People Lounge

We went there for a "casual" dinner on a Sunday evening which turned into a $120 bill. So much for casual.

The food was good though! My favorite was the queso de cabra. Goat cheese is a sign that god loves us (so is chocolate and frozen yogurt.) We also got the ceviche which was good, the people's steak which was alright and the steak sammies which were really tender and tastey.

No room for dessert but we got the mango sangria (2 pitchers) and it was realllly good. I could have easily gotten another one but as a professional...I had to work on Monday. Haha.

We sat outside too which is a GREAT spot to people watch - especially in Wicker Park.

See my pics.

My husband and I went here during the week last May. It was pretty quiet and we had an excellent waitress. Naturally, we started off with the Sangria. The waitress allowed us to taste two kinds of sangria before we ordered the carafe. We ordered a decent amount of tapas throughout the evening:

*** [see my photos] ***
Goat cheese - I loved this, but wished there was more of the garlic crusted bread. My husband wasn't all that in to the goat cheese.

Pan seared scallops - This is usually my husbands favorite dish; however, these were some of the worst scallops he ever ordered. There were soggy and did not taste fresh at all.

Lamp lollipops - This is my favorite dish at People Lounge. The dish came with three lollipops...my husband took one and left two for me. Deee lish!

Skirtsteak - This was the second time I've had this dish and both times were quite disappointing to me. I warned my husband that it was a tiny portion, but he really wanted to taste it. We agreed that the steak was good and very tender, but not worth the price...especially because of the portion size.

Patata Brava - Perhaps I'm biased since it was my husbands' selection, but I did not care for this dish at all. He said it was just okay and it was the only dish we did not finish. Overpriced fries with drizzles of sauce.

Pork Empanadas - These were okay, not really my thing. My husband loved them and wanted a second order.

Chocolate cake - This was so rich and good (and I'm not a huge chocolate lover). It went perfectly with the vanilla ice cream and plated with some sort of thin crunchy brule' sauce. Very good!


We spent about $80 (including tax and tip) even with the restaurant.com discount.


Note:
On my earlier visit I ordered 4 or 5 dishes with my friend, but I can only remember a couple of them at the moment. I highly recommend the bacon-wrapped dates and the ceviche. Don't forget the sangria!

My friend celebrated her 30th bday here last night with 15 of her closest friends. And if you're looking for a lively atmosphere for a celebration with a big group of people this is it! Fabulous Fabio (the event coordinator at people) was in charge of our group and he's just so...well, fabulous... that I may need him for all my future party planning needs whether they are at People Lounge or not. Think Franc from Father of the Bride- that's pretty much what Fabio is like!

Since there was so many people in our party we had a pre-ordered group menu. The appetizers didn't start off so well. Umm, hello People? You can't share a few bowls of gazpacho among 16 people!

As the meal went on the food got surprisingly better (or perhaps it was that we just kept getting drunker and drunker as we downed glasses of sangria). Some favorites included croquetas, the gambas (marinated shrimp), and the skirt steak.

Dessert wasn't anything special, but that's probably cause someone had brought a cookie cake from Cookies by Design (so yum) that stole the show.

I probably wouldn't come back with just my hubby or a small group of people because I'd rate the food at about a 3, but such a good spot for any big group celebration (bday, bachelorette party, etc). Thanks Fabio and Happy Birthday Aubrey!

Walked by for ages and never thought to stop in. My buddies play some pretty good house music and was able to DJ a gig here this past Saturday. Came in and grabbed a table and was able to hear the sounds of my buddy mixing up some nice joints. I wasn't too hungry so I decided on something very small, the aceitunas. The Aceitunas is basically spanish manzanilla olives, pickled garlic & cornichons.
It was really good...so good actually we ordered another bowl of it.

For our drinking pleasure, we went with the pitcher of white sangria. It went down pretty smooth, so smooth that it cuased us to order another pitcher which resulted in a drunken evening. Our waitress Nicole was really nice and attentive. Good place to get some good tapas and it looks like a good place to have a nice gathering with a few friends

Again, I've been coming here for about a year or two and I love everything about them!

The service is great - Nicole, Aaron and Fabio are awesome. I come in there just to shoot the sh*t with them on occasion - just because.

The food is delicious. Though I don't come here to get full, I like to sit outside with a couple friends, eat good food and people watch while drinking a nice cool Stella Artois.

I think that this is a great place to go for drinks, and fun before heading out to another spot.

Stopped by here again last night to have a couple of drinks with friends and my headline is, that this place needs some work and there are better places in Wicker Park to grab a drink with friends.

Now mind you- the first time I was here, it was after a YELP event and since I was so underwhelmed (could it have been from the large quantity of alcohol I consumed at the first place?) I didn't even think to YELP it as my overall experience was not good. Having now been back, I am still wondering if it is worth my effort but here goes nothing.

I am not crazy about this place. The drinks are expensive, the servers surly and there are too many people standing around trying to look "cool". It took forever to get a drink at the bar and it wasn't that crowded. There is only one women's room which you stand in a hallway and wait for. The good news there is that once you get in - it is relatively clean!

The noise level in this place ensures that you must shout to be heard which also gets old after awhile although the music that they are playing is nice.. Also- while I am a social person- the community seating works well if you come with a large group which I did the first time, but puts you in the middle of other's conversations if you are a smaller party.

On the plus side- the food is okay. I like the concept of tapas and sharing food with your friends. The shrimp with the garlic sauce and the calamari are quite good. The bar has a fairly extensive list of beers (I had some Belgian something or other based on the bartender's recommendation and it was quite tasty!)

I think the concept is solid. It just needs to decide if it really needs to be as "upscale" as it is pretending to be or if it could relax a little (in terms of pretense and price) and just become a great place to stop by with friends.

One of my best friends had planned her birthday party here recently and the planners here are the most unhelpful, money-making, dishonest and inflexible people ever!

The food portions are tiny and we were forced to have a pre-menu for 15 people, but the portions they brought out were definitely for 8! They, in fact, made us pay for 20 because one of us had at one time mentioned to them casually that we may have more than 15, and even though only 12 actually showed up, they used that slip-of-tongue-almost to charge us for 20!!!

The place itself is cramped - so I highly recommend against ever hosting a party here!!

I've been to a lot of tapas restaurants and this...is one of them.

Seriously, this is fine, and you'll find all the tapas standards on their menu, but nothing really stood out in any way, +/-. There was plenty of room in early afternoon on a week-end.

A serviceable option on Milwaukee near the Six Corners.

The four of us headed to People Lounge on a Friday night for a post-Bulls game meal. It was on the late side so getting a table wasn't a problem (I've heard otherwise at regular times). The place has a fun vibe with TVs over a long bar (with lots of people hanging out, getting to know each other a little too much for public consumption, etc) and busy but happy servers. Geoff and Ashley had been before so we let them take care of ordering off of the Spanish influenced tapas menu. Erica requested goat cheese with red sauce, and I love the spicy potatoes. Everything else was a surprise more or less. Our service was great, the food mostly good and the sangria a disappointment. The value isn't bad, about $40 per person all-in, with two pitchers and lots of food.

I wish I remembered all the details of the food, but unmemorable dishes says something too. The potatoes and goat cheese were great, and the tuna tartare was first rate. I didn't love the empanada, or the chicken dish, but the scallops were pretty tasty and well cooked. They only served three and with a side of scalloped potatoes in block form. The scalloped potatoes were a little too over the top for the dish and overall scene. Our desserts were tasty - traditional flan and a very rich chocolate lava cake. At that point in the evening we were not eating everything on our plate.

When you're located at Damen and North, it is not surprising to focus on drinks and atmosphere vs. food experience. People Lounge is a fun spot that serves good food and fits into the neighborhood well. It would not be my first stop for world class tapas, nor do I think they would disagree. I wish they would modify their sangria recipes a bit (actually tone down the alcohol), but I'm probably in the minority. It's a good choice for a fun night out.

It would be 5 stars but the skirt steak portion, as well as their other food portions, are on the small side.. even though it is a tapas bar.. a little more wouldn't hurt.

Okay! You can not go wrong with $19.00 sangria bottles! $25 if you're spicing it up with pineapple, mango, passion fruit, and others.

I went around 11pm with a few friends and gf. Very welcoming, an in-house DJ who played exceptional music but leaned towards hip-hop and top40, and the waitress/waiters are really friendly. For a tapas bar, its a little expensive ($$$) but when sangria and alcohol is in the system, memories are priceless!

I recommend the mussels which is served in a huge portion and the pineapple sangria!!

Ill definitely check this place out again but I'll make sure to eat a little before to save money and enjoy the over-flowing sangria bottles!