We found Is Was Brewing after recommendation from another brewery in the area! We were drawn to the…read moreartwork and the proximity, as it was raining! The space itself is quite large, with spots to gather with different sized groups and even some ski ball and other arcade features to entertain. The server was quite friendly and provided us a brief history of the brand, as we were the only ones in the space on a rainy Thursday right when they opened. The beer selection leans toward various types of Saisons. It's definitely an acquired taste and not for everyone, but the ones we had were delicious! I'd recommend the Rustic Brown, as it had a bit of smoke and wasn't as funky as some of the other ones I tasted.

I was last at this location when it was Urban Brew Labs. The decor inside looks very similar…read more They specialize in saisons. Service was decent. Signs also say they have bingo and other events.

After a long Sunday afternoon following a Cubs home game, when most neighborhood bars would be…read moreoverwhelmed and scrambling, Village Tap somehow still managed to deliver one of the best bar experiences in Roscoe Village. The day started off gloomy and gray, but as the clouds broke and the city transformed into a beautiful spring afternoon, the atmosphere inside Village Tap matched that same energy shift -- warm, lively, and welcoming. What truly makes this place stand out is the staff. Even while absolutely slammed with customers after another raucous Cubs post game crowd rolled through, Meg and Kevin never missed a beat. Their professionalism, attentiveness, and ability to stay accommodating under pressure was genuinely impressive. Their professionalism, attentiveness, and ability to stay accommodating under pressure was genuinely impressive. They made sure everyone felt taken care of, stayed on top of drinks and service, and somehow still kept the experience fun and relaxed despite the chaos around them. Kevin's witty banter and sense of humor add a personality to the bar that you just don't find anywhere around that area. It creates the kind of environment where regulars and first-timers alike instantly feel comfortable. Meanwhile, Meg handles the rush with incredible poise and attention to detail, making sure guests always feel valued and welcomed. Village Tap has always been a great neighborhood spot, but experiences like this are what separate good bars from truly memorable ones. Great drinks, great atmosphere, and even better people behind the bar. Even on one of their busiest, most understaffed days, Meg and Kevin proved exactly why this place continues to be a Roscoe Village favorite. My only gripe is The Golden Tee Cabinet. Whats a guy gotta do to get a recalibration on that system! Mid Range left to right putts always miss on the low side. Not sure what to do, but I will carry on...

Tried to listen to TikTok's advice, and they didn't lie- as I'm sure you'll read, the Chicken…read moreCaesar Wrap is good. Confirmed. But it's also huge and I cannot contemplate eating it alone, so I recommend begging a pal or partner to go halfsies with you (as shown.) You save your tummy and a few bucks (so long as they agree to split the bill, but details) Definitely busier on the weekends, especially during football season. Had to go up to the bar to order after wait for a bit. Be prepared to wait or not have over the top service on Saturdays and Sundays.

This place is amazing. I go here with my family a lot and they love it. The food is amazing and…read moreservice is on point.

My experience with Bitterpops has been with pickup orders (not with the bar or the sitdown service)…read moreand it's always been good; food is always hot and ready when I arrive. My favorite menu items are the Irish Spice Bags; I love the fact that besides the original spice bag, they also offer a limited edition one, and you can always count on it being tasty and delicious. One star off for skimping; while the bag itself is delicious and ample enough for more than one meal, the last time I ordered it was 85% fries and peppers and 15% chicken. That's not cool at all.

Really great selection!…read more The place is really cute and homey with awesome art, comfy couches, a fire place, and tons of other cute features. Deffinatley check out their social media, they host a ton of cool events!

Came here for a local meet up for some friends. They were about to celebrate their wedding the next…read moreday. The bar staff was extremely friendly and we had the area in the back nice and quiet to ourselves. They have so many different beers to try it's amazing! They do a great job in hosting events for small parties and they were extremely attentive and friendly. We will return when in the area.

Great vibe, great food…read more The pizza is from Middlebrow and it's fantastic pizza. Great toppings, flavorful combinations of toppings, fresh ingredients. The dough is delicious as well, tall but light and fluffy with a crispy edge to it. Would definitely get pizza there again. The beer menu is great, plenty of different styles and appreciate the access to the entire storefront. In fact, when I ordered the beer I wanted, they were out of it, so the guy just hopped into the storefront and go the next closest thing (another belgian quad that I know well). Will definitely return, had a great time

Quaint little neighborhood bar with a great beer selection and a nice little kitchen…read more With 15+ beers on tap, I was surprised that I only had 1 before walking in. Started off with a west coast ipa that was excellent. Chased that with a Pilsner that was okay, followed by a cask red ale that was delicious. Tried a taste of the Scratch paw paw and hated it. Glad it was only a taste. Ordered a Caesar salad and a pepperoni & sausage pizza. The salad was outstanding. Big enough for a family of 4 and had a nice assortment of anchovies on top, which sucked balls, but a great salad nonetheless. The pizza is a Detroit style. Well put together with a great red sauce and plenty of cheese, but the sausage, though plentiful, had a twang to it. Service was super friendly and reasonably fast. Glad we gave it a try.

Milwaukee Avenue is such a treasure trove of places to eat, drink and shop. My love and I were…read moreabout to head somewhere else along Milwaukee Avenue when we literally happened to spot Navigator Taproom and decided to try it out. Navigator Taproom is a place where you pour your own beer and are charged by the ounce, so be careful! There are over 50 taps to choose from, so there's quite a variety of beers, ciders, and even wines that will appeal to just about all tastes. Between the two of us, I think we tried out seven different beers and ciders, and I'd say we enjoyed every ounce that we poured. Paper Plane Pizza is part of the establishment, though we did not eat anything. Definitely give Navigator Taproom if you're in the area.

Great idea, reasonably priced, extra value at Happy Hour and extremely economical with a Groupon. A…read moretrue Choose Your Adventure drinking experience. Pay by the amount YOU or from the taps. Besides beer, seltzer, and kombucha, there are several wines and cocktails. Local, international, craft and classic brews all labeled by style. While detailed descriptions may be lacking, tasting an ounce for a few cents isn't a big commitment. They are also low and no alcohol selections. There's currently a pizza pop up providing food. Hostess was super helpful. There are a few outside tables as well. Good music. And games. Something for anyone and everyone. Will return.

I wish more people knew about how amazing Guild Row is! My husband and I sort of stumbled upon it…read moreone afternoon. They have a huge outdoor patio, and we decided to eat lunch there. What a calming space - both indoors and outdoors. There are plenty of tables to sit and do work. There are numerous outlets outside so that your devices will never die on you! The bar opens at 3pm. We were there earlier so we grabbed an espresso and enjoyed the sunshine. The patio is dog-friendly! I can't wait to go back this week and get some work done!

Got to visit Guild Row and their new LTO ("LIMITED TIME ONLY") which is a patio bar and restaurant…read more LTO features Po'Boy, Wine, Live Music and soft serve ice cream. This restaurant is only available for a limited time through the summer months of 2024. We were fortunate to attend an After Party Popup sponsored by Motorshucker with complimentary food samples and wine from Regalis & Cream. We were able to divulge in some yummy caviar (Regalis Ostera Noir) and oysters. In addition to some lite bites of salami, meats, cheeses and peppers. These all came from Regalis and were delicious. I would definitely like to try their full size charcuterie board this summer. I may even try to order some charcuterie meats and cheeses from Regalis. They were premium quality. LTO also had for purchase their full menu. We ordered the Catfish Po Boy and Kettle Chips. Very impressed with this sandwich. They did a good job of frying the fish and the hoagie bread was perfect. The kettle chips compliment the sandwich. The Raventos i Blanc was the favorite wine tasted on this occasion. Guild Row itself is very cute co-working space. Lots of tables, couches and comfy areas to work. This space serves also as a social club. I could see how combining the two are a perfect pair. The members only lounge had a full service bar: liquor, wine, and beer. Our evening was awesome. We enjoyed the sounds of the live music, the divine smells coming from the fire pit. Would definitely consider a membership as a person that WFH and will be on the look out for more opportunities to visit LTO (no membership needed).

Hopleaf Bar is hands down one of our favorite spots for dinner and drink in all of Chicago!…read more One key to a successful dinning experience at Hopleaf is knowing the three different spaces to engage. When you first walk in, you have to show your ID since this is an adults-only bar establishment. (1) You can then choose to sit in the front bar area, if you want a full menu, but use the bar for ordering service. (2) If you keep walking through the front bar area, you reach the host stand at the top of the ramp. This is where you can put your name in to sit in the main dining room, upstairs, or outside. (3) However, you can also walk through to the left of the host stand to another bar area that has full menus, but bar service for ordering. This is our preferred spot because we can often find a seat and order with the bar. Do note that, during busy times, part of this bar area is managed by the host stand and will be labeled as such. The extensive beer menu is our favorite. We have our favorite food items, so all our decision making revolves around which beer we will get. They always have a bit of everything style-wise, from all over the world, but with a local-brewery focus. Seasonal emphasis is also taken into consideration when they curate the beer list. It is always rotating and we love it! Beers are served in the recommended glasses from the breweries. It's a great drinking experience from start to finish! Our food orders are eternally set: I get the Nueske Ham sandwich with fries and aioli. My husband gets the Reuben sandwich with fries and aioli. This meal is so perfect we'll probably never get anything different, despite the menu being delicious across the board. The wildest we get is sometimes splitting the two sandwiches. No reason to mess with a good thing! Other notable great things about Hopleaf: (1) Kind, knowledgeable, and professional staff. (2) Reasonable prices for high quality and great variety products. (3) Clean Belgian Bar decor/vibe with lots of space for folks to enjoy their time. (4) They are open late and serve food late. Thank you for being an amazing local spot, Hopleaf! We'll see you soon!

Simply, all around excellent!…read more This was one of those cases where I stopped in, started a review, and then it sat in my drafts collecting dust. Thus, a return visit was a must! Primarily because I genuinely enjoyed it, and secondarily because I enjoy writing. Hopleaf boasts a tremendous and awesome beer list! It's truly hard to do it justice in a review. I will say they offer a wide variety of different kinds, origins, styles, bottle versus draft, and so on. For those who aren't beer lovers, there are cocktails, ciders, and more! For food, I was able to try both the Pork Belly and the Slagel Burger. The pork belly was much better than I expected! The exterior was delightfully roasted, and the interior was soft and savory with a good balance between meaty and fatty bits. The pork was well-sauced, and the accompanying accoutrements were similarly fantastic, helping to round out the pork, and adding freshness. On my first visit, my main memory of the burger was a very high salt level. However, this appears to have been addressed on my second visit. Now, is it the best burger in the city? No. However, it is excellent in its own right. The smashed patties have good flavor and a proper char around the edges. The vegetables are present but not so overwhelming that it becomes a hard-to-eat salad, and finally, it is delightfully cheesy! Where service is concerned, the bar staff were friendly and welcoming. They took great care of me and other patrons approaching the bar. Food came out in a reasonable timeframe, especially for items cooked to order. In terms of their vibe, I feel as though the best way I can describe it is to say it's a larger, elevated dive bar. It isn't cramped or dark, and there's plenty of space. At the same time, it isn't at all uppity and preserves that neighborhood establishment feel (though I would certainly go across town to visit on occasion). Finally, regarding value, when the bill came, I felt the amount due was more than reasonable considering the quality of food, beers, and service I received. Thus, while I am generally not a big beer drinker (I'm more of a spirits/cocktails person), I'm not totally against printing out their beer menu and crossing out items as I try them. That is to say, I look forward to coming back again and again.

We've been longtime fans of Cultivate-- the food, drinks, and ambiance are always amazing. We…read morerecently hosted our engagement party at Cultivate in their private taproom, and we could not be more happy with how everything went! Brian, Logan, and Nico made the entire process incredibly easy from start to finish. Coordinating the menu was super straightforward, communication was excellent, and pricing and logistics were all very clear and organized. We heard from so many of our 60 guests about how impressed they were with the drinks, bar snacks, and beautiful space. We're so grateful to the Cultivate team and would highly recommend them for private events!

Overall, our party felt that Cultivate was an okay experience. The food itself was hit or miss. The…read moreduck confit with dumplings had a nutty taste that overpowered the dish. The cheese plate was yummy, but we were surprised by the size of it. We like the mushroom pasta. It took a long time to get or check and initial orders in. It was a convenient location, but would likely go elsewhere in the future.

Sleeping Village is a great spot! I came here for a concert a few weeks ago and it was an awesome…read moretime. The building is pretty unassuming on the outside and looks a lot smaller than it actually is. Once you're in, the main space indoors is a big open bar with some tables/booths and places to sit but also a lot of standing room. There is a big drink menu that is projected onto the wall that is pretty beer heavy, but there are some other options for non beer drinkers! I got a jalapeno ranch water that was really good. There is a large patio space that looks so fun for the summer. The concert venue is in the back. It's pretty small, but perfect for more intimate shows. We had so much fun!! This place really is such a gem, and I can't wait to come back for some drinks on the patio when the weather warms up.

The name of this bar and venue is adorable. So nicely done right off the bat! Lots of seating for…read moresmall-medium sized groups. Two of which were having a great time when we arrived. We sat at the bar, because it's my default settings or my AuDHD need for routine. Very attentive bartender who greeted us right as we sat down. I'll be honest. I ordered a gin and tonic. My estimation is that this G&T was 75% tonic. I didn't say anything because I don't know what to say. I also do not like confrontation. The venue itself is fantastic! We were there to see KING MALA. ADORE EVERYTHING ABOUT HERE. My boyfriend sprung for VIP tickets. I have no money but meeting her was amazing. Highly recommend seeing a chow here. Intimate, great sound, and a bar inside who made me an on point G&T!