put the brakes on when it comes to the food.. I ate so much that I was unable to drink as much beer as I would have liked. SMH!! rookie mistake! I will definitely be back to Chuck's fest to partake in the VIP tasting. I was unable to hangout for the concerts on Saturday night so I cannot give my opinion on the fest as a whole, but I give the fest 4 stars based on the VIP event alone (parking sucked, otherwise I would have given 5 stars). read more

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Well as far as I had to drive this year's fest was pretty damn good. The Sunday, September 11th, 2011 day was actually very empty as far as festivals go with great weather this time of year. Held in the Harlem-side-lot of Toyota Park's wasteland of a parking lot, it was surprising how well the actual musical acts sounded. If you don't want to spend a butt-load of cash on drinks, "tailgate" by your car. The rules say no outside food or coolers, but if you have a Big Gulp cup full of your favorite alcohol, it seems to be okay. For vittles, I had some delicious Jerk chicken wings (3 for $4.. boo), some melt-in-your-mouth mussels (about 7 or 8 for $5), and some of Chuck's always yummy seafood gumbo. Sat and enjoyed some great blues into the night. They did start discounting beer by $2 after about 6:30pm and I got a free little glass before I left. They were selling them for $2 so you could use them to taste the multitude of beers they had but the nice guy said he wouldn't take my money/tickets. read more

Chuck's Fest - Food Near Me - Bridgeview, Illinois

I've gone to Chuck's Fest ever since I can remember - and have always had a great time. This year, it seems like it was poorly organized - which contributed to the group I was with not having a good time. I was there for the VIP tasting on Saturday from 12-3. I got there when it opened. However, parking was already a mess at this time. The people directly had no clue where I should go. Once figured out, I tramped across the muddy grass to get in. Getting my tickets from Will Call was an issue, as they weren't organized. Thank gosh there wasn't a line at this time. The beer tasting was fabulous! Getting to mosey around and sample beers for 3 hours was fun - and the crowd was fun. Some of the people pouring beers were volunteers and didn't know anything about the beers they were pouring...strange. The Ginger Beer was my favorite and I will be stopping at Binny's to pick some up! From 12-3pm, there weren't any lines for the food. You just had to walk up and could get anything you wanted, without a wait. The food was all very good (as always!). The tamale pie, pork tocaos, po'boys, were some of my favorites. Between 5pm - 6pm, the place started to fill up. Parking became a nightmare, the line to get in was a 1/2 wait (per my friends who waited), and the lines for food were out of control. I think this is where the disorganization became very noticable. I had 10 friends meet us between 5-6pm and they had the worst time and will never come back. I'm sad to hear this, but I understand. If my experience was like theirs, I would not either. Oh....and there was a soccer game going on at Toyota Park - so add that clusterfuck into the mix. I'm not sure why this wasn't communicated via their daily facebook posts raving about their fest. I'm assuming because it would have detered people from coming. Poor communication!! We all left at 7pm - it just became un-enjoyable. I'm still a huge fan of Chuck's and the VooDoo lounge, but I'm not sure I would go back to his fest after this year. read more

Every time I go to a festival i get down on myself. I just don't enjoy them. The crowds, the pricing, the cookie cutter vendors who think they have some unique idea and then show up next to three other vendors with similar ideas. Chucks didn't really have any vendor issues, I think there were only four or five vendors. Hawking hippy jewelry and Harley parts. Located in the parking ocean at Toyota Park I was relieved to find free parking. The entrance is free as well so far so good. A decent sized crowd of white folks slamming back mostly Miller products from over sized plastic pitchers. I sucked back a Lienenkugel's Octoberfest, a fine brew. They also had some overly sweet mixers, Hurricanes and Margaritas, the Hurricane tasted like Koolaid and rum. I have had the Hurricane at Chucks restaurant and it was far superior to this one. Food wise there were some very good choices. From the Cajun/Creaole side of the menu we sampled Cheddar jalapeno hushpuppies, Gumbo, Jambalaya these were all very good. A muffaletta was quite disappointing tasting stale and soggy. From the Mexican menu the Cochinita Pibil tacos were very good but a touch greasy, the beef birria was excellent, but the tamale casserole was the best sampling from this group. You can always trust Chuck with some Mexican. The bbq was only sampled in rib form, they were as good if not better than any of the ribs at some more prestigious festivals. There was a very impressive lineup of music. We didn't stick around very long but what we heard was very good straight up Chicago style Blues. I find it difficult spending my Saturday in the middle of a piece of pavement, no face painting or alcohol can coerce me to enjoy myself. We burned through nearly $60 in 30 minutes and realized we could have sat at Chucks restaurant for a couple hours for that price. To each his own I guess. read more

wow! I was impressed by Chuck's Fest, but let me explain a few stipulations. My friend had tickets for the VIP Beer Session. So I did not pay anything to go this event. I have heard from people that went to the general admission fest and didn't think it was worth the admission price. But I paid nothing, so what did I have to lose. Let's just say I tried lots of beer and got a little tipsy. Let's just say I was hungover later that day and couldn't remember all the delicious beers I had tried. We watched a food demonstration and enjoyed the chips n salsa. After that, we got a little wrapped up in beer heaven and never went back for more of the food. But we enjoyed watching Chuck and hearing the story of how they are buying land and growing their own veggies for the restaurant. Stuff like that is impressive. Overall, the VIP Beer Session is like $35 and I would venture a guess that it's worth going to and paying the price of tickets. We couldn't really stay and watch any of the bands because my friend and I both had other plans later in the day, but we enjoyed our day read more

BBQ, beer and the blues. Should be a winning formula, but Chuck's Fest just doesn't add up. It used to be held each September at Toyota Park in Bridgeview. They didn't have one in 2013. It seemed to be well-attended in prior years so I don't know if it is on hiatus or dead. (Update July 2015: Apparently it's dead. None in 2014 and now 2015. RIP.) The driving directions given on the website were not quite accurate. I complained but they were not changed. So be forewarned. Entering the area, one gets a desolate, isolated feeling, more from the desolation of Toyota Park. Then one gets hit with an entrance fee $5 just to get in and is then immediately confronted by a few vendors of assorted kitsch. The main attractions are the food sampling and the beer tent. The sample portions of food are very, very good. BUT the samples are VERY, very small AND expensive. It took many such samples to even make a dent in my hunger. A separate beer tent is set up to sample a wide variety of craft beers. BUT (again) samples are very tiny (about equivalent of two shots) and are expensive at $1-$2 each, after paying $2 separately for a glass to sample. Worse, beer tenders (separate ones for each brand) were very stingy on their pours. No complimentary water for a chaser. You had to buy water. In the evening some of Chicago's best blues talent takes the stage. In 2011 there was Dave Herrero band and Joe and Nick Moss with Jimmy Johnson; in 2012 Sun. featured Ronnie Baker Brooks and Linsey Alexander. A minor bonus in 2011: George Wendt (Norm from Cheers) appeared in person (where else - in the beer tent) selling and signing his book. Not much else. Maybe worth an hour or two, but time your visit to hear the bands in the evening. That is, if there is ever another. read more

100 different beers? I'm there. Cooking demo and tasting? I'm there. Local H and Candlebox? I'm so there. Thanks to Candice G. and Yelp, we scored a pair of tix to this opportunity to get daydrunk. Parking was a breeze. It was free, and the walk was short. The ticket line was separated into 3 sections, will call, cash and credit card. Card convenience is great, lucky for us, our tix were waiting for us! After checking in with will call, they gave us our bracelets and 2.5 oz tasting glasses and the freedom to drink our asses off. Under the massive beer tent sat all the distributors on one half and at the other half were picnic tables and the demo stage. It was a little overwhelming with all the choices available, and the knowledge that I wouldn't be able to taste every beer, unless I had them pour half glasses. If I got a full taste of every beer, it would be nearly like drinking 5 40's. The most I've ever had in one sitting was 2 40's, 5 would just seem dangerous and wrong. My favorites were the Southern Tier Creme Brulee, Brooklyn Monster, and Lagunitas Little Sumpin Sumpin. Legally, I can't say that the Timmermanns Strawberry was my favorite, or the Liefmans Fruitesse, because those were really sweet "candy" beers and admitting that means my Man Card gets taken away. So I'll just say they were okay. Mel R. loved them though, and I'm glad we finally found a beer she loves. After sampling to our bladder's delight, we sat in the demo area to watch the Chuck of Chuck's Fest cook up some goodies. He made fresh salsa, Jambalaya and Mussels. Neither of us ate breakfast that morning, so we had 3 servings of chips and salsa each. The mussels were cooked with fennel and were perfectly cooked. The jambalaya, I was glad, had no mushy overcooked stewed rice in it. Rather, it was almost like a rice dish that happened to have ham and sausage and a sauce on it as opposed to the soupy jambalayas I've had in the past. After everything we ate that day, we made a promise to ourselves to hit up Chuck's Southern Comfort someday. After filling up on all the food and beer, we headed out into the bright sunlight to catch some rays and watch the local band 90:99 play their set. A 90's alternative cover band? Can this get any better? They played a selection of hits such as Basketcase, Plush, Plowed, Machinehead. I was a bit sad when they asked who was in high school or college in '97, if they'd raise their hand. I didn't raise my hand, but I was a junior in high school in '97. They said they were going to play a song from Sponge (Plowed), and the kids near me were like WTF is this? Yeah, I felt a little like a geezer. After 90:99 we left for a bit to pick something up at Oak Brook and came back in time for Local H. By now, the sparse parking lot and barely used picnic tables and stage seats were all pretty much filled, and the entry line was about 100 people long. Since we kept our wristbands on, we had it easy getting back in, while everyone eyed us jealously muhaha. The food and ticket lines were longer than ever, but I was getting kind of hungry. So here's something I learned about the line system. See, when you walk up to the food tent, you'll notice that the signs from left to right read BBQ Cajun Mexican Desserts. Kind of makes you think you need to be getting into the lines under the respective sign of the cuisine you want to get, right? Wrong. It didn't matter which "line" you were getting into, they were all going to give you the same things, so I'm glad I got into the shortest line, even though it was pointing to the "Kids" section with hamburgers and corn dogs. I like corn dogs, I just don't think Chuck wanted me to come all they way down here for a corn dog. While I was in line though, Local H started to play All the Kids Are Right. Sad face. So I got us a smattering of everything to try: an ear of Cajun corn, a sampler of ribs with spicy BBQ sauce, the cochinita pibil taco and the fish taco. They were all good. The ribs were fall-off-the-bone tender, the sauce had that zing!, and the tacos? I ended up eating with a fork because the tortillas fell apart from the meat juices. Not too terrible, but I'm glad I had a fork. After nightfall, the once happy crowd turned a little dark, and smelling of skunkweed and bad decisions. Seriously, putting your ass on the tabletop right next to me while I eat? I hate you. Halfway through the Candelbox set, the skies opened and it started pouring. Everyone ran for cover under the tents save for the hardcore fans, and me who went to the car for the umbrella. We finished the set under our own cover as the played one of my favorite songs of all time "Far Behind", and closed it out with "You". I had a great time, and I would gladly pay the $45 VIP fee next year. It's an awesome deal, and a chance to taste a whole lot of beers you might not have even been near otherwise! (man beer or candy beer, whichever you prefer) read more

I went to "Chuck's Fest Last year & had a GREAT time-The Music was GREAT & they had a NUMBER of T.V. screens for the First BEARS game of the season-Seen alot of people from the neighborhood & just sat around & Chatted- I was with My friend Rhonda & her son & girlfriend came & joined us- I THOUGHT THE FOOD & COMPANY was GREAT-The FREE PARKING & YOU PAY NO ENTRANCE FEE-KEEP IT UP CHUCK'S ----GREAT FESTIVIAL--- I LOVE GOING ON SUNDAY !!! I'll be back-----Carole DeP read more

Went here today with my husband and I enjoyed my meal very much. I ordered the seafood gumbo soup with the Chicken fried chicken and let me say yum my husband ordered the Southern fried catfish and that was delish as well I definitely see us going back . read more

Johnny C if you.ve ever been to a concert you know tickets cost more than $5 hell most bar cover charges are more than $5 ! Now lets talk drinks a tall boy goes for $11 at a concert so you are saving there. I won't even go into the food prices at a concert but they are outrageous. So all in all you got to see a great band you really liked and saved money in the process. I enjoyed myself at chuckfest last year and this year and I am looking forward to next year !!!! read more

I'm sorry, did I miss something? My wife and I drove here from pretty far away, WHAT A LET DOWN!!!! I have no problem paying high prices for good food, but this stuff was fair at best, my chicken was undercooked, the fish tacos were somewhat tasty, but SMALL!!! 4 bucks for a tiny taco? come on guys... They had to lower the prices on the beer cause nobody was buying it. 4 bucks for a tiny serving of cobbler, if ALL the profits were going to a good cause, then I eat and drink and pay up the wazoo and I keep my mouth shut. But that's not the case, is it? 5 bucks to get in? what's that for? somebody's makin money here but it won't be off of me ever again. Have to say though, I did enjoy Dave Herrero, bought both of his CDs, 2 for 30 bucks. read more