Jenna is seriously the BEST bartender! she was so friendly & made sure our drinks were made to our standard. definitely will be back!

The bartender screamed I was a bitch after leaving a $1 tip for one drink. My friend and I stopped in for a drink and I ordered an old fashioned which was one of the $13 specials. I gave the bartender a 20 and got my change back and was about to give $2 for a tip but noticed instead of $7 in change I had only received $5, which was fine I wasn't going to say anything but instead of giving 2 I just gave a buck since I didn't get the full change back. After I left a dollar on just one drink she screamed I was a bitch, waved it at me and then proceeded to talk crap about me to other customers right in front of me. To the point where I told my friend what was happening and she turned around to look and the bartender pointed and yelled "SEE". We felt extremely uncomfortable and didn't even finish our drinks so we could get out of that place. Super unprofessional. read more

Cute little fun place but Piano guy could have been better. He didn't know most of the songs people were requesting. Another fun place in Barrington Area read more

Shirley's Piano Bar - a group of people sitting at a bar - Piano Bars Near Me - Barrington, Illinois

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Very fun and friendly place. Live piano music, good drinks and appetizers. Seems like something is happening every weeknight.

Cool little place in downtown Barrington. Love coming here sometimes. I enjoy the music and drinks.

We came to Shirley's piano bar after dinner. They don't have food but there drinks were delicious. Chocolate martini and a Tito's and Tonic. Their tonic was very good. The entertainment was wonderful great songs and the girl that played the piano had a excellent voice. I could tell all the people in there were having a great time. read more

Shirley's Piano Bar - Chocolate Martini - Piano Bars Near Me - Barrington, Illinois

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Lots of fun for date nights. Love the ambience and the pianists are great! I love that they take requests who doesn't want to hear Prince's Purple Rain :) read more

Excellent mocktails and ambiance. Also, great piano music. The bartender was extremely organized and attentive to all her customers. She's basically a one-woman-army: bartender/barback/manager combined into one. Furthermore, I was impressed with her ability to deal with drunk patrons. Sadly they don't have a kitchen. read more

We were in the area on a staycation and left our cocktail fate up to yelp. We figured we had nothing to lose. Holy moly did we have a BLAST!!! What a great little entertaining gem so close to home. Our bartender, Nicole, was attentive and super nice. I guess they're revamping their cocktail menu so we asked for our favorites... she hit the mail on the head with every cocktail we ordered. She's a true mixologist, y'all! She knows what she's doing behind that bar. The musician of the night... Hysien Gavon. What a talent! Engaging and funny... he made such great connections with the crowd and drew each person in. He played some classic songs and created great, unexpected medleys of old and new. He looked like he was truly enjoying the moment. Obviously, we came for the cocktails and for a few songs but Hysien was the reason we stayed longer than we intended. Between the drinks and the entertainment ... this place absolutely made our night. We will be back. Five stars! read more

This review is all about Jessica and potential. SPB is a great concept, great location, cool space and has lots of potential but they've struggled with management, personnel, recipe and supply issues. But Jessica has taken over, she has a vision, she cares about making this place a success, she has great customer service skills and appropriate experience to make it work. After a rough start, she presented me with a delicious chocolate martini and my friend a great wine pour. She sat down to talk and genuinely took our recommendations on drinks, food, setup and piano bar ambiance (from my extensive food/bev experience & my friend's professional singing experience) and we think she's going to make this happen. First step: new piano player! (They have better ones on other nights but this one was a clunker.) Go, check it out, give them a chance. We will be back in a couple months for another try, to see how Jessica has turned this diamond in the rough into the gem it could be. It's going to be a fantastic date night joint. read more

Shirley's Piano Bar - The comfy high chairs. - Piano Bars Near Me - Barrington, Illinois

Omg SOOOO much fun! Place is small but that makes it more fun! Bartenders bouncers and the piano man ALL FRIENDLY AND AMAZING! Drinks made to perfection! LOVE IT! read more

We're locals do this is a multi part review the more we visit. Pre-lockdown they were a favorite. After a rocky restart they are improving. The menu is even smaller than before & missing some of the standard favorites while the back bar stays stocked & the hanging glasses get dusty. But the bar staff are real bartenders again, measuring ingredients, taking a tab from the start, keeping the tables clear etc. Now if I could just figure who the bearded guy was. He stood behind the bar, no doing anything. Then sat in front of the bar with a tablet, still not doing anything. He's either a manager or the laziest employee ever. read more

Too Loud, ruins the ambiance. We need more piano bars, they're great fun! If you can't converse your order to the bartender, then what's the point? read more

So disappointed with the way this bar turned out.. major failure on the owners behalf. I was a regular here for over a year and my wife and our friends LOVED the lady running the place! She kept everything running smooth and went out of her way to accommodate our parties there and was by the THE BEST bartender! My friends and I were always beyond impressed with her skills and professionalism. Once the manager Jade left we knew the place wouldn't be the same but continued our good spirited adventures here. The man who took over after was clearly not qualified for the position and knew very little about management, customer service, or general alcohol knowledge. We gave this place a few more shots and were always disappointed. My wife and I tried 3 times to book parties here with no success! What changed so much? Was Jade the only one bringing business into this venue?? The musicians and acts slowly declined, the food became not consistent and low quality, and the staff members hired lacked any sort of training! We ordered signature cocktails multiple times that always came out different and we were never able to get a quality cocktail again. Not to mention overall timeliness and friendliness of the staff greatly declined to dismal levels. since this huge shift in management the following has happened... OUR CARS HAVE GOTTEN TOWED FROM THE PARKING LOT, WE SUFFERED FROM FOOD POISONING FROM OLD APPETIZERS SERVED TO US, BARTENDERS IGNORE US FREQUENTLY AND ARE CONSTANTLY ON THEIR PHONES. when my wife asked he bartender once if she could please pay attention to us, she replied "I'm looking up how to make a drink for another customer. After that I'll deal with your table" MUSICIANS HASSLE THE CROWD FOR MORE MONEY AT EVERY SHOW. so so sad to feel the need to update my review of Shirley's. Do yourself a favor and take the train across the street to BIG SHOT PIANO LOUNGE in down town Arlington Heights or if you have more time check out REDHEAD PIANO BAR in Chicago! Avoid this place and spend your money on an establishment that appreciates your business and wants you to have a good time! read more

Tonight was my first time visiting. The place is cute, but the vibe is dependent on the pianist. I was a little shocked to see the pianist show up in a cami top, messy bun, and pants that looked like pajama pants. Zero effort on the stage presence. She did not seem one bit excited to be there. She did at least sound good, but stage presence matters too. I will try going back, but will wait for a pianist with a better vibe. Seems like this has the potential to be a fun girls night. read more

My friends and I had such an amazing time here last night. Bartenders were excellent, very on top of the service for our party of 13. Singer was so talented and played what we requested. We'll be going back! read more

Always a good time at Shirley's Barrington needs more places that stay open past 10 Always a diverse group of people show up a good time is had by all read more

Went to Shirley's for the first time. Saw a friend had posted about it, looked nice, so brought a group. The piano guy tonight had ZERO tact or talent. He had announced over the mic that he was lacking requests and to get them up there. Excited I presented him with my requests. He announced over the mic, rather tactless and rudely that it was a "nice suggestion" but then flashed up a 5.00 bill attached to a post it "this is a request" Personally my group thought this was extremely rude and will not return. read more

Visited this establishment with my wife and friends on Saturday this past weekend. Music was good but the drinks were sub-par. The old fashioned was NOT an old fashioned and the bartender seemed like she had an attitude. All in all we felt more like a burden then a guest. read more

Now called "Shirley's Piano Bar" with new owners (formally TIP TOP TAP). Live entertainment nightly, Mark Miller on Wednesday's is a wonderful Pianist and showman. Plays some great rock as well as Jazz & Show Tunes. Friendly, Beautiful ambience and decor, Bartender(s) who know how to make some real drinks for real people. great atmosphere, fun vibe. Appetizers are a welcome touch. We enjoyed a very nice Pinot Noir. Looking forward to returning preferably on another Wednesday Night. Cheers! read more

My wife and I went there for the first time, the place was empty the bartender had no idea of the history, a boxing match was on TV, sorry to say it had no atmosphere, It has so much potential unfortunately I don't think we will go back read more

The staff made our evening at Shirley's special. My two guests and I requested coqui toys which required unique ingredients and a blender. Katie made the entire experience fun and the drink was wonderful. When you combine great drinks, good company and singable classics, how can you fail to have an awesome evening. We'll be back soon. read more

What a disaster! Went there for St. Patricks Day and was totally disappointed at what this place has become. The drinks we or were horrible and the service was beyond terrible. We are really saddened at what this place has become. We were so excited for the first St Patricks Day out in 2 years only to be truly saddened at how this bar turned out. Extremely overpriced and as I said above the drinks were terrible. read more

My girlfriend and her two friends went to Shirley's on Saturday night (4/17/21). Hardly anyone was wearing masks and people are not respecting any social distancing. By Tuesday night all three of them had Covid. This place most certainly is a super spreader source. Management needs to enforce safety policies. Be smart. Be careful. Be safe. read more

This place used to be good but I'm not sure what happened. The owner is a jerk and has a "I am greater than you" attitude. Supposedly some changes but too late for me. read more

Such a fun and entertaining bar! We stayed for a couple drinks and had the opportunity to request songs! Would for sure recommend!

Nice, quaint "jurnt" where they make you feel welcome as you walk in. Parking is plentiful, drinks are good, but they could use a few more snacking options at a palatable price. Enjoyed my visit very much! read more

I came out to Shirley's last night to see Kaleen Dolan play. She's a super talented pianist and singer. 5 or 6 of my friends hopped into the car and we made the hike from Chicago. We didn't know what to expect but we had the BEST time. The decor is flawless and the staff are super friendly. The cocktails were well priced and made to perfection. The owner happened to be there as well and he was working the room making sure everyone was enjoying themselves and had what they needed. I was very surprised it was so busy for a Tuesday night. I will definitely be back! read more

Wow finally a place with some class in downtown barrington. Highly recommended. Good music and even better drinks!

Friendly staff and good music! Nice to have some live music in town!! Great to interact with the talent and enjoy a drink !!

Stopped in to celebrate a special date night at 7 pm, when their website says the piano player begins. Unfortunately for us, he knew someone in the bar & talked in front of the piano with him for an hour and 15 min., completely ignoring the rest of us in the bar waiting for the music to begin. Once he started at 8:15, we really enjoyed the music -- he was very talented and took requests. Their website also says that they have food, but the ONLY option they from their very limited menu was a bbq pizza. Very disappointing. The only bartender there was telling another patron that he had just turned 21 and this was his first bartending job. When he finally came to take our order, he had to look up how to make our martinis. I don't have an issue with this, and after 15 min. he brought our drinks...but then he spent the rest of the time we were there talking with a friend and never checked on us again in 2 hours we were there; we had to go to the bar to order food, another drink, etc. And, there were only 7 people in the place that night. We'll try it again -- I'd really like to LIKE this place as it has real potential. read more

7/12 Great music, bad bartending. Servers used their bare hands to scoop ice from ice well into drink glasses. I watched for an hour as drinks prepped without using proper tools for preparation. Not using an ice scooper in an ice well screams germ infestation. I asked for ice and bartender again used his dirty hands to drop it in drink. The bartenders need training. Hands need to be washed after touching money before using their hands to scoop ice into patrons drinks. Bartending 101. read more

This is a great place. Super friendly staff. Fun crowd. Looks like there are a few negative Yelp reviews skewing the average. If that concerns you, take a look at the Google reviews. Many more reviews there averaging an excellent rating, which it deserves! read more

We've loved going to Shirley's on date nights and with friends - it's always entertaining! We actually hosted a large event there - the staff couldn't have been better and most importantly, our guests had a blast! Highly recommend going! read more

This bar rules. If you don't like this bar then you suck. I dare you to go to this bar and pretend to not enjoy it. Fun atmosphere, great service, and an epic drink menu. It's a swell joint. read more

We just spent a really fun evening at Shirley's, until we came out to find our car towed. It seems the owners of Shirley's and the owners of SIP are in a personal dispute. SIP now has spotters watching the parking lot and having patrons towed it they walk into Shirley's. We are from Arlington Heights. Even our friends we were with from Barrington did not know that we could not park in the Commons parking lot. SIP owners is putting this on Shirley's but to be honest, I won't be back to either business - this is juvenile and this puts both owners in a bad light. I'll be paying $170 to get my car out tomorrow. :( read more

Went in with some friends right when they opened at 4:00PM. Yes I realize it's a piano bar and it starts happening later at night. Asked what their happy hour specials were and the guy had no clue. Had to call his bar manager. Website stated "happy hour drinks, happy hour food, etc" Nothing happy about this hour! Left and went across to our normal "happy hour" and the bartender had our drinks already waiting when we walked in the door. Now that's service and happy! Not sure I would come back even later a night but do believe in giving second chances. read more

Such a fun place! The pianist/vocalist was really talented. The crowd was fun. Great find!!!

Normally we have fun there and the pianist/ singer in the past was more personable, engaging. Last night the singer was an ass and all about himself. Would not engaged with us and sang a request with disinterest and almost deragatory tone. I had 12 people with me looking to party.. paid for one drink and we all left. Business lost money last night.. there were 4 of us 2 weeks ago and I spent 250.00 on drinks alone. Hope owners see this.. there were patrons leaving in droves last night read more

I was really excited to try this place because there are so few piano bars around and I couldn't wait to go! Upon walking in, I thought it was really cute...not terribly crowded, but I was looking forward to a nice relaxing evening with good music and a few cocktails. I took a seat against the back wall, and my boyfriend headed to the bar for drinks. Not one but two bartenders were literally right in front of him--neither said hello, I'll be right with you--NOTHING!! Instead, they both went to the other side of the bar where the male bartender became busy looking at his phone and the female chatted with people she obviously knew. We were both dressed nicely..so if they have a policy of not waiting on slobs most definitely that was not the case! Having bartended part time at a country club many years ago, I know how important good customer service and a welcoming atmosphere is--these bartenders clearly have not received the proper training or just don't give a darn. We left within 15 minutes and headed to a place that appreciated our business. AND..TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE...I actually sent a comment to the owner of the business letting her know of our experience BEFORE posting this review! Guess what?? I got no reply. SO.... the owner doesn't care AND the bartenders don't care or appreciate their customers. Well, I don't care about spending my money here. Adios, Shirley's and good riddance! read more