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Category: Beer, Wine & Spirits [Edit]
Neighborhoods: Lincoln Square, RavenswoodWestern (Brown)
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I've never been to the bar, but the liquor store part of Cardinal Wine & Spirit is great. I'm a beer fan, and I consistently find brews for seventy-five cents to a buck-fifty cheaper than other stores in the area.
Selection could be better, but the prices are right and the staff is friendly.
What a great idea. Bar and a liquor store all in one. And the prices are great. $2 shock tops. TV's. And yeah some of the people are regulars and older, but sit down and talk to them, you can learn a lot about shit you never even realized.
It's like a clean dive bar that has plenty of lighting. Honestly, if I lived in the area, I'd be here every night.
Long story short (to quote bar patron Steve) this is the place to go for cheap beer. The store has very competitive prices and the bar is far cheaper than the other bars in Lincoln Square (at least the ones I've been to). The reviews below are all accurate, so I won't repeat those details, although I do want to say that both the staff and patrons were very friendly to us newbies.
If you are a sports fan and are looking for a bar where you can actually hear the TV, and not obnoxiously loud music and people, this is the place to go. But they don't have food -- this is purely a drinking establishment.
Cardinal Warehouse Wines & Spirits of Niles will be setting up tent at the Feastivals, pouring wine, beer and rumor has it a martini tasting November 17th at the Copernicus Theater. Manager Adam Silverstein will be making a presentation on the main stage.
This review will be in two movements, followed by a coda that may have no relation to the rest of the Yelp.
Cardinal Wine and Spirit is actually a liquor store attached to a bar. It's a little bit of alcohol overload.
The liquor store side of things was noticeably better lit than usual and remarkably hobo free. Good selections of the hard stuff and beer and it looked like they had a ton of wine but I hardly ever buy wine away from TJ's.
The bar side has an almost uncanny townie feel with a couple of over 40 watching sports alone with a friend. Girls showing up here without some dudes of their own will probably feel pretty creeped out by the leering. But the specials here are AMAZING. $6 domestic pitchers on Thursdays included 312 which is pretty unmatched in town. Other nights have their own deals going, but Thursday might be the best of them. The bartenders are also reported to be quite friendly and one is a secret old man nerd.
Screw Flanders.
I have nothing terribly new to say about the place, but I just realized I'd forgotten to include it here as one of my long time favorites. I've been a customer here for about eight years. I like the choice of single bottled Czeck, Croatian, and Lithuanian lagers. The variety is less than it used to be but still a fun way to try different Eastern Europeans brews, mostly Pilsener-esque. And as far as other beers go, there is always great variety and always great prices. The hard liquor here is a good value, too. Very friendly and helpful staff.
I love the tap room, too, which is a unique Chicago thing. Always festive, friendly, and full of neighbors with names like Marty and Stell. Not a bad Saturday afternoon hang, either. No attitude. Some patrons who kind of yell instead of talk. What's up with THAT!?
I love, love the taproom here.
It's like your average neighborhood dive but well lit and clean. Bob is one of my top five bartenders in Chicago, he always makes me feel loved, and tonight he gave us some really bitchen broccoli salad.
The liquor store part is pretty good too.
I usually go to one of the liquor stores across from the Western L stop, because they're a little bit closer to where I lived for years. Now, I live two blocks farther away, but I fully intend on going to the Cardinal more frequently. It's cheaper than the other places, with a better selection of everyone (liquor, beer, wine). I especially like their vodka section. They have one kind that comes in a bottle shaped like an AK-47 (I want that, just for the bottle but I'm sure I'd like the booze too), and recently started selling an organic vodka made from organic sugarcane that is AMAAAAAAAZING. I mean awful. It's horrible, the worst vodka ever, worse than UV. Don't buy it there, buy the other kinds. No, it's actually the best vodka I've probably ever had (I usually drink Gordon's or Fleishmann's though), I just don't want other people buying it all.
Bar is amazing, Liquor store is amazing. Staff is equally amazing. Amazing place to watch a Blackhawks game. 'Nuff said!
Ah, my neighborhood liquor store. When I am in need of booze, and can't make it to TJ's for my two buck chuck cases, I hit this place up. They have an eclectic array of wine. I am not sure what else to call it. It's all over the place. Random bottles placed on the shelves sort of grouped by the locations of the vineyards, but not really. All I really care about is the fact that I know exactly where the Barefoot chardonnay is located. Wham-bam, I grab my three bottles and I am out of the door in under five minutes.
One star off for the fact that they do not carry Fetzer wines. It's a pretty cheap wine, $9.99 for a bottle of chardonnay, so I was disappointed. But not surprised, given the slightly manic array of wines offered.
I like this place. They have a good selection, and no one looks at you weird for going there twice in one night or purchasing alcohol before 9 a.m. (Uhm...not that I've done those things or anything...yeah...)
I'm a little sad they don't have "Just Desserts" brand liquor anymore. This was pretty much the only place in the tri-state area that sells it, but it was like a tease. They never brought it back.
Still, I've had some great wines from here and the employees are helpful and cool.
I'm not sure about the adjacent bar, though. I walked through it once, and the scent reminded me of the cleaning products we used to use to clean the dog grooming shop where i used to work. I may be a little oversensitive in the olfactory realm, but dog grooming and bar just don't go together in my nose or head.
I've been going here for a couple of weeks, mostly to catch the Blackhawks game in the lounge. Staff is friendly and attentive, $2 tall boys and hockey? Best lil' bar in the city. Bob for president!
I usually just buy booze at Jewel or Dominick's, but sometimes I'm looking for something a little less generic. Cardinal Liquors is comparable to Foremost with their selection - a bunch of beers I've never heard of, the Delerium/Chimay/Duvel big bottles, and row upon row of wines. The guys behind the counter are always friendly and helpful. Last time I was there, stocking up for the holidays, they gave me boxes and helped me carry everything to my car. Customer service at its best. The parking lot is a little claustrophobic, but they have entrances on Lincoln and Western, which helps.
Its my last ditch when in need of spirits(not wine). Aisles and stock are too crowded which results in the cashier watching as you make your way around. Their usual pricing is too high and the crappy beers seem to always be on sale.
Every time I happen here, I meet a strange person or a person in a strange situation.
Last time: exotic dancers in need of direction and the misguided guy (that was collecting money on Western and Lincoln) who said the money was for food. I guess he lost his way also.
I've got mixed feelings about this place. They've got a moderately good selection of craft beer and wine. Most of the prices are fair or a little better. Occasionally they'll have amazing sales, and that's when Cardinal becomes something special. I once got a 12-Pack of Goose Island for $10, a sixer of Red Hook for $3, and a 30-pack of PBR for $11. The problem is that sometimes the advertised sale prices will suddenly change when you get to the register.
Its not the best liquor store in the city, but a discerning shopper can score some good deals on occasion.
Great selection, great prices, helpful and friendly staff, clean and not full of skeevy people-- I love my neighborhood party store! (Yes, I'm from Michigan.) Plus, they carry Redbridge for the celiacs. Jewel is preferred for cheapness, but a sixer of Labatt's for $6 is a pretty swell deal! One of these days I've got to belly up to the bar for a cold one. ;)
For my 100th review I pick... Cardinal? What can I say, I stopped in here yesterday.
These guys have a decent selection of Italian and inexpensive California wines, with an emphasis on Romanian and other european wines (catering to the neighborhood I imagine). Some gaps, sure, but you should able to find something to meet your needs. They also have a huge old-school wooden beer refrigerator packed with a nice combo of cheap stuff, European beers, and microbrews. The folks that work here are real personable-like too, which makes up for the stale-beer-and-smoke stench wafting over from the bar area.
FINALLY----after recently moving to Lincoln Square, it's VERY disappointing not being able to find a decent liquor store with selection & fair pricing. CARDINAL HAS IT BOTH---Finally, I have found my neighborhood liquor store. And, the staff is surprisingly friendly.
LOVE my Cardinal! Such a fantastic selection of beer and wine, and prices that can't be beat! plus, and you wouldn't expect it here, the service is wonderful. Cardinal's beer-buyer is a genius. Every time I go in (which is at least once/week) there is a new brew to try, and the employees always know what to recommend.
Cardinal is a reason to live in Lincoln Square, it is that good!
This might be my favorite bar/liquor store. Did you read that it's a bar and it's a liquor store. A one stop shop for all your boozing needs. This place is no frills, just the way a proper drinking establishment should be. My friends and I watched the amazing Celtics comeback while pouring back $6 pitchers. Then, without having to leave the building we were able to pick up a case for home. I want to live there. Seriously.
The bar attached to the liquor store is long overdue for some praise. Simple and kinda divey, the bartender here makes up for it with his super friendly demeanor. I think his name is Bob. He also brings in home-cooked food that is amazing (tacos, wings, italian beef, etc) and he's especially passionate about the patrons enjoying his eats. I never thought I would enjoy drinking there as much as I did.
Cardinal is the best liquor store in the neighborhood when it comes to sheer variety of booze. They have a solid selection of beer, wine, liquors like vodka and jaeger, scotch, gin and whiskey. The selection isn't as varied as say Binny's, however they have most of the basic staples when it comes to alcohol consumption. The prices are very reasonable and the staff are helpful when it comes to trying to figure out what kind of wine you want to try.
Neighborhood: Lincoln Square
Category: Beer, Wine & Spirits
Neighborhood: Lincoln Square
Category: Coffee & Tea
Neighborhood: Lincoln Square
Category: Grocery
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