Doesn't Recommend

Holdon

Joined 3 years ago

Don't go here. They don't want your business.. I have to give Bad Dog the lowest rating for two reasons: (1) almost inedible food and (2) extremely rude management.

My husband and I have gone to Bad Dog Tavern every single Thursday night since June 2009 – whether it was 20 degrees below zero, pouring rain or there was two feet of snow on the ground. That’s over 64 weeks in a row. We go for the trivia and bring between two and four people with us every time. We buy a lot of drinks and really run up the tab. We also tip at least 20%. We figure we have spent between $8,000 and $12,000 at this bar.

The food is horrible, in fact I have often been downright disgusted. I have eaten more than 50 meals there and I just couldn’t take it anymore. Once, my chicken fingers were so burned that I couldn’t bite through them. Fries are soggy, undercooked and clumped together. Chicken sandwiches and hamburgers have tendons and occasional “hard things” in them. I tried a Caesar salad once, it had so much dressing, it was like they had taken every leaf and painted it with dressing -- and the lettuce was warm. Apparently, after the kitchen makes the coleslaw someone pours a gallon of milk in it to make coleslaw soup. Tried the hummus plate a few times – the pieces of pita bread were tough and tasted weird with cinnamon and hummus together. White meat sandwiches have unexpected pieces of rough, dark meat in them. Cheese sticks are tasteless and dripping with grease. I got to the point that I was afraid to order any food from there because I didn’t know what I would be biting into.

So, finally after more than a year of trying to find something (anything!) to eat at this bar, I brought in a sandwich from a shop down the street. Yes, I know that is a bit tacky. But I really did not think it would be a huge deal.

So, pretend you are the manager of a bar where someone brings in outside food and you want to tell them it is against the rules. You have two options. This is a test. Do you:

(a) Politely introduce yourself and inform the guest that outside food is not allowed due to house rules and also potential health code violations. Then, ask them to please not do it again.

(b) Second, you approach the table angrily, fail to introduce yourself, tell the patron that she is rude and tacky, threaten to kick her out immediately, and demand that she never do it again or you WILL kick her out immediately. Later, when the guest’s husband inquires about the owner’s name so he can complain, start a screaming match on the street outside the bar and REFUSE to apologize.

Guess which one happened to us last week. We will not be back, ever.

(BTW, the manager’s name is Chad and he is a part owner.)

Doesn't Recommend

Tarrant9

Joined 4 years ago

Bad time, Dog of a time.. My Wife and I were looking for a nice restaurant in which we could celebrate our 5 year wedding anniversary, and we could not have been more disappointed.

We were met with cold and dismissive service from indifferent staff members, for example; my wife didn't like the table at which we were seated because she felt a chill from a draft, numerous times I requested that we be sat elsewhere and each time I was met with undue hostility.

The meal was adequate at best, but the prices were not, and the whole experience was so unfulfilling, it required all of my best nature to even bring myself to leave a tip.

Bad Dog Tavern: Bad time. Dog of a time.

Recommends

Blakeeatsalot

Joined 4 years ago

Perfect night out at Bad Dog. Awesome drink list! Me and a few of my friends had a great night out at bad dog. The server was nice and took care of us well, he even bought us a round! We all split the green beans with lime sauce and the hummus. All the food that passed by our table looked great too! We'll be back soon!

Doesn't Recommend

dragonmatt81

Joined 4 years ago

Horrible Service. Me and my friends ordered a few drinks and some fries. We figured the bill would be around $20 -$25 but it was $78!! When I asked the manager about the charges he said "your lucky we didn't charge you more for being loud". I said are you serious? He said "get blanched". I don't even know what that means.

Recommends

jakedavidson

Joined 4 years ago

New management, Better place!. I haven't been to Bad Dog in a while, but i heard they have new managers or owners. I didn't recognize the place when I came back...so much better. The food was excellent, the service was speedy and warming. I will be back. good job new owners!

Recommends

tomlikeme

Joined 4 years ago

Many many good beers, so little time!. I am one of your beer snobs, and proud of it. It's nice to go to a place like Bad Dog when you want a good craft beer. Stouts, ports, IPA's, wheats, dark, light, whatever your fancy, bad dog has it! From Miller Lite (not my favorite) to Gumball Head (close favorite).

I also had a few sandwiches there and you can't go wrong with the Dog Town or any of their Burgers. Doggy bag will be needed at Bad Dog, because they have large portions.

Recommends

stevejackson1

Joined 4 years ago

Amazing Entrees!. Bad Dog has great entrees, i have been there several times over the past year and I have had almost every entree on their menu. The ahi, the pork chop, steak, scallops....all fantastic. They get pretty busy at night, so i'd get there early. They also have a huge beer list with a lot of Belgians, Micros, and American craft beers, also a great touch. Highly recommended!

Recommends

mikemorresey

Joined 4 years ago

Best damn sports bar in Lincoln Square!. Bad dog is easily the best place in lincoln square to watch sports and enjoy awesome food. Their appetizer list is awesome...buffalo ROLLS, yes buffalo rolls! Wings, Mussels, Mac n cheese bites, and more. I personally like the Rueben rolls. Great pizza and huge huge burgers!!!

Doesn't Recommend

Zand3r

Joined 4 years ago

Terrible place, ruined my night. I went here on New Years eve and had the worst night of my life. This in turn ruined my whole week. I go in with a few of my friends and went to the counter and asked for some water. The guy gives me a dirty look, fills a glass of water, and slams it down in front of me. Half the glass splashed on my arm and sleeve. I said "what the hell is this?!" and he said "deal with it, it's just water" and he walks away. He didn't bother apologizing or even re-filling the half-empty glass. So anyway, me and my friends just want to have a good time and watch the countdown. I look at around at what seemed to be 25 TV's and not one of them was shwoing the countdown or the New Years festivities in NY (and this was at 11:52pm). I swear they were all on ESPN.

Throughout the night, there was broken glass everywhere and people crying for no reason. The atmosphere put me and my friends all in depressed moods and we could not enjoy ourselves. I was going to have my birthday at this place, but now I don't even feel like celebrating at all.

If you are looking for a nice night out at a clean bar with good atmosphere and nice staff, THIS IS NOT THE PLACE FOR YOU!

Doesn't Recommend

crakieface

Joined 4 years ago

HORRIBLE!. This is by far the worst restaurant I have been to in Chicago. The food was overpriced, and not good. Everyone at my table (I had a party of 4) hated their meal. Two of us wanted to send the food back because it was so poor. The manager actually told us "If you don't like it you can leave!". And I swear, we were being completely nice about it. To make matters worse, when we got home, we all got sick. We were throwing up for 2 days! I emailed Chad Kramer, the manager to tell him about our experience. He emailed me back with "We don't care, eat somewhere else." I couldn't believe it.