My wife and I held our 50th Wedding Anniversary Reception for 50 guests on June 29. We could not…read morehave been happier with Halim, from the early days' planning to the actual reception for friends and family. The staff was exceptionally friendly and helpful. The food and bar service were excellent . Several of our guests mentioned how impressed they were with the unique venue. We highly recommend Halim for events like ours!

Living in downtown Evanston, we had always walked by the museum and wondered what it looked like…read moreinside. We saw photos of events held there, and thought it looked beautiful. It was on our list of wedding venues to tour--we arrived, and immediately fell in love. The staff was extremely professional and worked efficiently throughout the process. They answered every single question, and accommodated us when annotating the contract, helping us schedule and track payments, preparing the timeline for the day of, and helped us figure out a LOT of last minute changes. They offered a time for a walk through and assistance with setup the day before, which made the day of the wedding so much less stressful. They take care of EVERYTHING; set up, tear down, linens, place settings, table numbers, water, wine, changing courses, bridal suite, the bar, you name it! We just had to walk in and enjoy. The food was restaurant-quality - no banquet halls here! Many people emphatically said that was the best food they had ever had at a wedding. The menu tasting was a wonderful experience guided by the Chief of Staff, and included a personal visit from the chef near the end. There are many great food and wine options, it was hard to limit ourselves to just a few! The staff was very helpful in accommodating our guests with dietary restrictions and allergies; if one of the food choices would not work, they created a special alternative dish for them at no extra charge. They were so organized, they even remembered to not drizzle honey on one of our guest's dessert. I checked with every single one of our guests who needed an accommodation, and every single one was fulfilled. We even had a guest who was arriving late; his food was kept warm and brought out immediately when he arrived. As the bride and groom, we got to sit at the head table with our personal Head Waiter, Justin, who was awesome. He made sure our water and wine glasses were always full, and would personally deliver them to us throughout the night whether we were chatting at a table or in the middle of the dance floor. He said he was there if we needed anything, and he always jumped in to help with a smile. Our guests repeatedly told us how beautiful, elegant, and classy the venue was. The Tiffany Room and first floor galleries were the perfect setup for cocktail hour, and everyone loved the gorgeous glasswork (and open bar). The Wisteria room, bathed in candlelight, with a view of the Chicago Skyline, was perfect for dinner and dancing. The staff was professional and helpful, and the entire event ran smoothly. We specifically wanted a venue that would "do it all" so we didn't have to, and Halim Time and Glass Museum absolutely delivered. We treasure the experience we had on our special day and thank Jessica and all of the staff for making it the perfect experience.

Cuuuuuute alert! For all you artsy crafty mavens out there, this is your stop. It's a shop filled…read morewith a well-curated selection of paper goods, books, coloring books, custom art, fabric lamp shades, and gifts in varying price points. From the second I walked in, I was engulfed by a most delightful smell, perhaps a candle burning somewhere? I was greeted by the owner's assistant, Kate, who gave me an overview of the shop and some of the classes they offer in the back, like coptic bookbinding, collage, crafting, and self-motivation classes. They also have a meet up group called The Grown*Up Girls Club where you can meet up with other like-minded individuals and explore new art/craft/maker techniques. The Club meets the second Sunday of every month. The Collage Cafe is a newer business located in an adorable corridor mixed with other art-inspired shops. You can go door to door and visit each one while you're at it! Can't wait to stop back in. But, as I'm writing this, when I go back I realize the selection is too overwhelming for my taste (in a good way of course) because I want one of everything.

One day my young daughters and I where walking by and came in into this beautiful place, what a…read morewonderful store! The owner is such a great lady, great host, kind and knowledgeable. I scheduled a coloring evening for a group of friends from church. We had a delightful experience! The place was set up with a wide variety of water colors, wood colors pencils, markers, etc. the pages provided were also varied, from really intricate to more simple so we were all able to pick something that suited our taste and level of artistry. We already scheduled another event and are looking forward to it. Definitely a great place for gifts, classes and more.

Wow, what a cool place! I've never seen anything like it. They had so many different seating areas…read moreincluding an outdoor patio, a room with picnic tables and vintage cars, a bar area with high tops and open windows, and a fourth section with picnic tables, stage and bar. Since Pride Bingo was going on in the latter, we chose a spot there. Service was outstanding the entire evening! They had plenty of staff who were actively busing tables and who were available if we wanted additional drinks. Being vegan, I ordered the nachos and warm pretzels. Both were absolutely delicious! Bingo night was fun. They had fun interesting prizes for each game as well as a raffle at the end for $100.

I'm not much of a beer drinker and rarely make it to the bars these day (#old), but my first…read morethought when walking in was how have I not been to an event here. It's spacious and a super cool venue, which was used for my daughter's high school fundraiser last weekend. I visited Double Clutch twice within one week. The first was a meeting held at the venue right before the event where everyone got to enjoy some beer (except those of us who don't love beer and opted for water) and some of the food that would be served at the event the following weekend. I munched on some turnbuckle pretzels, fried buffalo bites and cauli wings- all were pretty good! A few days later we sold out with a 300 person event, although honestly we could have fit way more in the space because there was plenty of room to move around. The band Go Ask Your Mum was playing lots of fun 80s and 90s hits, there was a buffet of the food we had tried a few days beforehand and the bar was busy. I opted for wine, which was good. The acoustics here aren't great, which i noticed during the meeting and during the event. The band was fun to listen to, but i could hardly hear anyone i was speaking to. But that's really my only complaint since it's a great space!

My son is a member and we had a great meal on Mother's Day! Food was excellent and so is the…read moreatmosphere. Service excellent too.

I went for a college alumni event. The valet and staff were very friendly. The facility is very…read morewarm and cozy inside and reminded me of my college. The view of the lake is amazing as well!

A great space for events! Easy to get to, lots of parking available and very adaptable for a wide…read morerange of guests. We held a baby shower for about 35 people and it was a perfect space for our event. Bringing in your own food and drinks made this a very affordable option and we were able to customize the space with our own decor too. Michelle is great to work with, quick to reply to questions and made the process of reservation and preparation super easy.

The venue was exceptional. Michelle provided prompt and helpful responses to all our inquiries. Our…read morebaby's first birthday celebration comfortably accommodated approximately 35 guests, with ample space available. This location is highly recommended for event hosting.

I'm so happy to be able to post the first review of 1100 Florence! First and foremost I love that…read morethis former Polish grocery store has taken on a creative and artistic life. The owners--local artists and arts advocates, are giving back to the community by repurposing the front of the building into a gallery space, event space, and pretty much a space for any and all things creative. I recently had the pleasure of attending a photo shoot there. The morning light was absolutely ideal, and the white walls with the wood floors made for a perfect backdrop. The owner, Lisa, also in attendance, mentioned that she rented the space to the photographer on an hourly basis (can't remember, but the rate was very reasonable). Such a great addition to Evanston, and I loved the vibe so much I want to dream up my own exhibit for the future. Note: If you're lucky, you might be able to catch a glimpse of the really cute bunny that takes up residence in the building and roams freely.

The craziest part is that I grew up a block from this gallery and I remember what it was a butcher…read moreshop and for years it was vacant. Along comes a visionary couple who turned it into an art gallery. The first exhibit featuring artist Ben Blount is politically charged in mind opening. Don't miss it!

I have been living in Evanston for around 20 years and I never thought I will live in a hotel but I…read morestayed at the the Hyatt house for over 100 days. It was the best days ever from the minute I walked in. Arturo, a front desk worker, welcomed me warmly which was when I knew that it was gonna be very comfortable stay for me and my family. He's is the best. Everyone in the hotel were super nice and the manager (Michelle) was always smiling and checked in on us a lot to see if we were comfortable there. Then I met Summer. She was really super super nice like Arturo. Everyone at the reception was really super nice and even for the house keeper are really nice. Selvia and Claudia was really nice. Even if I didn't need cleaning they always just checked in on us. Victor and his coworkers who did maintained for the room were very kind and checked in a lot. I really felt sad to leave the hotel. I felt like I was in my house because of everyone's kindness. I just wanna say thank you to the company for having great staff in Evanston location they are the best. No one would regret staying at The Hyatt house. Best of luck and wishes for everyone who work at the Hyatt house. Thank you Ashjan,

We made a last minute reservation here after losing power for a few days. Staff were all great and…read moresuper friendly. The rooms were spotless and beds were comfortable. Free breakfast was also a plus, especially the omelettes. Do wish they had waffles though. Also, free parking was super convenient. Definitely the best I've stayed at in Evanston and miles better than the Hilton.

DO NOT consider a winter wedding here, and absolutely DO NOT expect transparency or flexibility…read morewith any hiccups in their formula. Also, they apparently blocked my account on Zola -- I can't find them in a search when I'm logged in anymore. Thankfully I was able to leave a review without being logged in, and am also sharing here. TLDR: they can't accommodate winter weddings, despite including those months as available on their website, and they aren't transparent about their inability to do so. They can only provide half a venue, with 40% decreased capacity, but still expect you to pay full price. I was appalled by their poor communication and business practices throughout our experience trying to book them for our January wedding. -- -- The issues started when booking a tour -- their availability is challenging if you work a day job, and we were also limited with my partner's 24/48 shifts for the city. But I rearranged my work to accommodate their schedule. The day of the tour we received a vague cancellation with 3 hours notice, saying they would work with our schedules to get a new tour on the calendar. They very much did NOT work with our schedules, declined several options I requested that would work without us making major concessions on our end, and only offered a small window later than their once-a-week evening slots. We were once again rearranging our schedule to work for theirs after their cancellation. When we finally had the tour, I'll admit it's a gorgeous venue. We were excited about booking there, but concerned about how they'd handle January events. Since their website includes Jan in their off-peak season rates, I figured they had a plan for accommodating cold weather (they have a tent for the yard, but it's insufficient for temps under 30 degrees and that's a heavy gamble for evenings in January). They didn't seem to have any ideas outside using that tent. They do have an upstairs to the venue that reflects the ground floor footprint, so I asked if they would include these in the base rate (they're usually an add-on expense) because we were losing space in the yard. They said they would "compromise" by including just one of the rooms, but would reduce capacity to only 70. We had been straightforward that our guest list was 80-90, and their website advertises up to 120 guests for a buffet or cocktail reception, which was our plan. I understand they don't do a ton of events in the winter, so I thought maybe they just didn't have a well-designed plan for colder months and we could find a way to work one out. But they refused to work with us to expand capacity beyond 70 guests AND made no concessions on price. I have no idea what they would have done had we moved forward and temperatures were too cold for a tent (leave our guests shivering? cut our guest list week-of? at the door?) -- I asked and and they couldn't answer. On top of it all, they made me feel like I was a problem for having these concerns. At the end of the day, I can't believe that a venue would expect clients to pay full price for half a venue and 40% decreased capacity, especially in a season they admit having little to no bookings. They clearly do not want business in their winter months, but will jerk you around for a month pretending they do.

Exceeded our (extremely high) expectations at every step, turn, and touchpoint!…read more We worked with the AMAZING Teddy and Sarah and from the start knew we were in the right place, space and best of hands. First of all, Firehouse is charming as all HECK. This isn't your drab hotel ballroom where partition walls, lighting rigs and bunches and bunches of flowers can barely start to cover the lack of character. This space has personality and soul, every last inch. Classic Chicago neighborhood setting, we didn't want to leave the beautiful courtyard space. Everything about the venue is built to make your guests feel at home, comfortable and intimate to the party. Did we mention the firepole?! Best entry ever for a groom to make. We can't recommend enough - Teddy and Sarah listened to all our thoughts/concerns/ideas and custom built a space and flow that complimented the night in every possible way.