Old Chicago

Prior to 2013, the last time I'd visited any Old Chicago (which happened to be this very location) was immediately before prom. Our half-drunken limo driver deposited a group of us fidgety, acne-ridden, nervous teenagers at the door. We sat in the back room; the boys yipped and offered crude comments, while us ladies sat around and played with our necklaces. I don't remember the food - which means I probably ate something mediocre, since I'd decided not to ever visit the OC again.

But something has changed in the last 8 years. Now the food at Old Chicago is acceptable, and the service is wonderfully, surprisingly competent. Infinite orders of jalapeño cheese sauce are accommodated without judgmental stares. And this cheese sauce is something brilliant to dunk anything in. This warm cream sauce adds zing to anything from those semi-bland, soggy fries to crispy, tempura style fried whole jalapeños to gooey, half-baked parmesan soft pretzels.

And the drinks? You can't go wrong with that double silve mojito, which is a mojito made with tequila. Drink a few.

That extra boost in star-age comes from excellent service - as busy as it gets, your table of two will never be neglected in favor of catering to the whim of that table of eight. Nice.

I will start this review by saying that I have been to Old Chicago MANY times. Enough times that I have completed (5) World Beer Tours. I have my name on (4) plaques at this location and (1) at the east location (it was earned at the old east location before the new one was built). I remember the days when you could drink (6) beers a visit towards your Tour instead of the limit of (4) as it is now.

If you are going to just drink beer and complete a World Beer Tour always try to do the Mini-Tours. Not only do you get a cool shirt when you complete the Tour, but the beers you drink get applied to your World Tour under a unique number. The advantage is if you drink a beer that is on the regular beer menu during a Mini-Tour you can still drink it again because during the Mini Tour it is recorded under the Mini-Tour number and not the regular menu number. Another way to work the system is to drink the "rotator" beers on the chalkboard. These are usually seasonal and local beers and are chosen by location. You can drink "rotator" beers on multiple visits in the same Tour unlike the beers in the regular menu that can't be duplicated during a Tour.

I have tried about everything that Old Chicago has to offer and I have never had anything I didn't like. Although the pizza doesn't represent a "true" Chicago style pizza it is still pretty good. If I was going to recommend a single menu item it would be the spicy fries. Make sure you get them with a side of ranch dressing.

Since I have been to Old Chicago more times than I can count I have experienced both good and bad service. The number of bad experiences is very few and the large majority of the time the service is good. I have noticed that the servers in the bar area usually do a better job than those in the main part of the restaurant.

Make sure and get a card to start your World Beer Tour in your first visit. The 1st Tour is the most rewarding because you get prizes  for every 10th - 15th beer. Combine that with doing a few Mini-Tours and you will be leaving with prizes on every 3rd or 4th visit.

Pretty good Italian food.
TVs everywhere with sports on. Great for sports fans but if not then its a bit noisy.