Not going to lie, it hard for me to give an objective review of Cubby Bear. I've been here multiple times, and regardless of my blood alcohol level there always seems to be people here who are way drunker and way looking to bump into you an your group. I've even seen a really great band here, one that I've loved seeing live in NOLA, DFW, Chicago et al and yet the experience here was diluted by the venue crowd. Id like to say I won't come back, but I'll probably find myself in here again someday, meeting a group of friends or coworkers, wondering why I'm wasting my time in a rowdy, loud, sloppy sports/college bar. read more

I'm born and raised in Chicago, and being a Cubs fan is in our family. I decided to check this bar out on a 5:00PM game day in hopes of watching the game there. My friend and I walked in sat at the bar and showed ID's with no problem. We asked for 2 double shots and were told that it was the middle of the day and that we could only be given water bc I supposedly slurred when ordering. Two people who were not drunk, haven't drank and wanted to begin our Friday night and watch the game were not served why??? The security walked behind us immediately and asked for ID yet again. We decided not to engage and left. The way we were treated was ridiculous. read more

The Cubby Bear needs to get it together! Sold out show last night for The Movement and the line to get in was wrapped around the building and moved very, very slow! We were outside for an hour and when we got in their was only one person taking the tickets!!! Why wouldn't you prepare for a bigger crowd and have more people working the front entrance?? I feel bad for all the people behind us that missed even more of the show! We totally missed seeing Indubious! Other than that it is a nice venue and even though it was sold out there was still room, so it wasn't packed like sardines so that was nice. read more

Yuck. Too many sports fans. I guess I should learn not to drink in Wrigleyville if I hate jocks, huh?

Ah, my night is complete. Cubby Bear. Sure, overprice my drinks abit, its Wrigleyville. I only go here to see my band or Mike and Joe, and tonite was a M&J nite. No surprises here, watered-down booze, over -served 21 year olds, lkots of testosterone and shiny button0down shirts. Drunk girls who have nothing smart to say but instead let their bouncing boobs do the talking for them, yadda yadda. They always have more than enough bartenders, which is great because no one likes waiting. PlusI'm rarely ever disappointed when I see Mike and Joe. great end to a long day. read more

My girlfriend and I took an Uber 25 min to get there just for them to tell us they Closed an hour and 15 min early. We told the bouncer at the door we came from far north suburbs and he still didn't care. Won't be back again. Just unfortunate they listed on website they closed at 2. read more

I stopped in before a Cubs game and probably should have waited to start drinking inside of Wrigley vs. outside of Wrigley...man were the beers and shots expensive but hey we had a great time. My table's bill (there were 6 of us) was nearly $300 bucks...yes, we each had several beers and a couple of shots OK OK. a few shots. My point is we had a great time and the environment was exactly what I thought it would be...upbeat & fun. We had baseball, food, and beer... c'mon what else do you want...girls you say...yeah, there were plenty...Enjoy. read more

Great waitresses and bar tenders. We just had some beers and buffalo wings before taking a tour of wriggled field. Looking forward to coming back before a game. read more

Simply put...this place sucks! The waitstaff isn't friendly and the bouncers are rude. The food has never been impressive but its bar food...how to you mess that up!?! The liquor is over priced. This place wouldn't survive outside of Wrigleyville. The owners are lucky they picked such a good location...across the street from Wrigley! read more

This place is either Jeckle or Hyde for me. It's either dead as a doornail, or partying like its 1999 (or like the Cubs just won the series). It comes across to me as a pretty touristy type spot in general, but I have to say, the place is off the hook after a Cubs victory. You have to check it out immediately after the Cubs win...it's quite a spectacle. It basically transforms from a touristy bar & grill to a nightclub packed with excessively intoxicated jubilant Cubs fans dancing the night (or day) away. Its fun, no doubt, but can get a bit carried away with itself at times. Definitely worth checking out at least once, or maybe twice, but after that, it gets old pretty quick IMO... read more

With confidence I can I say I won't return unless I'm gagged and unconscious. The first bad sign was the doorperson unable to find us on the will call list & was very cavalier about it- luckily we were able to dig up an emailed receipt. Then she misinformed us of start time and we missed an hour of the concert because of misinformation. Also, drinks are pretty Expensive - especially compared to other local bars. I won't be back and unless you're trying to catch chlamydia, food poisoning, or a roofied drink I don't recommend you go either. read more

Worst sports bar I've been to - way too loud, even for me, and the Jell-O shots were...jello. Added to that was their refusal to spit the tab "on game day" - even between our two tables - which made everything more difficult. Just not impressed. I'm sure there are better places. read more

I can see why Cub fans go here and get there drink on. Food is ok, but really the nachos and some Old Style beer made this a wonderful experience. read more

Came for a visit to catch a game at Wrigley. Very fun and good selection of foods. A mist visit if you go to a game.

There's always a long line. Why?! The prices? The ambiance? There are several quality sports bars in Lakeview; why bother with this one? I know it's close to Wrigley, but even within walking distance, there are better choices. If you friends want to go, don't let them, lead them to something better. You can do it. read more

Eww...I went for the first time a few weekends ago--after a game. It was like a frat party that went on 10 years longer than it was supposed to...Maybe you will like it, I didn't. read more

This is absolutely the worst bar in wrigleyville. Staff is slow and rude and the music is terrible. It's over crowded to say the least and there is no way a $10 cover is worth it. Avoid at all cost. Management and owners should be embarrassed about how they cannot stack up to the competition. read more

This place truly sucks. Hard to believe they once had cool bands play here like GBH, Flaming Lips, Impulse Manslaughter etc. Was here one afternoon when there was only one other group of people here. These college students (or just out of school) were shouting like they were in a night club. Maybe its because the bartenders were blaring some shitty pop-industrial music. Food is shit as well. Bar for big soulless slobbering drunks, or maybe your dumb, gross recently divorced uncle. Big, big beer mall. Would fear being here on a Friday, Saturday night. Only good thing about this place is they have some cool pictures of the bar when it was called the Cubs Tap and had a Schlitz sign outside (yeah, this was a tied house). If only they had any kind of atmosphere at all. read more

Being a Cub fan it hurts me to give them a 2 star rating. The staff for the most has been horrible at best, except for one girl who has been working there for 8 years. She is really nice and friendly. The new people just want to b.s. with their friends and get them compt drinks. Otherwise the appetizer sampler is the best I've ever had! read more

I love this place. They have great sound, excellent food & drinks and an awesome staff.

I've only been here once, when I saw Deborah (Debbie) Gibson in concert last summer 2005. It was a good venue for a concert. Good sound and lots of places to stand for a decent view.For being a Wrigleyville bar, they have a good list of artists that perform there. read more

Cavernous place to grab a few quick beers before a Cubs game at Wrigley. The service was quick and friendly, and the prices were average for domestic beers. I'd definitely go back. read more

Occasionally my friends and I come here after a game. It is definitely not my favorite place to go. It is usually packed and way over priced compared to other bars in the area. However, once in a while they have some pretty good bands that play here. read more

Came here for a friend's party this summer during an away game and wasn't overly impressed. The service was just OK, the food was blah, and I left feeling like I should have enjoyed myself more. read more

These jerks get an F for spamming my cell phone, and I've never been there, never gave them permission to send me this crap, etc.

I went here to start out TBOX back in December - not a bad experience. Nice setup with the stage, a good amount of space, more than one bar to try to grab drinks from. But then tried to go here after BeadQuest. At like, what must have been one in the morning. And they still tried to charge us a $7 cover. No thanks. I get that you have live music, but come on. Once it's after, like, 12, 12:30, are the bands even still playing? Do you still REALLY need to charge people to get in? No. So until you come to that conclusion, I will pass, unless I am purposely going to see a band here. read more

Me and a couple of girlfriends came here while visiting a friend on the North Side looking for lunch. The place was absolutely empty except for a few people at the bar. We sat down at an empty table (there were many) and waited for a waitress. And we waited. And waited. AND WAITED. I wanted to keep sitting there until she came but after a good 10-15 minute wait in an EMPTY bar, still no waitress, so we walked down to Bar Louie and were greeted right away. I'd rate the food if we had the chance to order it. If it weren't for my friend's band playing there randomly, I'd never go back. read more

I thought that this bar was kind of a "go-to" spot in Wrigleyville when I first moved to Chicago, however actually going here on any given night it's just going to be filled with frat guys drinking Bud Lite and watching sports... But I do give it 3 stars in terms of their Salsa night which is on Sunday. There's a free class which is about an hour starting at 7:30 and then the dance floor is open all night. A good spot to go if you want to salsa in the area on a Sunday. The floor is not the best for dancing on though. read more

Great location and place to hang out during a Cubs game if you don't have tickets. Drinks are cheap and the staff is great.

if you have staggered from the bleachers at Wrigley and found yourself sardined into this roomful of inebriated midwesterners.... if you like watching people make complete jack-asses of themselves... if you simply can't see straight from 4 hours of Wrigley humidity and just need a cold can of beer... well, this place works. It's worth going to at least once just to laugh at some of the drunken behavior exhibited. There are several dancing stages for the hammered corn-fed women of Wrigleyville to get their grind on. If nothing else, this place is amusing for an hour. If you're blotto. So drink heavily, Cubs fans! read more

Such a fun bar! We didn't go after a Cubs game so it was the perfect level of crowdness. We were able to have a table and sit comfortably with all our friends. It was really laid back and everyone was so nice. The drinks were a little expensive but when you go out you know your going to be paying for that. Everyone was in college and I made so many "friends" that night! read more

The best thing about the cubby bear is the live music, they tend to have some awesome bands play, but there is always a cover when there's live music. The drink prices suck but that's to be to expected in Wrigleyville. Not great liquor or beer or wine selection, all very basic stuff. Bartenders are always nice and there is coat check for cheap in the winter. It it's pretty rowdy on weekends and for cubs game so beware of obnoxious drunks because they run rampant there. read more

If Chicago ever has a contest for most Gods-Forsaken, impossibly awful place in the city, I think the Cubby Bear would win in a walk. It's just a really shitty bar. The drinks are WAY WAY overpriced- even by Wrigleyville Cubs game day standards. The music is loud, which is okay, but it is seldom, if ever, music that anyone would want to listen to. It's always crowded, which wouldn't be too bad, except it's clientele is mostly douche bags from Lincoln Park, and suburbanites looking for a good place to puke. And there's just something about the Cubby Bear that brings out the worst in people. I can't tell you how many fist fights I've seen on the corner out of front of the Cubby Bear, or how many break ups, or how many random racist or homophobic slurs I've heard. The place is just bad news. read more

Went to see a band. Of course the place was overly crowded, but I still managed to have a good time with friends. I'll give this bar a second chance on a non-live music night. read more

This is a MUST GO before a Cubs game for me. Grab a beer and soak up the excitement before the game. Go Cubs!!! W.

When you think wrigleyville you think The Cubby Bear. Therefore being a cubs fan I can't give The Cubby Bear less than 3 stars, but if i was rating The Cubby Bear on it's own it would get about 2 stars. It's always so crowded here and it's really not that fun. read more

I'm being held captive by this place. Unfortunately, it's where my beloved Browns Backers meet every Sunday to watch the games so I visit this joint every week. It is in a great location but it has terrible (and I mean BAD!) food and overpriced drinks ($5 for a can of Miller Lite on game days). The TV's they have for us in the "special" party room to watch the games are way old school -- not a flat screen in the joint! Two good points though -- 1) They do have one of the best bartenders -- Nora -- she is quick, helpful and fun. 2) When the Cubs aren't playing, you can park in their parking lot for FREE. Now, that's a steal. read more

I have been coming here for years, because it is close to my house and because I like dancing, and because it used to be free before 9, if on the guest list. The dancers who come here are intermediate level, rarely good. Usually, I would give this place a couple of stars, because of their nasty floor, lack of air conditioning, and the bouncer's attitude at the door (this guy is a psycho). Tonight though, was especially bad, hence the review. First, laboriqua.com is not working, and there is no way to get your VIP pass. Second..."it is cash to tonight, and it has always been this way" does not cut it where there is no mention of that on the website, nor as you come in the door. How about an "excuse me?" Do we not know how to speak English? Cubby, take your amateurish salsa dancers and shove it. The earlier review sums it up "I won't return unless gagged and unconscious". read more

I will give two pieces of advice, do not attend concerts at this crap hole, and do not give this place your money. They clearly trick people into showing up hours earlier knowing most wont leave because they have already paid for the tickets. read more

What a great place! Staple for me whenever I go to the game. Right across the street from the stadium. Prices are fair. I had a Chicago dog. $7 bucks and came with a side. Only complaint would be that it gets crowded but it's game day......I get it. read more