Adult food was good, kids food was terrible and the service was horrendous. We made a reservation, showed up and took a table outside. Server took our order, beer came out; a tad warm, but we ignore the warning signs. Wait for 30 plus minutes, no sign of our server. The other server who was outside, came up to the couple behind us and told them that since they are getting busy, they are implementing a 75 min policy for the table and although they were FINE for now, they might have to leave soon. What?? Finally our food comes, all at once, the appetizers after the main course. We still put away the warning signs, because we were desperately trying to have a good time after not going out for so long. Ordered another beer through the bus boy, as our server is still no where to be seen. Anyways, we finish our food and are packing up the leftovers. My 7 yr old did not eat her Mac n cheese as she did t like it but we chalked it up to just her being a kid. However i tried it at the end - and it was bad. Firstly, it was clearly Mac n cheese from a box. Secondly, there was NO cheese!! Thirdly, the noodles were soggy - like drenched in water. My sons burger was also super well done and dry. So when the new server comes for the final sweep, I tell her that the max n cheese was inedible. No apologies, in fact she visibly clenches up. She gets the bill and the max n cheese ($7.50) is not taken out. I ask her why and her response, "oh, you want me to take that OUT?". Uhh, yes, I'm not going to pay for something inedible. She comes back out and says, that the manager will discount the max n cheese by 50%, because get what - we ate "half of it." Are you freaking serious!! They want me to pay $3,75 because we took a few bites??? This place can suck it. Complete pricks. I've never left a $0 tip in my life until now. Don't go here, especially if you have kids. They don't deserve it. read more

All we had were cheese curds and beers and a Long Island iced tea but the service was outstanding . Hands down best Long Island iced tea I've had in a while. Cheese curds were great and plentiful. All 3 of us didn't even finish all of them. Great dive bar feeing here with fun people. read more

Had Biscuits and Gravy and a Bloody Mary from Brunch menu. Great food and drinks. Attentive staff. neighborhood bar feel. Great place to celebrate Father's Day. read more

Staff was amazingly nice and attentive! The fish and chips along with the burger were both tasty. Oddly enough with only two other tables in there that had both had their dinners out food was not impressively hot. It wasnt cold but you'd expect it to be fresh. It seemed as if it was sitting there for a couple of mins. You'd think the fries would be piping hot as it has to be timed to when our burger was going to be ready. read more

Hit this place five times in several months, always takeout, always very very tasty. We regularly have a burger and chicken sandwich. We also really like the kale salad, the wings and the cheese curds. Fries don't do as well on the trip home so maybe sub in the salad or curds if you're doing takeout. Eating in once was also very good, the outside seating is pretty large and a nice place to sit. They are really diligent about covid precautions, so it feels like a very safe trip as well as delicious. There are restaurants that offer more on their menu but what you get here is consistently very good and earned our loyalty. read more

Great food, very nice staff. And a great environment to have a meal in. I highly recommend it.

Great food, sweet family running the place, and cute interior. We went for brunch with family (including a baby) and we each found something to enjoy. Their burger is delightful. read more

This place is ok. But, it's so boring. The menu hasn't changed at all in years and there isn't enough on it to keep it interesting. Even the drinks menu doesn't seem to change ever. Nothing is bad, but it feels so been there, done that. My first few times I enjoyed coming here and now it's only a Monday night place since nothing el has around is open. And while the service is ok they also seem bored. The place is just tired these days. read more

We liked this place before they changed owners, so tried it out as the new place. The food was not well-made. The glasses for beer and water tasted like chemicals. There was a loud group at the bar, making it intolerable to sit inside. A pretty miserable experience. read more

This place does everything well--great burgers, cheese curds, and salmon, tasty cocktails, and awesome service and atmosphere. I've also always felt comfortable with their covid safety protocols. read more

This place is so hit or miss, but when it's bad, it's really bad. Last order was inedible, gave us over fried, nearly black chicken tenders. Giving three stars because management actually reached out to us to come back and refunded us. read more

You can catch us here on any day of the week! Kettlestrings is a great time whether you're hanging out at the bar, attending an event, or having dinner with the family! Great customer service and fantastic bartenders!!! read more

We thought we'd try this place again - Started w/cheese curds ...very good We split the chicken bourbon sandwich- so dry ...no tenderness or juiciness to this sandwich We split the cheese burger too ... we asked for medium rare = sever never said they could not do it = took our order The burger too was dry and cooked well-done ... server never came back to check on us; we ran out of water= took the bottle but did not refresh it. Nothing about the service was personable/warm/caring ... This is a big no in coming back ... we also stopped in their new place and that was anoth "eh" w/service...go to Victory where the manager walks around and wants to hear good and bad; head to Rebozo where service is must and quality food ... read more

Small food menu, 8 craft taps. Good can and bottle selection and broad cocktail menu. The food is good, but the environment is better. Corner neighborhood, burger-n-beer bar feel with a really good staff. Or, order to-go, and you won't be disappointed. read more

Good beer. Reasonably good hamburger; so-so steak salad. We're unlikely to return except for drinks. Nice outdoor space, but you have to reserve in advance. read more

I like the Kettlestrings burger. Husband likes the fish n chips. Great, friendly service.

The food is good, the service is abysmal. After an hour of placing our order we finally had to ask if we were ever getting dinner. It was just fish and chips on a Friday; we should not have had to wait that long. read more

Don't expect to be greeted when you walk in. This is a burger restaurant acting like they're high end. Terrible service.

Loooong waits right now for takeout. 4 out of 7 tables are full outside. The wait said 1 hour online, but when we arrived after an hour, they let us know they were 4 orders behind. I asked if we could purchase a glass of wine and sit at an empty table while we waited. They said normally they would, but they needed to catch up on orders. As someone formerly in the restaurant industry, I would've comp'd a glass of wine and apologized for the wait. I don't blame the wait staff, I blame the owner for under-staffing the restaurant. The additional wait ended up being 45 minutes (1 hour 45 from placing the order) Pulled 5 bones out of the salmon, there needs to be more than one chef handling the high volume of orders. read more

Delicious!! Loved my dinner on the adorable side patio (admiring the flowers of course). Had the friendliest server. The Brussels sprouts/avocado salad was delicious. As was the loaded grilled cheese. Really good vibes, local feel. Will be back whenever I visit Oak Park. read more

Pros: beer list, delicious burgers and wings and cheese curds (when cooked right) Cons: quality control. I've been here and gotten perfectly lightly battered curds and Wings that were delicious. But also gotten wings that practically had no rub on them and curds that were mostly batter. Would recommend, and will keep going back because the burgers worth it and when the apps are on point it's a great meal with a local vibe. read more

3 strikes and you are out. 3rd time I have had carryout from Kettlestrings, and hopefully will be the last. Ordered the pork schnitzel sandwich and it was embarrassing. One little piece of pork that was mostly breading, tomato/lettuce seemed poorly prepped, fries were undercooked, and they forgot the aioli for the fries. I miss the days when Obsessed was in this location, because the obsession has faded to apathy at this point. read more

I have been to this restaurant several times and it was OK, but this time the service was awful and the food was worse. The waiter ignored us even thought the place was nearly empty. We asked him a question about the beer and he said they all taste the same to him. It took 45 minutes to get our order. I had fish and chips, which was really a cold pile of French fries and a few shriveled balls of deep-fried breading. There was almost no fish at all. I sent it back, and a few minutes later it was back in front of me, dried out from a tour through the microwave. As we were leaving, the manager came out and apologized, which was appropriate under the circumstances. read more

Ordered burgers for delivery. I got the Oak Park burger and husband got the Kettlestrings. Really delicious! Classic and high quality burgers without being pretentious. Fries were also great. I had a good number of them, though husband's fries seemed a bit meager. Anyway, maybe a fluke. We will be ordering again! read more

We ordered delivery while on lock down with the family. Food was great. I had a burger which was really well made...great bun and toppings, too. Luckily my son (who is 5 and picky) only ate one of his chicken tenders, so I got to pick up the spare on those and they were really damn good. My wife had a salad that she was really happy with too. Haven't had a chance to get inside yet, but looking forward to going in as soon as we get the chance. Great addition to the neighborhood. read more

This place is awesome! Got take out for our family and everything was delicious: - cheese curds were phenomenal - some of the best fries around - and the bourbon chicken sandwich was amazing! The staff were super friendly. They even have take out beers / wine during SFH! Definitely recommend! read more

They serve up good bar food, cooked quickly. We have ordered takeout multiple times. My favorites are the cheese curds (with a wonderful spicy ranch sauce), the buffalo wings, and especially their fish and chips. Their fish and chips are lightly breaded, not too greasy, just the way I like them. During these pandemic times, I've only had the pleasure of dining at their patio once. I look forward to eating here more regularly in the future. My kids have several food allergies. They have done a good job accommodating their restrictions. read more

Wow, this is a community pub and a great establishment. The menu is good and simple, and the staff is great!

I'm torn here, lovely evening, relaxing outdoor space the weather could not have cooperated more. The service is fine, nice people. The food could be kicked up a notch with attention paid to seasoning. One meal was the Steak Salad. Ingredients fresh, but the steak piece itself (decent size) had absolutely no seasoning or flavor and medium rare was pretty well done. I needed to request salt and I rarely salt my food. The dressing was blah, vinegar and oil, very little flavor. All edible though, a little more attention to detail and I think you could have a great salad. The brined bourban chicken reported good, but very dry was cured with a side of mayo. This needs some kind of sauce or a little of the marinade. Fries ok. I think the pricing here is fair and they have not jumped on the let's double the price of everything due to (insert current crisis). Now the one thing that really knocked you down is the flimsy plastic cup you served my wine in. Really, the server had no idea why it was in plastic. And the pour is very skimpy or is it the perception from the big plastic festival beer cup. It just didn't crack it. I had a red $10+ and dining partner had 2 roses which very quickly were luke warm. Come on. The water glass while plastic as well was a bit more substantial go figure. I always opt for al fresco but you are the first ones I have come across recently with the cheapo cups outside, if thats the reason. See the pic. This is before drinking. read more

Kettlestrings Tavern - Disposable cups for $10 glass of wine, this is the full pour. - Bars Near Me - Oak Park, Illinois

I love this place so much, I haven't tried an item on their menu that I disliked yet. Will definitely continue to support them as often as I can. read more

Do not come here if you are in any sort of hurry or have any sort of plans afterwards; i.e., movies, have to be home by a certain time, attend another festivity. It literally took an hour to get two cheeseburgers delivered to our table. We weren't waiting to finish up any sort of appetizer... that's just how long it took for the kitchen to make two cheeseburgers. Granted they were a little busy, but Duck Fat, which has about four times as much seating, has no problem pumping out food, and they are always packed. I will never waste my time at this joint again, not to mention fries came out cold after all that time, and the burgers were subpar. Two thumbs down!! read more

I've only been here once, but loved it. Granted, it was for brunch with one of my long time friends to catch up, but the food was above average (not that anybody can do much with breakfast/lunch), and the service was outstanding. I'd recommend it. read more

We loved coming here when we first moved to Oak Park because the burgers were delicious, but over the past few months it seems like service is consistently terrible. This week we went and ordered fish tacos and the fried fish, and an hour went by with no sign of our food. We finally had to ask about our food, to which the server responded he "forgot to put the ticket in." (While I appreciate the honesty, it's the last thing you want to hear when it's late and you're hangry.) That was probably the nail in Kettlestrings' coffin for me. read more

Everything is so great here and Dan and crew are absolutely amazing! They take cleanliness to the next level and really make this a fun place to be. read more

Kettlestrings Tavern - Bars Near Me - Oak Park, Illinois

This place rocks! Oak Park/River Forest and surrounding area residents, during this COVID-19, shelter in place mess, let this local business and its awesome staff prepare a take out meal for you. You will be glad you did! The OP burger with fries is this family's favorite....and we eat a LOT of burgers (kinda burger snobs). Can't wait to enjoy the welcoming indoor and outdoor environment when we are able to assemble as a community again. In the meantime, show this great team some love, you'll enjoy great food and allow the friendly and service oriented team do what they do best. Hopefully, we'll be able to hang out and sample the beer selection soon! Stay safe and healthy and get some grub at this awesome joont read more

Easily my favorite place to go to in Oak Park. Lots of great specialty drinks, and the staff are very friendly. Anna served me today and she's hilarious and a great conversationalist. Kettlestrings had helped salvaged my summer for sure! read more

This place is an awesome little tavern with some of the best tavern food I've ever eaten. Great selection of beers also!

I love this place! The food, drinks and service are all some of the best in Oak Park. Favorites are the bourbon chicken sandwich, Kettlestrings burger and cheese curds. The donuts for dessert are perfect for sharing. Our server, Arden, took the best care of us! She was attentive, funny and knowledgeable about all of the food, cocktails, beer and wine. The manager, Anna, is very hands on and quick to jump in--and also makes sure you are having a good experience. I look forward to going back soon! read more

I'm only giving it a 2 because I feel bad for the waiters who were fine. I waited over 45 minutes for a salad at 1 pm on a Saturday - not busy at all. And when I got it it was the wrong salad. I ate it anyways because at that point I was going to eat my napkin. Ridiculous. read more

My rating would be 10 stars if it were allowed. The atmosphere is relaxing and service exceptional. Their signature Kettlestrings burger and salmon were delicious and nicely presented. Nice beer selection. A must visit in Oak Park. read more