Fireside Restaurant & Lounge

GREAT PATIO GREAT FOOD. Fireside is one of those places that always pulls me back. I agree so much with the previous reviewer because there are so many great things about this classic place. 1. free parking...they have the lot thats open all night and ravenswood seems to always have a spot for me when I pull up.

2. the staff are friendly and fun. if you watch them work the seem to honestly be enjoying their job and being there (which for many of us I think we can say the opposite). they approach the table in a very relaxed way and treat you like a regular (if you want white table cloth service and people bowing down to you...this is NOT your place).

3. the atmosphere is one of the best things because if you sit down by yourself at the bar, everyone will talk to you. its like a giant family there full of staff, regulars and new comers (or returning patrons like myself). it has that old chicago bar feel to it with a quiet dining room, HUGE back patio and i guess a NEW street cafe (which I had beers and sun taned with friends on there other day).

4. the food...I love it. its casual and not that upscale crap that you over pay downtown for. its got great amercian food with influences of cajun spice and other wordly flavors. i love their weekly specials because they seem to try out new stuff each week. the other day I had this pasta dish on the specials with mushrooms, grilled onions and this AWSOME spicy vodka cream sauce. I love heat so I added some of thier blackened chicken breast to the dish and wow was my mouth and stomach happy...

5. finally...if you like beer or specality wines (that wont cost you $14 a glass) this is the place for you...they have over 200 beers and a 3 page wine list. there is something for everyone...and KUDOS for carrying "Dragons Milk" on of my most fave beers...

thanks Fireside its good to be back…

Ten reasons to love Fireside Restaurant and Lounge. 10 REASONS TO LOVE FIRESIDE 1. PARKING There is plenty of parking and at night and weekends you can park in the lot next door. 2. LONG HOURS Fireside has one of the few four o’clock licenses left in the city and they keep the kitchen open late.

3. DELIVERY

FIRESIDE provides speedy delivery seven days a week . If you really are not up for any human contact, you can place your order online at the FIRESIDE website

4. HOME SWEET HOME

Many locals have made Fireside their home away from home. It truly is a public house. It’s like a second living room or a big enclosed front porch where your friends and neighbors stop by. You can just stop by knowing that someone will be there to share stories and trade gossip and maybe share a meal, snack or just friendly drink or two.

5. PATIO

The patio is open year round. It is large and comfortable in any weather because it is covered and heated. It can be back yard comfortable or dressed up for a special occasion like a wedding or a private party

6. FOOD

There is an extensive menu for everything and they keep updating the choices . If all the menus were bound together in one book it would weigh in like the yellow pages

• Beer – ever changing line up of craft beers as well as all the standard favorites in bottles and on tap

• Wine List – varied selection of domestic and imported wines

• Kids – inexpensive menu with all the things kids eat

• Brunch – 150 ingredient “Build Your Own” Bloody Mary bar

• Lunch – hot and cold sandwiches, salads, weekly hot plate specials, homemade soups

• Dinner – starters, pastas, ribs, sandwiches, ribs, seafood

• Pizza – thin crust with lots of options and specialty pizzas

• Appetizers – standards and varied weekly choices

• Weekly Specials – lunch, appetizers and dinner

• Desserts – homemade apple pie, chocolate pie and changing special desserts

• Catering Events are hosted on site or they can deliver

7. FIREPLACE

Yes, there is a real, wood burning fireplace in the serene and cozy dining room

8. FRIENDLY BAR

The bar bustles and the bartenders are “small town” friendly. There are darts, TVs and a great juke box. You can come here to watch a game or just read the newspaper or check your email with the free Wi Fi

9. PROMOTIONS, PROMOTIONS, PROMOTIONS

• Half priced bottles of wine on Tuesdays

• Half priced appetizers on Wednesdays

• Complimentary appetizer buffet on Friday after work from about 4 to 7pm

• “Build Your Own” Bloody Mary Bar and Weekend Brunch

• Specials and promotions for every imaginable season and event

10. EVERYBODY BELONGS TO THIS FAMILY. I’m not sure about Hoosiers and Michiganders; but so far, I have not come across any native Chicagoans who have not had some contact with the FIRESIDE.

It’s probably because they have been open for such a long time (since 1904) and they do a bit of everything. . It is not unusual for entire families (3 or 4 generations) to meet at Fireside for lunch, dinner or brunch.

Opened in 1904 as the Fireside Inn, they used to rent the upstairs rooms to families who came on the train to bury their loved ones at Rosehill Cemetery and the local farmers and merchants traveling between the farms and the markets in the city.

FIRESIDE is a Chicago institution that makes you happy and proud to be a Chicagoan

Negatives:

1. Friends and Family Program is not a priority with the staff or the customers. It has a long list of qualifications and rules.

2. All the breads are uninspired. The house made bread is pasty tasting and the quality of buns and breads for the sandwiches is poor.

3. Bottle beer cooler doesn’t keep the Heineken very cold…

LOVE the late night Dining Option. Best thing about this place is that they deliver and are open late on a daily basis!! I've done both and have no complaints. I didn't know until I read on here that they delivered beer and wine late as well, and if you really want cigarettes too. Greatness!

Their pasta dishes are my favorite as well as the smoked bbq.

If you go on the weekends I must tell you it gets really busy. I love the options of atmosphere changes you can chose from. Bar scene, indoor fireplace patio, restaurant. Highly recommend if you have not tried.…