- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
O'Neil's on Wells
Categories: Nightlife Bars Sports Bars Restaurants American (New) Sports Bars, American (New) [Edit]
411 S Wells St(between Van Buren St & Congress Pky)
Chicago, IL 60607
Neighborhood: The Loop
(312) 922-1778
- Nearest Transit:
-
Lasalle/van Buren (Brown Line, Orange Line, Pink Line, Purple Line)
Lasalle (Blue Line)
Quincy/wells (Brown Line, Orange Line, Pink Line, Purple Line)
- Hours:
Mon-Thu 10:30 am - 12 am
Fri 10:30 am - 2 am
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- Free
- Good For:
- Late Night, Lunch
- Music:
- Juke Box
- Best Nights:
- Thu
- Happy Hour:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Good For Dancing:
- Yes
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Dogs Allowed:
- No
21 reviews for O'Neil's on Wells
Review Highlights
-
"We had some pizza as well which was very tasty and crispy." In 8 reviews -
"This has always been a fun place to go and relax after work." In 4 reviews -
"Reggie's Pizza is the best." In 2 reviews
Loading...
21 reviews in English
-
Review from Fred S.
Chicago, IL
1/8/2009
If you like something a lil bit better than a dive bar this is your place.
The crowd is hit or miss. Generally during the week after 2pm due to all the traders getting off early but thursday and friday can be pretty good.
They also have shuttle service free to bears games. Good crowd, type of place you can feel comfortable in and do as you please as long as you're not a jackass. Not corporate or uptight. Very relaxed and a place you can let loose. Lots of regulars and alot of people you can easily strike up a conversation with. Crowd varies widely. Better in the summer time. Nice lil outdoor area in the sun. -
Review from John H.
Updated - 3/4/2012
Alcock's has rebooted as O'Neil's.
This is still a primarily happy hour bar. And happy hour at a bar in the Loop is entirely hit or miss. My last visit was more of a miss.
We stopped in on a Friday and got the last open table in the place. I think our all our good bar karma was used up there, though. We waited for a waitress to stop by for ten minutes before I went up to the bar to get a round.
When I got back, my group told me she'd finally stopped by when I was at the bar. Dammit. I know this is not good. Waitresses aren't big on being cut out of the game. I'm not too apologetic, though. I'm a patient man, but not where my first drink after a long day at work is concerned.
We finished our round and Halley's Comet passed by a few times before she came by again, because there are only so many pickup lines the tables of old married guys by us could use before she got bored. When she brought our second round to the table, it was two bucks more expensive than when I'd bought it at the bar. I could deal with this convenience charge if the service were good, but hey.
Still better than Cactus. Think before going there.1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
5/28/2011
It's always fun to stumble upon a new bar in the Loop. If you omit hotel bars, there aren't too… Read more »
-
-
Review from Gamaliel E.
Chicago, IL
5/19/2012 3 Check-ins Here
Yeah...nothing really special about this place. They serve beer and have a jukebox. The beer selection isn't vast...but there's always plenty of seating if you have a good sized group for happy hour. The staff has always been nice to us, and the owner will walk around the place saying hello. I find this place much easier to listen to fellow coworkers talk versus Cactus. Go if you don't want the hassle of finding a table, and just want a decent beer.
-
Review from Chantelle T.
Los Angeles, CA
3/15/2012 1 Check-in Here
Not a bad spot if you're looking for a fun night with a bunch of friends. Their drinks are definitely on the strong side so you get your money's worth and they're pretty chill about what you do there. We basically managed to get them to change up the music selection so we could dance the night away. ^o^
-
Review from Donny J.
Chicago, IL
9/19/2011 11 Check-ins Here
There is not many places or bar's that allows you to bring in your own food from neighboring shops. One in particular that comes to mind is Skrine Chops.
Do yourself a favor if you happen to find Skrine Chops open, get a pork sandwich on bed of garlic mash potatoes then bring it to Alcock's and get your favorite beer, its a perfect match.
The beer selection is down to bare minimum but I am sure you'll find what your taste-buts crave for. In this trader's bar you'll stumble into many interesting stories from strangers if you have the time and ear to lend.
Also they run the AC a bit too cold for my liking, I am sure 70deg is adequate for most but 63 deg is bit too cold for my blood, surely Alcock's can save some cash and up the AC just a little more closer to 70. -
Review from Ben K.
11/6/2011
The re-branding of Alcock's as "O'Neil's" did nothing to change the venue. It's still a dingy bar full of dudes drinking $3 canned beer. The music is a bit too loud and the bartenders are cougarish but all look a little funny. The outdoor patio is solid when it's nice out and you can enjoy the afternoon sun, but as one of my companions said while we were there: "this place makes Franklin Tap look downright swanky."
-
Review from Kristen H.
Chicago, IL
8/19/2011
This place was my go to bar when I worked downtown. The crowd is a bunch of traders, but if you like the dive bar scene then this is the place for you. This is a total happy hour bar. The prices are reasonable too. Plus you can people watch & laugh at the cactus crowd across the street.
-
Review from Steve O.
Chicago, IL
2/15/2007
While I've been here at other times, this review is based mainly on the weekday afternoon experience.
Every weekday Alcock's has a pizza special where you get a super slice & a soda for $3.25, tax included. It's pretty much the best deal in or near the loop. The pizza is better than it could be, which for some reason makes me happy enough to keep coming back. Only two people work in the pizza area, a dude always wearing a Bears hat and a vest and who speaks with a thick southside accent as well as a short Mexican guy with a mustache who barely speaks at all, and they both work there every day. The guy with the hat will sometimes make small talk about sports or politics (his latest: Obama won't catch Hillary).
The bar itself gets more and more crowded towards the end of the week. It's a cross section between a quarter suits and three-quarters construction workers. Interestingly enough, both seem to be drinking at 2pm for the same reason. Strong southside accents abound. There's usually a decent looking bartender, though they're on the older side (40 y/o milf-like). Not the worst place to get a beer, but certainly not a place to take afternoon drinking lightly. -
Review from An P.
Chicago, IL
1/2/2009
Alcock's, you are a good friend of mine in the summertime.
Alcock's is right by the Board of Trade selling Reggie's pizza in the back, some electronic darts, and patio seating in the summertime. You'll find the place starting to get people in right around the end of a trading day and the crowd will be a mix of young people and old asses coming out of the Board.
I like the summertime patio since the drinks are about $4-5 and it's a convenient place to meet friends near South Loop. Cal's Liquors is across the way and there are other places to eat nearby if the pizza does not do the trick. All in all I wouldn't go out go out of my way to get down here, but if it's Friday afternoon and I want to kick it, I'm down for a couple of brewskis at Alcock's.Listed in: Downtown Lunchtime Tomfoolery
-
Review from Dustin R.
Chicago, IL
4/9/2010
Somewhere in the hinterland between I-290 and the Loop, an antique and discolored cigarette smoke filtration machine buzzes and rattles, threatening to unbolt itself from the ceiling and crush the unsuspecting bar patrons below. This place is called Alcock's Inn and it could be a lot of fun: some relevant music is on the jukebox; there is a pizza oven that could be cleaned up, disinfected and called into service; the staff could easily don some industrial strength rubber gloves and wipe down the restrooms with a diluted bleach solution... The possibilities are truly endless here.
I give Alcock's one star for the cheap, strong drinks and a second star for our adorable waitress/bartender whose mixing talent and shaky boobs kept the rowdy after-work patrons engaged and involved all evening. -
Review from Nick S.
Palatine, IL
5/26/2011 20 Check-ins Here
Typical downtown dive bar. Best during the weekdays. Reggie's Pizza is the best.
-
Review from Bill M.
7/3/2006 2 photos
This South Loop watering hole is very popular with the traders. It is a bar with walls appropriately plastered with items related to local sports clubs - and the Rolling Stones. The waitresses are all tightly outfitted to get you in the mood to drink more beer.
-
Review from Michael F.
Chicago, IL
9/20/2008
A mixed crowd of traders and sports guys fills Alcock's on most nights. The beer is average price for the area, but the selection is poor. They serve pizza from the place next door, which is pretty good. It's a decent place to go after work in the loop if a game is on, otherwise I would suggest going to the nearby Cal's to get loaded.
-
Review from Maria C.
Chicago, IL
7/24/2007
I give it 5 stars for the simple fact that this place has always gotten me wasted w/o wasting so much money. This was our Thursday hangout. The owner let me go behind the bar one night to mix shots for my friends and I believe because we were such a huge group. We had some pizza as well which was very tasty and crispy. Very cheap if you go during lunch. They have a pizza slice and a soda for under $3.
Listed in: Escape from Work, Pizza, Pizza
-
Review from Mark G.
Lincoln Square, Chicago, IL
10/21/2008 1 Check-in Here
best and/or worst thing about Alcock's...make friends with a trader....they buy you drinks....end up in a black hole of debauchery and memory loss. you be the judge.
the pizza is good too. -
Review from Jack L.
Chicago, IL
1/28/2009
I remember when this place first opened back in the 70's in the middle of skid row right behind the Board of Trade... Before there was an Options Exchange. Bernie Alcock was a real pistol. ( a retired cop I think too) When one of the trader's girlfriends complained they didn't have any "good" wine he started stocking Dom Perignon right next to the Boone's Farm. This has always been a fun place to go and relax after work.
-
Review from Nick S.
Chicago, IL
4/6/2008 1 Check-in Here
It's a half a block from my work and the pizza is awesome. Not entirely my scene, but neither are any of my after work bars. I come here to decompress after work, not to socialize.
-
Review from Heather M.
Chicago, IL
4/4/2007
Haha, Alcock's! I work at the Board of Trade and it sure is popular with the traders, usually the older traders. The times I've been here have been just fine, my only complaint is that it smells like old men's dirty socks. Really- whenever I describe Alcock's smell that way everyone always says that it's a very apt description.
-
Review from Nicola C.
Chicago, IL
10/24/2005
I have been going to Alcock's for the past 10 years on st. Patrick's day parade day. It is so much fun, you will usually be partying with chicago cops and firemen, it is a lot of fun.
-
Review from Charlie H.
Elk Grove Village, IL
3/5/2011 1 Check-in Here
a must for all to see, real as it gets in Chicago... only bad or should i say sad part is that they do not serve Jeppson's Malort..if they did it would get a five star rating with me...
-
Review from Bill O.
Bolingbrook, IL
2/8/2008
Total dump, ignorant bar staff.
