I'm a bit biased because I did stand up here the other night, but I really like this place. We didn't have the time to play pool, but there are almost two dozen tables here (I could've just said 24 but this boosts my word count).
The atmosphere in both the bar side and pool side is incredibly chill. When we walked in, there was a group of people playing Magic: the Gathering (or some other similar card game) at a table, which I thought was really awesome.
Pool, drinks, some bar bites, and even live music here and there makes this place one I enjoy going to.
There's plenty of tables and plenty of cue sticks to choose from around their large pool room. Â And, don't worry if you're not the best pool player. Â There are professional pool players and novices that come here, and no one's watching your game because they're all enjoying themselves. Â
In the front room, you can choose to lounge around and hang out with friends. Â If you're lucky, you might be there on a night when they have live music. Â They should set up some karaoke in this room (maybe I'll suggest that). Â
My only complaint is that there are only regulation sized tables. Â There would be more to this pool hall if they had bar sized pool tables as well. Â You know, for us that want to brush up on our bar pool skills...
I've been here twice. My first experience was ok. I just went to have dinner and greatly enjoyed the little jazz band that played. I felt a bit out of place, though, as if the Pressure staff and other people sitting at the bar only accepted regulars. I just went last night and really cannot say anything good about the experience. There were two people on staff trying to run the show--making drinks, taking orders for food, handing out supplies for billiards, but it seemed they were in over their heads and couldn't handle everything at once. Even though it wasn't packed, it took forever to order anything. My friends and I ordered mixed drinks and cocktails. They were not good. Either too weak or way too strong or just very badly made. It was early in the night and they ran out of amaretto. My friend ordered nachos and grilled cheese. After about a half hour, they brought us movie-theater nachos with a cheese cup. The grilled cheese took about 40 minutes to make. I'm guessing this is the place to be to play pool, but I definitely would only recommend having a beer and nothing else.
Review Source:I absolutely love this place. Their staff is always friendly and courteous. I've been here maybe half a dozen times and each time I've truly enjoyed myself.
It's a poolhall on one side and a bar the other. They have everything from live music, Monday night football on their big screens, to real comedic talent gracing their stage. It's a win-win good time had by all.
We used to play league pool out of a bar in Boystown and once we found Pressure Billiards, we moved up there.  Wahib, the owner, was very welcoming and helpful.  Even moved the entire pool league up there.  My team still plays out of there and we love the staff, Sandro, the general manager is the best!  The rest of the staff is great as well.  Everyone knows your name - it's just like Cheers.  lol  The service is awesome and the food is the best!  Get the Mushroom Bliss burger with their fries!  They take care of the 13 - 9' Brunswick pool tables.  It's a great time all around, and if you want a challenge, there are always a few regulars around to give you a lesson on a table.
Review Source:I usually stop by during the spring/summer time then disappear or rarely visit the place during the fall/winter times.
After 4-5 years, this still seems like a great place to come chill at the cafe area to do some work and sipping on latte. I don't sit at the cafe area. I just walk through it to get to the pool hall.
The pool hall is still great. It's usually very active with league competition and regulars during the evening on any given day.
They now have a full bar sharing space with the cafe and open mic area. I haven't try any of their mix drinks yet. The mixes seem to be quite delicious base on the ingredients.
Plenty of daily specials on foods, drinks, billiard, etc. Their foods are quite good. The cheese fries is delicious.
It's an affordable, friendly, and clean place to come with friends or solo. The staffs and the clienteles had always been friendly, imo. Great cozy place
This place is very cool. The atmosphere was cool. The music was a nice laid back jazz (don't know if it's like this always) so that made the game a lot better. Took my wife with me went on a Wednesday (which turned out to be ladies nite and I had a $20 Groupon  which covered 1.5 hours of pool and two Coronas which isn't bad ample space to not bother other people while playing (the place was a little full for a Wednesday) the only thing I noticed was that the sitting area in the pool table room the floors where really dirty along the walls but hey it's only a pool hall.
Review Source:Pressure is probably the least known, but best bar/cafe/pool hall in the city! Just for some perspective, I've lived in Chicago my entire life and have seen my fair share of pool halls, bars, cafes, etc from the north side all the way to downtown and back.
All of the employees are a perfect fit for the place, and you can tell they enjoy working there and connecting with the customers - all of the workers know my name! But still, if I just want to go there and be left alone to my own devices, I know I won't be bothered. I've studied for multiple tests there, played computer games, played pool, drank at the bar, and even had my birthday party there!
Also, I know pool halls are known for being skeezy, and I can personally say that I did not play pool before coming to pressure so I was a bit nervous as a first timer. However, the types that play pool are very nice and actually will show you a trick or two if you ask! Â Just so you know, the pool hall is separate from the cafe/bar/sitting area and there is no pressure (pun not intended) to venture over to either side from the other. Now, I'm quite competent at the game of pool and actually ended up buying my own pool cue.
Food and drinks are good, but the specials can be pricey compared to other bars' specials - $3 beers on special and about $7-8 for a meal. I guarantee you'll come back just for the fries though! Also, when you think about the typical bros that you avoid at your everyday bar by going to Pressure, you'll be happy you made a visit. Careful, once you go to Pressure, you'll never go to Lincoln Park, Downtown, or Wriglyville bars again...You've been warned.
Chill. Â There is no pressure at PB&C. Â Everyone is here to relax and have a good time. Â
The place is divided into two sections. The main entrance leads you to the cafe portion, where they have a nice selection of drinks, both alcoholic and non. The other half of the place is a pool hall. Â The pool hall has a modern look. Â There are a bunch of flatscreens to catch the game. There is a decent selection of music being played in the background. The atmosphere is very chill.
I came here on a Friday night on a double date. We ordered cocktails. I was surprised that our drinks are brought over to us. I guess I'm just not used to being served drinks at other pool halls. We all had a good time. I was surprised they had "Scooby Snacks" on their cocktail menu. Â We each ordered one without shame. Everytime I drink a ScoobySnack it reminds me of Vegas...but that's another story.
I definitely recommend this spot if you're looking to shoot pool and grab a few drinks with friends. They have daily drink specials. I can't comment on the food because I haven't tried it yet. I'll update this review when when I do.
Just remember,
"The balls roll funny for everybody kiddo." -E.F.
I've only been here about two or three times and have enjoyed myself every time. Now, I concede that I'm not a pool hall expert, so I'm not sure how the tables or prices compare to other places. So serious players may want to move on to another review. But, if you're just looking for a fun place to hang out for a night, read on...
This place has a great atmosphere, a good beer selection, excellent hot chocolate, a loyalty card, and it really did seem like a nice place for all ages, within reason. Also, they have some type of stagey activities at night; none of which we've gone to or participated in, but it gives off a nice community feel. The staff have always been very, very friendly. And again, hot chocolate! What more could you ask for?
If you're looking for a pool hall in the Edgewater/Rogers park area this is the place for you. The drinks are OK, the tables are nice and most important the bathrooms are clean. They also have a small menu to help quench those late night cravings, weekly drink specials and a loyalty 'punch card' program to help you save on future visits.
Overall- it was better than I expected and I'll be back.
"I wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin!" That's what I say when I go to Pressure's.
Fairly good coffee drinks. Check.
Pretty decent array of alcoholic beverages. Check.
Free wifi with purchase. Check.
Burgers to "Sammies" to nachos to mozzarella cheese sticks for late night cravings. Check.
A game of pool to keep your boyfriend's ego in Check? A-ha~ YES! That's right, I WIN.
You don't go here for drinks and food alone. You go here because it's a billiards with satisfactory food and drinks.
They have daily drink specials and feature local artists like musicians, poets and comedians on some nights. Some are good, some....eh.
I can still quote one of the funniest sets on a comedy night: "...My mom told us that this is why we could never have nice things. Oh no, not because we're poor and couldn't afford them but because we're communist and believe in equal distribution of property." BEST!
Continuing my tradition of going to places and exploiting them in secondary ways, I came to Pressure to enjoy as a tea house/cafe. Their tea selection is pretty spectacular. Evidently, they use a brand that those who shop at nicer groceries see with some regularity. This was my first encounter with it. Evidently, I shop on skid row.
In addition to the teas, they have cookies and cakes -- because fatty needs another cookie. The cafe side of Pressure is really inviting. There's a big screen... screen, wooden tables, benches and plenty of seating. Large windows give you a view of everything going on on Clark Street. I think Pressure serves as a terrific arbiter of what Edgewater is bringing.
The other side of Pressure is all pool tables and more windows. I am not too much of a shark, so I can't speak to a personal experience over there. I can say that the tables get packed quickly and there seem to be a lot of regulars. Make a reservation.
These tables are huge. But I'm a newb, so what do I know? It's a decent place to play pool. I wish the music was a little louder though because when it's so quiet, it kind of makes me nervous playing around a bunch of "professionals."
I played pool for the first time (if you don't count online pool) at G-Cue. So I'm comparing this against that venue. I think I prefer the other venue more. The second time I played pool, it was at Pressure and it was on MLK's Day with a friend. It was $10 for 2 people per hour. Pretty decent price, I think... I'm not really sure because I wasn't sure what I was paying for at G-Cue when we divided the check (I had drinks too). When we checked out, the cashier gave us a billiards punch card -- After 5 visits, we get an hour free. After 10 visits, 3 hours free. What an awesome way to entice me to come back for more.
The third time I played pool, my friends and I came to Pressure again. This time it was with a huge meetup group, and so we had a special discount -- $15 per person for 3 hours (I think we had about 70-80 RSVPs for this event). This $15 per person deal also covered a chip for any one drink we wanted (alcohol, coke, whatever, you name it). I ordered a basket of fries (with salt and cajun seasoning), and I thought it was good except that the cajun seasoning was too concentrated in certain areas of the basket.
Overall, I had a pretty good time. The location's also much closer to me than G-Cue so I'll definitely be back more often (and hey, we have the punch card).
Oh, and the staff is LGBT-friendly. I'm not so sure about their regular patrons though.
I liked it. One hour of billiards  fun and fierce competition only $11.00.  I got a good corner pool table. There are maybe about 15 well kept pool tables total. But little fabreez would go a long way here.
At the counter a lot of tea choices, hot chocolate, espresso and beer. Nice chocolate cake on display too bad I am perpetually on a diet.
The waitress gave us a billiards punch card pass. After 5 visits we get one hour for free. We are planning on filling up the punch card.
Decent place to play pool, very low-key crowd. Â A couple stars off for over charging customers...$11 for one game (yes, we were talking so it took an hour) is a bit much. Â As is $2 for a cup of tea.
Just fyi, don't bother paying for parking when there's ample street parking one block off of Clark.
The cafe is quiet and has a good atmosphere..though it always depends on the employee at the counter's musical tastes. The chai is above average for Chicago and there's a good variety of drinks available. Don't try the food. Even though the menu has expanded the food is very sub-par. The hamburger tasted like a decade old frozen soy patty that was thrown in the microwave and cooked til lukewarm, unseasoned. The chicken fingers were hard and of poor quality. They need to change food vendors badly. Until they change that eat before you go there. The pool hall is clean and comfortable as well with decent rates and friendly people.
Review Source:I love  this place!! It has reasonably priced pool tables, and they are never over crowded.  I also love to hang out in their comfy couches (though wish they had more :P) and either play on my laptop or a game of chess with some friends.  They have comedy shows here, but I haven't been to one yet.  I just love the atmosphere of this place and would give it a 5 if they would improve their food service area a bit.  They are often out of things, but their teas/drinks are good.  If it helps, the D'Luxe diner is just across the street with decent food.
Review Source:Now the first couple times I went to this place it was alright...they let me and my friends control the music and let us pay with separate cards and it seemed like a place I might want to come back to. That was until the last time I went there. We had horrible service and whoever was working the register that night was a complete jerk. I asked a question and got a sarcastic and rude response, and when we went to pay he told us we could not pay with separate cards even though we had done so the night before. I would say that it depends on who is working to determine if it will be a good experience.
Review Source:under pressure...dum da dum da da dum dum.
they should totally have this david bowie song as their theme song...but it would get annoying if they played it over and over and over. but i digress
pressure is good times. the pool tables are clean and fast. the food is tasty and they serve some decent beers. i have yet to sit in the cafe side, but it looks nice and cozy. and i hear the comedy shows they have are funny. [go see antoine, he's a riot.]
you could bring your pre-teen & teen kids with you and teach them the art of billiards. it's not at all like some of those scary hole-in the wall pool halls. it's a little pricey...but it's totally worth it.
the one con that i could think of is the music selection...i don't know if it's a dj or someone just sets their iPod on shuffle. someone who has every song since 1982. it was just a little disconcerting to hear michael jackson then smashing pumpkins then tupac. but that's just me.
bottom line...go here and play some pool and have a good time.
This has become my new pool hall in the area. Â It has many tables that are well kept, decent cue sticks and a friendly staff. Â Thankfully they don't serve alcohol so no one gets too rowdy and my billiard skills diminish much slower. Â
The cafe is pretty nice as well. Â I think they may have some live performances but I have not had the opportunity to see any of them. Â One big plus is that they serve Metropolis coffee. Â I'm not a coffee person at all but metropolis and Intelligentsia are always way better than Starbucks.
Pressure has super nice pools tables, good snacks and coffee drinks. I suppose it really isn't my scene. It is often full of teeny -boppers...and I'm in my 30s. But that's okay. I go and get absorbed into my pool game and conversations with my friends.
It also has a cafe part, which has served me well as a late night study place.
Amazing place to study, play pool, read, chill, or get some coffee or yumy snack. They have free wifi, yummy fried snacks, board games and awesome pool tables. Laid back and chill with friendly workers. Awesomee place and once you go there regularly, you tend to meet new people and make friends.
Review Source:This is a decent place to play pool or practice your game. The only thing I didn't like was the Teenager's that came in, making to much noise and acting like fool's, too distracting. When the place is quite, you get some serious pool player's playing and working there game it is nice. I have not tried sitting in the cafe side but it looks nice and chill to be sitting for a coffee and a book. I will keep coming back it is the best place to play pool around so far.
Review Source:I went to Pressue and played pool before it was officially open for business. I love James and everyone who works there. I even had my private birthday party there and everyone had a blast! And it wasn't expensive to rent the pool side for a few hours.
Alas. I have moved out of the neighborhood, but if you play pool or play AT pool, Pressure is the place to go if you're close by. . .and I'd say it's even worth a bit of a drive.
Snacks are limited, but good, too. And once when I was leaving (done practicing my pool game) while the comedy open mike was going on, I heard one of the funniest lines I've ever heard in my life!
Plus, they have an in-house APA league if you want to play for fun and get better at your game.
There's parking in the back, too.
Jacquie
4 stars for brewing Metropolis beans. Â Most delicious. Â Also, refills are a mere two quarters! Â Can't beat that.
They do need to carry more fresh fruits and breakfast-y fare.
I could care less about the enormous pool table ladden room. Â And that's a good thing because I barely remember it is there. Â Very quiet and separate from the coffee cafe area. Â
Get some bagels though, will ya?
I like this place a lot because it's walking distance from my place. Â When me and Amish S are bored out of our mind, but can't be bothered to drive somewhere, we just walk a few blocks and play a few games of pool. Â Rates are reasonable at $10/hr for 2 people. Â
It seems like the price of coffee has gone up, but nevertheless it's decent coffee. Â They have nice tables and the crowd is not too dodgy. Â On Thurs, they have stand up comedy open mic. Â Sometimes I feel bad for the amateur comics because all I hear are crickets. Â Also, at times, some local comics that perform at Chicago Improv and Lakeshore theater come and test out their new material here. Â But, you never know, you may see the next big comic start from this place.
A painfully underrated place, that should get much more credit for being one of the only places to stay open late on this quiet stretch of Clark St, besides a nearby 24/7 Dunkin Donuts, and the several bars just to the north and south of here. Not sure if Deluxe Diner counts much anymore as a late-night option, since they cut back to being 24 hours on Fridays + Saturdays(boo to that).
Anyway, I like how this place serves bubble tea, coffee, and a small amount of snacks + food. It's way more comfortable to sit down here, than at many other coffeehouses I've been to in Chicago. Not to mention, it was also the first place ever where I tried Metropolis coffee, which has gone on to become my favorite coffee in the city. I especially loved how they were nice enough to give me a free cup of coffee, since they were about to close one night. And of course, that went on to helping me discover Metropolis.....
Their pool room is also very nice, and it's interesting that they have a digital jukebox, too. I'm hopeful that I'll eventually go to one of their stand-up comedy/open mic nights at some point.
I absolutely love this place for so many reasons, allow me to share some with you.
1. It's few blocks from my apartment, so i can just walk there.
2. It has a nice chilled out atmosphere.
3. The pool table area is never really crowded...ever.
4. Theres two very attractive korean girls that work there.
5. Good food and vitamin water (love them for having vitamin water).
6. It's a smoke free establishment.
7. They don't serve alcohol, so that keeps the knuckleheads out.
8. wi-fi for all you yelpers and myspacers
9. Saturday night comedy, some are funny and then some are brutal.
10. They have a digital juke box.
11. There are 14 pool tables in the Pool Hall.
12. Did i mention they sell Vitamin Water.
What more can you ask for, this place is great for shooting pool with the friends or taking a date. Do yourself a favor and check this place out.
I really like this place. It's kind of a cafe/comedy venue/pool hall all in one cozy, swanky little place.
One side is the cafe with comfy chairs and tables and that is also the area where they hold comedy shows. A friend of mine actually performs here from time to time.
The other half of this place is a pretty cool pool hall.
The entire place just has this lofty, exposed brick type of feel.
Nice place to hang out with friends or even bring a date for a night of comedy or to show off your stuff on one of their tables.
I walked/drove by Pressure Billiards and Cafe almost daily after it opened in Fall 2005 but I didn't notice it until I heard some good things about it from my friends. I decided to check it out one Saturday and I have been going almost every weekend since.
Saturday night is stand-up comedy night. I think that Pressure is a great comedy club waiting to be discovered. Despite relatively small audiences, stand-up comedy at Pressure is hilarious and cheap ($10 for adults, $5 for students). The comedians that frequent Pressure are down-to-earth people who interact with the audience. The shows start around 9 PM and last about an hour and a half. Sometimes the shows include musicians.
Pressure's billiards room is nothing short of top-notch. It has over a dozen full-size Brunswick tables of impeccable quality. The lighting is good and unlike many "pool halls" it is smoke-free. The rates are per-minute, meaning that they don't get rounded up to the hour. For tables of that quality the rates are good (I think somewhere around $8 per hour for one person, $10 for two, etc.).
The cafe area is wonderful. The menu is good, offering the standard array of coffee/espresso drinks, tea, and smoothies. I would recommend the mocha smoothie with whipped cream. Food includes sandwiches, chips, cake, nachos, and cookies. Oh, and did I mention the free WiFi internet connection?
Pressure has it all; I highly recommend it.
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