On a mobile device? Try our mobile site, optimized for faster browsing.
Category: Sports Bars [Edit]
Neighborhood: LakeviewAddison (Red)
Loading...
The guys I was with called Sluggers "The Big Bang," since it had beer, batting cages, and a piano bar.....
Sluggers is a bit random....so much going on and so many rooms-slash-bars-slash-jello shot girls. This bar isn't much different than the other bars along Clark St., but it is fun. They play GREAT 80's music like Springsteen, etc.
And the jello shots are above average!
Although Slugger's has a nice atmosphere, and the bartender was very friendly and helpful, its kind of weird that on an off day, the beer "special" was to pay $3.50 for a BOTTLE of Corona. It does not suggest good things about the place when I have to pay that much for a bottle. It'd be a fine price for a pint of draft, but not for a bottle.
I ended up settling on a $3.50 Pabst Blue Ribbon, because I wasn't planning to spend much money. PBR is absolutely disgusting swill, and it was a bad choice. I can't comment on the night life, as I was only there in the afternoon, but they are way too overpriced for a neighborhood that is absolutely covered in bars.
This place is the typical Wrigleyville skeezy place. We went here on a Cubs game night and didn't realize the decent drink prices on the chalk board were only for NON game nights. So - I ended up paying $12 for 2 Corona's...with no limes.
Lots of horny wierdo's dancing with each other too. Kinda lame.
Extra props to the old dude sitting at the bar who spotted me a dollar since I only had $11 to pay for my over priced Corona's.
Didn't get to go upstairs to check out the batting cages...that might be cool.
batting cages, dueling pianos = okay
$5 bud lights?! = i don't think so!
newsflash, sluggers: you are not barelycorn or moe's. now, i still wouldn't go to either of those places to spend $5 on a bud light, but you don't have the atmosphere or clientele to back it up.
there are plenty of other bars in wrigleyville (look to your left or right) that don't have sticky floors, bad music (think 80's and out-dated top 40's) and aren't pro-rating their booze for no good reason. last time i was here the credit card machine was also down. fail. leave this place to the tourists!
This place is cool. Dueling pianos + batting cages + arcade games = FUN. I thought this place was awesome. Where else can you get drunk and win a kazoo with tickets you earned from a bball toss game? The dueling pianos were great. Gotta love drunken sing alongs. Stripper pole on top of the piano was a nice touch! Next time I'm in Chi-town I want to go back.
I'm not a Cubs fan, but I do like this place. Dueling pianos! I think that's all that needs to be said.
World Class? Pish Posh..
This place was a) incredibly hard to get a drink because they ONLY had female bartenders.. we ended up having a guy order our drinks, b) the crowd was so... unusually odd. b) the place in general was just not somewhere I see myself going again. I didn't experience the batting cages and this dueling piano goodness that everyone is speaking of, and maybe I should?, but I really don't see myself stepping foot in there again to test run those things.
I needed to break up the drive from Minneapolis to South Bend and since my beloved Twins were in town, I stopped in to watch the game, have a couple Old Styles and an Italian Beef with some friends.
Kenny Chesney stopped to watch the end of the game and have a beer, but he was run out by rabid fans wanting to touch him and get pictures. I'm not sure I understand people's fascination with celebs. Just because the guy sings songs, do you have to make a fuss when he wants to relax and enjoy a brew? There were even some worn out slappers hitting on his entourage and security detail.
Anyways, It was a great place to watch the game and relax out on the patio. But after the game the place was uncomfortably busy and we ended up leaving.
The sandwich was decent, certainly not the best Italian Beef in town, but it was largish, tasty, only $8 and came with fries. They served it without any peppers or au jus, you have to request that special.
The dirty floors, sticky chairs, out-dated music, and sketchy crowd are what generally make this a place I skip when out in wrigleyville. But since it was my friend's bachelorette weekend, and we'd been out all day at a cubs game, I thought it could be Ok- somewhat like beer goggles for an establishment.
Boy, was I wrong. I could not ignorantly sway through the drunk masses like I'd hoped. I was sobered up by the disgust. The dueling piano room was nothing short of torture. One player looked exactly like "Ernest" from the cheesy 80's movies, but sang like something out of "Deliverance." The other player SCREAMED all the wrong words into the mic. I was like "chick, back up a couple inches for the love of god." My ears are still ringing. To add to the excruciating pain were a couple busted drunk girls who danced on top of the pianos... it's not everyday you get to see ripped old navy thongs and sweat-stained trucker hats- what a treat!
No, I do not want to pay you $67 dollars to bang out the wrong chords to the Iowa fight song for the 28th time in a row.
Good times, good times. I like Sluggers for their lively mix of music. After a Cubs game, it's good to hear dance beats that remind you of a wedding dance. I can't stop singing or moving my feet. The bathrooms and floors are disgusting, but duh, it's a bunch of drunks swooshing beer around and high-fiving each other.
We didn't want to wait, but really wanted to try the batting cages on the 2nd floor. Dueling pianos are always fun too, but I loved the dance floor, so that's where we headed back to. The jello shots are a waste, but for some reason I had 5-6 of them. They're just are plain fun for drunks - trying to get the jello out and watching your buddies white shirt get destroyed. Ha! Ha!
Gross. That is the first word that comes to mind here. I came a couple weeks ago with visiting friends who found the piano bar online and I couldn't talk them out of it. Walking across the ground floor, my shoes stuck on every step---and it was only 9pm. The second level was ungodly hot, especially in comparison to the early May temps. One friend went to the bathroom and the look on her face when she returned kept my legs crossed all night. $7 for a teeny-tiny cranberry and vodka. Beer served in cans and waitresses walked around selling jello shots. Really. Still, they wanted to wait for the piano bar.
Pianos started around 10. $5 cover to get into that section of the bar. Personally, I hate piano bars so I'm biased. I went straight to the couches in the adjoining room hoping for something quieter. Well, a little. The volume is just ridiculous---you're only playing to two small rooms, not the United Center. I don't need to feel the sound vibrating off the couch. I hung on as long as I could until another friend decided to bail and I was outta there.
Maybe Sluggers is fun to someone younger than me or drunker than me. But it was dirty, sticky and full of trixie and chad crowds. Never again.
Yeah, I've been here a few times. Yeah, I was pretty intoxicated each time. I will warn you now: Sluggers is not a place you want to be if you're not drunk. Period.
Pros:
Reasonably priced drinks
Pole dancing
Good, popular music
Dance parties
Game room
Batting cages
Deuling Pianos
Cons:
Douches
Chads
Trixies
Cubs fans
Wrigleyville
The pros definitely outweigh the cons and - if anything - this bar is hilarious. I've always had fun, but it's never a place I want to go unless we're wandering up and down Clark St. looking for something to do. The deuling pianos was pretty fun and they take requests (for money - boo) if you're so inclined. Definitely a fun thing to do for a birthday/pre-wedding party.
3.75++ Always have fun here to grab a beer with pals after a Cubs game : ) Fun times and casual wrigley crowd. : )
I went here about a week or so ago, and the place just isn't what it used to be. They took away the trampoline basketball/football game. The batting cages are old and worn out. I went to the fast pitched hard ball and not one pitch came above my knees. I was pissed. So i went to medium pitched hard ball which was better. The helmets are nasty and probably contain some kind of lice from the drunks that go there.
Its fun for a boring day, but I'm sure we could find better batting cages.
I've been here a few times to listen to the dueling pianos and this past weekend wasn't the best experience for my birthday outing. One of the guys had a very shrilly voice and they sang me a "dirty" song that I didn't really appreciate. I paid them $5 to pay a song and they decided to sing me some crappy song instead?!? All I wanted was to listen to some good music but left thinking that I won't be coming back for a LONG time.
Drinks are very strong so beware. Jello-shots are even stronger.
A diamond in the rough for sure!
It's in a building with a ghetto arcade next to it. The arcade is usually empty during the night but it's still random because that is where the restrooms are.
If you like singing along to Sweet Caroline or hearing a Queen and Vanilla Ice remix to under pressure, this is the place for you! It might almost be your favourite place in Chicago! It's my favourite dueling piano bar hands down!!
after all the times ive set foot in here...i cant believe ive never reviewed this place...
downstairs:
-dj plays all those songs u never want to hear unless ur drinking and its just like the most amazing thing ever...bring in the sticky dance floor and its go time
-seating by windows and around bar thou ive never seen an empty stool
backroom:
-yes there is indeed an area past the overly crowded rambunctious front room...there are tables and stools and tvs and a small bar and small dance floor (plus an extra set of bathrooms...use em)
upstairs:
-game room with skee ball and batting cages thou let me warn u even if u set foot in there sober u will not hit anything cause the pitching is beyond waaaaaaaay off...but id be lying if i said id never plunked down a few bucks to give it a shot anyways ;)
-piano bar...dueling pianos deal...i didnt luv it but i know plenty of people who really do...could be because theyre guys and the pianists often invite the ladies up to pole dance...im just sayin
*dont expect to get a deal on drinks here...theres always some catch...if its not a game day its past a certain time that they stop the deal...whatever...its wrigley its pricey u deal
I made another trip to this joint and enjoyed everything they had to offer, plenty of TV screens, game day atmosphere, sports bare fare, the dueling pianos show, and girls in skirts swinging for the fences in the batting cages. This definitely the most unique sports bar in Wrigleyville next to the Cubby Bear. Great for out of town visitors.
This is another bag of mixed stars for me...
5 stars for being an authentic sports bar
4 stars for the…
Read more »
Batting cages, Shoot em up Arcades, Dueling Pianos, REQUESTS REQUESTS and a stripper poll. Sluggers is truly a grand slam in the neighboring arena of bars. Sluggers has it all danger, excitement and above all entertainment. The batting cages close early before people get to sloshed, haha makes sense, that would be the responsible thing to do. The Pianists are amazing, they played everything from the Ohio st fight song to Paradise City by Guns and Roses. They are talented and really get the crowd going. Old style beer not my favorite but I can say I have had it. If in wrigleyville, I suggest you go here, it a good time.
i went to his bar at like 8 and it was empty, because in wrigleyville it does not get crowed till like 10 , drinks are a little expensive about 8 for a mix drink. its a huge place with batting cages up stairs.
I am suuuuuuuper surprised this bar has this many stars!! I went here once after a game and I didn't even want to go in but I had to tinkle something fierce!! After pushing past several drunken drooling men I made it to the bathroom with a friend.
WOW!!! How absolutely horrendous!!! How pray tell, does a woman pee on the floor!??!!? How f'n twisted do you have to seriously be to miss a hole as big as a toilet?!!? (although men do this often without having a drop of liquor in 'em). There was tp all over the damn floor as well as an overflowing toilet. Women were drunk and tripping over themselves in there and thinking they were so cute. Needless to say I walked in and then out. I didn't even blink as I headed for the nearest exit grabbing friends as I went and dragging them along in my wake. One protesting, "Wait he was cute!" my response "If he's in this place, and dealing with these women, you'll thank me later"
Batting cages and dueling pianos or not, this place is a world class dump.
"World Class Sports Bar"...wow I really hope the poor tourists who come into town from godknowswhere don't actually go into this place and think, "yep, this is what a sports bar is"...because quite honestly, its purgatory for drunken Cub fans. There are better sports bars in the state...in a 3 mile radius, that they should take tips from. Thankfully I'm usually working during Cubs games so I dont get to see the horror, but i have experienced it firsthand afterwards and on weekends. There is nothing truly special about Sluggers. The upstairs features out-dated games and batting cages, which are different, yet despite said batting cages is it really a great idea to let drunk people near bats and balls flying at high speeds? Just a thought. Plus...and this is the best, every great sports bar has a piano bar, right? Wrong. Just milking the Wrigleyville cow dry, aren't we?
And if that wasn't enough they have the over-priced drinks that make Wrigleyville special, along with the drunken-hoochie filled dance floor you could only find at Hi-Tops, now special to Slugger's alone.And you know what too much testosterone, drunken girls andover-priced drinks lead to, don't cha? There really isn't much to remember about Slugger's, its truly a forgetful place...unless you have a lawsuit pending from a fight you've been in there.
They do have room for good private parties and benefits, which is a plus...one more gold star for Slugger's!
Went here again a few months later because another ex-Chicagoan friend wanted to celebrate here, especailly with the Dueling Pianos.
It was the same songs, being requested by the same type of people (drunken out-of-towners wearing aviators.) Lots of annoying fight songs, and then a group of girls all wearing Uggs and hoodies with DePaul on them came up to one of the pianists and gave him titty twisters.
One of the said people in aviators (pianist said they were in town from Dubuque) came up to dance on the pole and nearly fell off.
I neither care nor don't care for Slugger's. It's just one of those places.
The downstairs is packed…
Read more »
As luck would have it, I got dragged here again the day I wrote my review. It was still crowded, loud, full of grabby douche bags, and dirty. It's also still cheap, with ridiculous dancing and a good story-maker. Yay drunken insanity.
Admittedly, I've been very intoxicated when I've been at Sluggers. I think it might be the only… Read more »
As I was being pushed out of Slugger's (seriously, the bouncer had his hand on my back and was pushing) at closing time, I indignantly sneered at the bouncer that I would "be noting this treatment in my Yelp review." His response: "Good to know sweet cheeks now get the fuck out." I have always fought tooth and nail against ever going to Sluggers, but this interaction was the last straw.
The layout of this bar is horribly lopsided. The dance floor is at the entrance, so you have to walk through a sea of drunken dancers to even enter the bar. Once you make it through the dance floor, prepare to be greeted with a maze of cluttered tables and a bar entirely too small for the room that it services. There are a few other rooms, but I've never been there on a night where they've been open. I understand that logistically, there has to be a sizable crowd to warrant opening another room, but I question what that size needs to be as we were practically packed like sardines the entire duration of my visit. The service isn't the best, but it isn't due to the bartenders being poor as much as the bar being extremely understaffed for the crowd.
It's crowded, the drinks are hard to come by, and the staff can be rude. I wish Yelp allowed me to give less than a star because this bar is horrible! I did get a laugh out of the DJ closing the night with "Twisted" by Keith Sweat.... nonetheless I officially proclaim this bar BANNED.
Psh, "World Class" my ass..
Not my usual kind of bar. The Wrigleyville scene can get me down. But during the day, it is kinda cool having a bar that has batting cages for a change of pace. Then, I went to see my friends' band play here and it was a pretty decent place to hear a band.
"World Class," haha. Is that really part of the name?
I don't hate Wrigleyville bars, but this place definitely takes the cake, or in this case, robs the bank!!
Drinks are ridiculously priced here! I was drinking PBR's, then switched to Jack-N-Diets, and the tab was kinda through the roof. I believe after doing the math, 3 Old Style tall boys and 3 Jack and Diets came out to be around 40 bucks. Holy hell! Every time I walk through the front door, I know I'm gonna get cash-focked. I only come here when I have to meet up with friends, and usually I am begging for a location change on my way to the bar.
Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet.
Best dueling Pianos bar ever. I went for my cousins birthday and was with a friend who isn't much to into bars. Once we were there he wanted to stay. (Ok that friend is me) I was there till 2 am and had an absolute blast! My Boyfriend and I even threw in a funny bit for the gays by having them play a certain song.. It was a blast cannot wait for a reason to come here again!
HOT DAMN! I think people who gave it a low review, have not completely investigated this bar. Its not just a bar its like a complex. I've been here 3 times and finally on the third time I was taken to the back room, another portion of the bar I was completely unaware of and nearly double the size of the bar. We could easily get a table in the back even after a Cubs game and were grateful for the Jello shots the waiters brought around.
Just when I thought I had discovered all the secrets of Sluggers I was once again surprised with an upstairs. An upstairs with a batting cage, arcade, and dueling pianos! This place is like an amusement park, beer and watching our friends whiff, and then a rousing round of skee ball, and a quick tune from the pianos. This place is a delight and full of surprises and keeps the sometime overdone Wrigley Field crowd on their toes with some new twists.
They are being pretty liberal with the whole "World Class Sports Bar" thing. The truth is, I did have four drinks in me by the time I reached Sluggers, but I wasn't too impressed with this place. They have a drink minimum for credit cards, which made me snarl because I wanted to get out of there after one drink.
We also sat at the worst table possible: next to the Men's bathroom. Guys would still be drying their hands (if they even washed them) as they came over to drunkenly hit on us. Gross.
i hate this place! and yet, i seem to go here (at least, during the warmer months), more often than the grocery store! ok, not really... but for somewhere i hate, i'm here more frequently than i should be (blame my inability to say "no" to lots of beers at cubs games).
it's a ton of youngYOUNGyoung people who don't know how to handle their alcohol and consider grinding, dancing. these people make out sloppily on the dance floor, sweat thru their trixie and chad 'out on the town' outfits, and yell really loudly. ewwww. cooties. gross.
i lke the concept of a mini dave-n-busters upstairs, but the people who hang out up there are just too much to handle. and let's discuss the piano bar.... who knew there was a venue that should be called "live karaokee for people too drunk to stand up!"
that being said - if you have a group of friends who are looking to get DRUNK... dance, and just be stupid, this is the most excellent option.
I've been to better and worse bars, but even my Mom had a good time when she was at Slugger's. No bad experiences on any level, just fun, fun, fun.
Batting cages in a bar! Extra star for that.
Good Sports Bar In Wriggly Ville
Good Prices
Needed a place to hang out on a rainy Saturday and picked this place for the ability to do more than just drink as they have a game room upstairs.
We ended up drinking a few beers down in the bar then headed upstairs. We played a lot of skee-ball, air hockey and a few of the other games. And half of the games were either broken or something was wrong with them. For example, half of the skee-ball machines had water leaking onto them from the rain, one didn't take quarters, one ate our quarters, one didn't add the points correctly. So that left one working skee-ball machine! Competive gamers -- Stay out of here!
I have been there a bunch of times in high school, college and since to play high-ball. Basically basketball on a trampoline. It is both fun and scary at the same time. BUT they take them out during "summer" which when I said it was April, they said summer is Cubs season. (Guy should have been more specific!)
I would have loved to swing in the batting cages but there were too many lines. Who knew that dads brought their kids here on weekends? So bizarre to me but they were just looking for something to do on a rainy day like us!
Sluggers is ok. Yet with so many bars in Wrigleyville, probably won't go back until they set up the high-ball games!
Looking for drunken slobs at 11:00pm who have been drinking since 11:00am?
Do you want to watch these drunken slobs gyrate on the sloppy wet dance floor and occassionlly see one face plant?
Sluggers could be your favorite hang out!!
Actually, I should give this place an extra star because they do have video games and batting cages but I'm too disgusted by the scene on the main level to appreciate all the arcade games.
...A baseball experience that rivals RBI Baseball on original Nintendo...
One of my favorite Wrigleyville bars despite the 3 star rating. I appreciate the unique upstairs atmosphere that includes functional batting cages that pitch up to 70ish MPH. This bar is best frequented in the afternoon (non-cubs game afternoons) for a quick round in the cages. The night time crowd can get annoying and they never seem to have enough staff to handle it. It was probably the smokiest bar in the neighborhood prior to the new ordinance.
Overall, they have decent specials once in a while ($3 Sam Adams pints comes to mind) but it is usually over crowded with out-of-towners to make it worth going to. One final note, you should all know that the batting cages usually close around 10pm if not earlier, so get there early!
Wow. Wow. Absolutely awful. Fat chicks in ugly XMAS sweaters... cheezy dudes chugging Old Style- it was like a terribly unchic 80's ad... horrible music............... Maybe would be OK during the day for a Cub's game, but other than that--- Chester CHEEEEZY.
Love this place. Very friendly and chill place.
I have been here so many times, and each time, i enjoyed myself. I usually come here to hang out with friends. On our rowdy days, we drink a lot and are very loud. On our chill days, we just sit n chat amongst ourselves. But whether loud or quiet, we always feel welcomed here.
LOVE LOVE LOVE the selection of beers on tap. 15 different beers on tap. THIS is what I call a bar.
I had heard Sluggers had Dueling Pianos on the second floor so I searched up their website on Friday to get more info. Two of the things that I was looking for on their website was one...what time it started and two...if there was cover. Website stated their shows started at 9pm and it said nothing about a cover charge. So we headed out and got there kind of early and hung out in the arcade area.
The arcade area was actually pretty fun. We all played a few games and then we headed into their trampoline volleyball pit. I haven't had so much fun in a long time. I think only a couple of us actually got the nerf ball into the basket but the fun part was jumping up and down and trying not to fall. It was actually a pretty good work out. After our time was up in the trampoline pit we headed downstairs for a drink since we still had a bit of time before 9pm. When 9pm comes around we head upstairs just to be told that their doors don't open til 10pm. Great, I'm so glad I took the time to look at their website. *rolls eyes* So we had another hour to kill and luckily the service over at Pick Me Up Cafe is slower than molasses that we actually were able to kill a good deal of time just getting dessert.
We head back to Sluggers in time for the doors to open and it turns out there is a $5 cover. Again...so glad I checked their website beforehand because you know I just love being informed of this kind of stuff. So we pay our $5 to get in and it was actually a pretty cool time tho I doubt I'd go back. I've been to better Dueling Piano bars in Chicago and I think I'd rather go to those places since I know there will be no surprises as far as to when they open and how much they charge.
Here's a tip Sluggers...if you are going to bother to have a website you might want to update it every now and then. Lame.
Sluggers is what it is. I don't know if "World Class Sports Bar" is quite appropriate. There are batting cages inside but drinking and batting don't really mix. For me at least.
Sluggers gets mad crowded when there's a Cub's home game. Sitting outside is pretty enjoyable but the drinks are watered-down and nothing special. Sluggers also boasts their "dueling piano" act. Do you know that awkward feeling when someone is SO unfunny it makes you want to crawl in a hole? Unless you like that feeling, skip the dueling pianos.
Daily Specials- $2 Beers/ .25…
Neighborhood: Irving Park
Football Game Day Specials
Neighborhood: Near North Side
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Bars
Neighborhood: Bucktown
Category: Nightlife
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Restaurants
Neighborhood: Near North Side
Category: Nightlife
Neighborhood: Near North Side
Category: Irish
I try not to judge an establishment based on the…
If I could shoot death rays out of my eyes, these…
These are places that blow. Coming soon: Places…
For all the tourists out there....These places…
A list of the bars I've been to in the Chicagoland…
These places all merit a big fat "no" in my book…
Bars, booze & good times. Or really bad times.…
on the way, i've had date night in quite the…
