As I get a little older I'm less tolerant of places that seem noisy for no reason. Although I'm also getting less tolerant of the Millers, Buds, and Yuenglings of the world (sorry Yuengling, I went to school in Pennsylvania and you'll always have a place in my heart). Instead, I want beers from far away lands brewed by monks in abbeys and brews thought up by the young kid down the street who's grown up a bit and learned to take that creativity and translate it into something really awesome. The Local Option might be a tad loud for my taste but they bring it like no one's business when it comes to beer selection. Offering tons of well chosen taps, the Local Option can cater to many palates. Plus it's lively and energetic for all you young whippersnappers. read more

One of the few good, reasonably priced seafood places in town. This restraunt is really casual. You'll get your utensils in a paper bag and most of the food is served in plastic baskets and bowls. But, nevertheless, the food is great. Their crabcakes are delicious. The portions are big. The crowd is friendly and this is a great place to go relax and have a great meal. The serivce is quick and all the servers are friendly. read more

Cool atmosphere and lots of thrifty beers that I've never heard of. My boyfriend made it out to seem like this was the best bar food not only Chicago, but the entire US. And he's a dude in college -- aka he eats bar food pretty much 5 days a week. However, I found the food to be mediocre. It was good, but definitely not the best I've ever had. I had the chicken tacos with tortilla soup. I went back with a group of my girlfriends for an early dinner this week. Our free beer party started at 6 (!!!) so we arrived at the Local Option at 5 thinking that would be plenty of time since it was just right down the street. Right? WRONG! We waited for over 50 minutes for our food (there were 8 of us; everyone ordered either grilled cheese or quesadillas) and by the time we ate and paid we were 20 minutes late to our free beer (the horror!!!) Granted, it was just Bud Lite, but free beer always tastes so much better ;) Overall, I'd say: good food (not the best, but it's more of a "cool, thrifty beer" place than a restaurant, right?) and crappy service. read more

Do you like obscure beers, metal, and occasional attitude? This is your spot. Great beers including their own Kentucky Common and Morning Wood. read more

Lived four blocks from here for five years and never made it in. Finally stopped in during the Sheffield Garden Walk on Sunday and was very impressed with the beer selection and the service. Both were excellent. Not in love with the music, but that's just personal taste. Definitely a watering hole worth checking out. read more

My boyfriend and I came here a couple times during a trip at the beginning of the year. Apparently it's ranked as one of the best beer bars in the US and I think it lived up to that expectation. Local Option had an awesome low key feel, amazing beers on tap, and super nice service. We couldn't believe that they had Speed Racer on tap... That was definitely a first! Simply an outstanding beer list, we were a couple of happy kids sipping our sweet suds. We got to chatting with the bartender the first night and told him we were visiting from Toronto and he gave us some great recommendations for food in drink around town. We arrived later in the night on both occasions and did NOT know what a great little menu they have here and will have to come back and try out the food!! The funniest part of the night was meeting a local next us named Chris, or "Crazy Chris" as he called himself. Super chatty, super happy drunk dude who treated us out-of-towners to a bit if Chicago hospitality, Mallort... Oof! He was super entertaining, to say the least :P We'll be back soon for the rest of the menu, and I half hope Crazy Chris will be there... read more

Pretty good. I got here by yelping "cajun" on my iphone while in the car on way from the airport. I sort of expected more of a restaurant and less of a bar, but that's not really their fault. I would've liked to see more cajun food on the menu. Gumbo and jambalaya were sorta stuck in the "small plates" section like it's an appetizer with other stuff like blue crab quesadillas... come on I want a big plate! Oh well, I still got some jambalaya to share with my aunt. The Shrimp Po Boy was really really good. The service was pretty lame. Our server was the bartender... and it sorta seemed like someone didn't show up to work that night and he was doing their job. I think my expectations were a little higher than they should have been, but overall it was pretty good. read more

Great beer selection and good food. I particularly enjoy the crab quesadillas and the swordfish tacos. Bartenders also serve food, so service can be kind of slow. Even considering the slower service, I advise people to make the trip to Lincoln Park to try this one. read more

Awesome selection of beers on draught. Awesome selection of bottled beers. Good music, even better when the music videos get put on. Great service. Thanks, Tony! I will be back SOON. read more

I'm going to preface this review with the fact that I love beer. This place has an amazing selection that constantly rotates (slightly sad sometimes because I do want to drink something more than once sometimes). The staff is amazingly knowledgeable and always more than willing to give you a sample before you commit. I had the veggie sandwich with dark rye and goat cheese. It was so good I wanted to go back the next day. My boyfriend had the po' boy and he was definitely pleased. There's even big game hunter to play! But, once again I must go back to the beer selection. It is stellar and I am jealous I don't live closer to this place. I recommend friending them on facebook because they update their beer selections on there pretty regularly, but be careful. The place can be jam-packed the nite they do update. Parking is also a complete bear and would tell anyone to take public transit or they'll end up spending forty minutes looking for parking. read more

This place is wicked awesome for beer geeks. The drafts are written on a huge chalkboard near the front door, there is no printed list. If you have actually heard of everything that they have on tap on any given night, you probably spend a bit too much time reading about beer on the internet. Plenty of American Craft brewers represented, and always something from FFF on the list, but they lean towards obscure European stuff, and not just Belgian. As expected for the area, this place gets slammed at night. If you can manage to get in here when it is less busy and get a seat at the bar, you can get some sommelier-level beer service from the very knowledgeable and passionate staff. Oh yeah, the prices aren't listed so the tab is always a surprise. read more

A great beer location with great food to match. I've only been here during slower afternoon hours, so I don't have insight for the later hours - there are plenty of reviews that cover that. Bars in Lincoln Park/Lakeview all get crazy on Friday/Saturday night, so the real time to enjoy this is off hours. With that said, the selection of beers is always impressive - if not huge. Everyone at Local Option knows a lot about the beers and I've had several insightful discussions with the bartenders about the beers offered and beer in general. All in all, I've always had good experiences at The Local Option. read more

I came here to meet up with some friends and drink some good beer. The beer selection was everything I wanted it to be. The staff was friendly and helpful and overall I had a great time. I only wish the music hadn't been SO loud. read more

Sat at bar and talked with the owner(?) about the place. Ate a shrimp po' boy with some beer battered fries. If you want to hang out at a cool place and get some great food and drink, this is the place to go. read more

This is a relaxing place for dinner or drinks. I really enjoy the laid back feeling at this place. This is the neighborhood bar that welcomes a diverse crowd... A true gem in Lincoln Park. read more

Meh. This place was okay-ish, but I didn't love it. They have a great beer selection (though the server didn't know what any of those beers were and suggested that I get up and go look at the chalk board at the front of the restaurant). The food was pretty blah. Steak salad...meh, no flavor and kind of tough. Guacamole too oniony and no lime juice in the mix. Service was spotty...he forgot a lot of things (forgot to bring a round of beers, forgot the quesadilla from our order, forgot to bring water when we asked...twice). So, this may be a better place to just have a drink or two at the bar before heading off somewhere else. read more

You'd never think that the Local Option would have such great food by the looks of it! It definitely does not look like a restaurant of any type and has a nice comfy bar feeling to it. I actually came just for drinks quite a few times before ordering food. It is now a regular dinner or lunch spot for my friends and myself. I also like to take guests who are not looking for fine dining but want a good, affordable meal. The staff is really friendly and helpful about the beer selection. Speaking of, they have a GREAT beer selection! The food selection is also quite extensive and I have never been displeased about what I ordered. The calamari salad is the best thing on the menu. Great music as well. While it's fun to go during the dinner hour or later at night, some of the best times I've had at the Local Option have been during the day when it's slow. My only complaint is that it can get pretty cold in there during the winter. Whatever you do, don't sit by the front door or windows. The door is slow to close and there is no exterior door so when people come and go, it's as if you're eating on the patio. Besides that, the front windows are quite drafty. I spent one (delicious) meal wearing my jacket and scarf. Check out the Local Option!!! read more

Granted I realize this is a college bar, I have had nothing but positive experiences coming here. Fortunately it doesn't hurt to have a girlfriend who has an interesting relationship with the bartender, but hey, that's a story for another day. The beer selection here is pretty solid and the prices are reasonable. Unfortunately, if you want good beer at a bar it does come at a cost no matter where you go. The food is a cut above your standard bar fare. I really enjoyed their burger, which is on par with the SIZE of those you find at Kuma's Corner. LET ME REITERATE A SIZE COMPARISON NOT TASTE! But still it is pretty damn tasty, and their beer battered fries are solid too. read more

BEER! And the service was very friendly and helpful. Big fan.

I was surprised to find good food at Local Option. Driving down Belden I saw a neon sign that definitely did not scream "We have good food." Beer I knew they had, but food not so much. So, I strolled in there to have a beer and was pleasantly surprised when I got food as well. I would check it out again. read more

Last Friday a friend and I headed over to Local Option after work for some drinks and food. First off, I can't believe in the years I lived blocks away in Lincoln Park I never heard of it! Then again I didn't use Yelp then :). It's a nice, small bar with lots of seating, and has a cozy atmosphere. There is a huge chalkboard on the wall with their changing list of beers by name and # (which is helpful since some are hard to pronounce). One thing I thought was strange was that there were no descriptions of the beer, so if you are there to try something new, like me, it was difficult. Maybe even just a cheap easy print out with a short description of each would help. When we asked our waiter, he didn't seem too enthusiastic about helping us pick out a beer, and the descriptions were something like "it's a stout." Thanks guy. I ended up getting lucky with the two I chose, Bluegrass / Local Option Cuppa Two Tree ESB, and Dark Horse Too Cream Stout, both were excellent. For food I got the grilled cheese with tomato and avocado and my friend got the crab cakes. My sandwich was a club which I didn't realize, and it was just a lot of white bread. I tried some of the crab cake and that was really good. All in all it was a good experience, and when I'm in the neighborhood I'll definitely stop by to try some new beers. read more

A chunk of Delilah's with a dash of Kuma's with a lincoln park Webester-street crowd. Food was done to perfection, service was great. I have been looking for some new pub-grub in the area and i'm glad a friend recommend this place. I think I'll be a regular here! read more

Its aight. Just aight. The food is OK. Breaded wings that aren't too spicy, fish tacos that are a little bland but they are known for their beer. Their beer selection is awesome! I LOVE jolly pumpkin and keep coming back because of their awesome constant selection. The music is loud. LOUD! read more

I loved this bar. The beer selection was excellent and the bar staff was really friendly. I had (unfounded) worries that this place wouldn't be inviting. Doc, the bartender our first night, was gracious enough to put with my friend requesting new music about every 10 minutes (Metallica, Danzig). Noah, the brewmaster for their house beers, was our bartender the second night we came in and he was equally great. He took the time to talk with me and offer advice since I had just started homebrewing. Both guys offered great suggestions and spent time with us out-of-towners even though there were regulars at the bar as well. Great place. I'll make a point to go back every time I'm in Chicago. read more

After striking out down the street at a d-bag bar, we wandered over to Local Option. Much more my style. It's got a laid back atmosphere and there are plenty of good beers from whch to choose. So if you like to go where the other people in the bar have been drinking legally for more than a few months, give it a go. I heard the food is good too so i'll be back to give it a try. read more

Fantastic beer selection, great food with vegan options very knowledgable staff. Hilarious owner. Metal and Satan, what's not to love.

I love this place because it's such a nice change of pace from other Lincoln Park bars (fewer frat bros and trophy wives). The beer menu is interesting and extensive. I love the blue crab quesadilla and the shrimp po boy. read more

Dear Local Option, You have received a four star review simply based on the amazing craft beer selection available on tap and in bottles. Very impressive indeed... I wish your food would improve a bit. Right now I'd say it's standard bar fare, but that's not why I visit you oh so often. read more

It's a craft beer place, through and through. Surpised how good the food was. Try the poboy. If you're looking for beer that you've never heard of, this is the spot. They might have the most unique beer selection in the city. Music is what turned me off, it was insanely loud heavy metal. I'd like to come back during the day in hope they don't play such loud music. Beer, Beer & Beer. Favorite thing about this place is they have no specials. That's cool to me. They know they've got a good thing and you'll come. read more

What you see is what you get. Nothing special other than nice beer selection. Cool vibe and well worth a stop.

The food was fantastic. We got the Cajun shrimp po'boy, blue crab quesadillas, and their awesome fries. I was a massive fan of everything we ate. The lady server we had was very subpar. The beer menu is very heavy on IPAs if you are into that. We aren't so we could've used some help from the server to point out some options. The beer was good, but pretty pricey. Place is small but I'd say that was a plus, made for a cool atmosphere. read more

I don't know what everyone is complaining about with the metal music here. If anything, the stuff they play is too tame. I want nothing but thrash, grindcore, and Scando black metal out of my beer bars. Go drink at the Cubby Bear, you sissy Marys. Anyway, I may revisit my review here after I've eaten at Local Option a few more times, since I haven't explored the menu very thoroughly, but I'm sticking with four stars because the real draw here is their beer selection, and they do it right. Their in-house stuff is excellent, and they've always got a ton of really interesting choices from other local breweries, big and small. It's also a great spot to go for collaborations, which they do frequently and well. It's one of the city's best beer destinations. read more

ultra chill place. swung by on sunday that was rainy and drab. local option made all that dreariness go away. as soon as i sat down i was greated with a menu and a smile. the bartender was very sweet and made me feel right at home. i enjoyed the off beat decor, it wasn't out of place. always looking for a good beer, that's what brought me here. this place delivers. i almost always branch out when i go to a brewery, but their pilsner was bomb. pilsners aren't my favorite, but whatever they did made it pop. enjoyed two of those bad boys without a single regret. i ordered the grilled cheese which was ripe full of fresh fruits, vegetables, cheese, and bacon! it was so good i ate it so fast i didn't have too much time think about how good it was. can't wait to be back for more of their beers -borland out- read more

Great beers, knowledgeable staff and a fun night. Check out the Scallop Roll.

If you like craft and imported beers, then this is the place to go. The owner's and staff are awesome! I never went before the place "changed," so I am sorry for those that were not all about the change, but for me, this place is great. I prefer going on nights when it is not ridiculously crowded, but that is any bar for me. read more

They've got a great selection of beers on tap, and while the prices may be a little high, they're on par with other bars that serve the same craft brews. The bar itself is nice: not too loud, a decent amount of seating, and the bartenders know their stuff. I also had the crab cakes while I was there. I've had better and at lower prices. Overall, it's a decent place to grab a good beer, but nothing special. read more

Welcome nerds. A not too large, but awesometastic beer selection (all obscure _good_ beers). Cool and knowledgeable waiter.

Superlative beer selection, including a couple of contracted brews that you won't find elsewhere. Food was very tasty (I had steak tacos, my wife had blackened chicken salad, and we split an order of tater tots). Not typical of spots in the area - i.e., there were no Jettas parked in front, and nobody was screaming or acting like a general idiot. Refreshing for this neighborhood. read more

Best beer bar in Chicago. No question. Solid mix of obscure and tried n' true American craft. Don't forget the frosty cold highlife if you're taking a night off of high refinement. Great seafood menu too. As a fan of heavy music I'm pretty f*cking smitten too. read more

My fave bar in Chicago. Great beer selection. Good food. Got a kick ass tshirt here. Just wish the music was better but no biggie.