Sheffield's Beer and Wine Garden

Sheffield's will always be a bit of a special venue for me in that it was the very first bar I ever set foot in when I moved to Chicago in 1995. For the rest of the 20th Century I was a bit of a regular here and after a decade plus hiatus I have only recently have made a few return visits. Despite my tastes having vastly changed since my twenties, Sheffield's is still a very enjoyable bar.

Sheffield's is set in the southern fringe of Wrigleyville and though the ambiance is a bit drab, it is definitely one of the more sophisticated and interesting venues in the neighborhood (aside from during Cubs games when it is overrun with drunkards). There are three different distinct areas of Sheffield's; the front area is your typical bar with a long counter, some table seating and often crowded; the back room is dubbed "beer school" and is a more open space with a working fireplace and finally a largish (at least by Wrigleyville standards) beer garden that they enclose during the long Chicago winter so that it remains functional. Back in the 1990's the Beer School section featured a pool table and this was often my hang on Saturday nights; while the pool table is long gone this remains my favorite section of Sheffield's.

What sets Sheffield's apart and makes it classier than most pubs in the area are the impressive array of over 100 craft beers (with tons on tap) and the surprisingly tasty (yet affordable) bar food with BBQ being their specialty (there is also an array of Southern cuisine such as gumbo and some typical bar fare, i.e. burgers). Today I opted for the pulled pork sandwich ($9) which featured a generous serving of flavorful and juicy pork, a couple different BBQ sauces to choose from and a side of my choice (I selected the cornbread which was more moist and chewy than typical for cornbread, but enjoyable nonetheless).

There is a separate menu for the beer that offers a nice description, the cost, type of serving glass and alcohol percentage (ABV); most of the beers are extremely reasonably priced at $5 to $6 per pint for some really solid beers (there are also some rare and expensive beers available). For my first brew I went with the Revolution Brewery Very Mad Cow. I am a huge fan of beer aged in bourbon barrels and this was such an excellent concoction; really pronounced bourbon aftertaste. I also quaffed a really refreshing hard cider that was aged with cinnamon toasted nuts which also made for a wonderful aftertaste and another bourbon aged beer called No Bacon (not bad, but minimal notes from the bourbon barrel - especially as compared to the Very Mad Cow).

Service my last couple of visits has been ho-hum. Nothing alarming, but just not the most pleasant, knowledgeable or enthusiastic servers around. For example, tonight when I asked our primary server what beers on tap were available that were aged in bourbon barrels she informed that none were; fortunately a friend handed me the beer menu before I placed my order and I spotted a couple myself before ordering. When the food was delivered, someone from our party had to wander over to the bar counter to request napkins and utensils. While our server was extremely pleasant on the eyes (even well before my first sip of beer), she just did not seem all that motivated and periodically disappeared for an extended period of time.

Another cool aspect of Sheffield's is that when the beer garden is open you can actually bring-your-own-meat (BYOM) and grill up your own food in their beer garden. While the beer garden is a nice option on a warm evening, the only beef I have is that somehow there is a loophole in Chicago's anti-smoking restrictions that results in Sheffield's allowing people to smoke there (or perhaps they payed someone off... after all this is Chicago)! Great if you are a smoker, not so much for the rest of us. In summary Sheffield's is certainly a solid choice if you are in the Wrigleyville neighborhood and appreciate great craft beers or want significantly better than average bar food (especially if you have a hankering for some BBQ). Just be advised that despite the superior quality of the food and drinks, the ambiance is only a small step up from other nearby venues and service generally is average.

Yikes!

Some friends and I arrived here around 10pm one time and the place was already a disgusting sty. But hey, it's a bar so who cares. Right?

Not long after we arrived one of my friends started getting harassed by a drunk elderly female customer. The whole situation was sad rather than funny. OK, it was a little funny but uncomfortable nonetheless.  

The worst part of the night was the service. The bar was not even packed but it became a chore trying to get a drink from the ignorant bartenders.

It is quite the shame they are the only bar around for miles. Oh wait, they're not. There are hundreds of better businesses in the area. Not a secret I won't be back here again.

Excellent brisket and pulled pork. The sauces are great. The craft beer selection is awesome. Looks like a dive bar but everything is top quality. I wish I lived closer.