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When we wanted to feature a local neighborhood hot spot, we looked no further than Candlelite in Rogers Park. They have been making their thin crust pizza the same way for nearly 60 years, and their customers wouldn’t have it any other way.

Valentine’s Day in college is best spent out drinking and not competing with actual adults for reservations at the handful of quality restaurants in most college towns.  Being an adult is the worst as there are actual expectations of romance to deal with. Most people would rather avoid eye contact with that cute person they see at the bar in January then get stuck having to decide whether they have an obligation to go out with their new man friend or lady friend on Valentine’s Day.  If you make the bold move of deciding yes, as opposed to not answering your phone for two weeks, do you have to get them a small gift? Where do you take them?  What if Mr. New Guy is allergic to chocolate or is a vegan? (Let’s be honest, I’ve never had to worry about that, no self respecting vegan is ever going to ask my cheeseburger worshipping butt out).

It may be a little bit easier to be in a relationship mid-February, as your obligations to associate are clearly spelled out for you, but trying to get a restaurant reservation past the 10th is best described as not fun.  You can always try the “I absolutely intended to take you to dinner at 3:15 pm on a Saturday because I want to spend as much time with you as possible tonight” route.  I’m a huge fan of utilizing the “I didn’t forget it was Valentine’s Day, again, I just wanted to relax at home with a great movie and a home cooked meal.”  Despite all these minor annoyances the light at the end of the tunnel is usually some great drinks and a solid meal.  Whether it be out at a bar with your friends (no longer avoiding eye contact with strangers), ordering some great deep dish at home, or dunking stuff in hot oil and cheese at a packed fondue restaurant, there will be food.   At the end of the day Valentine’s Day is really just another excuse to eat a really good meal (and to buy some fabulously cheap candy on the 15th).

By:

Rachel Ford

This weekend, if you’re kind of dreading that you might walk into a couples-infested bar that smells like roses and makes your spring allergies set in early, come to a bar crawl in Lincoln Park.  For just 25 bucks, this Screw Cupid Bar Crawl is sure to get you so drunk with the free beer and mystery punch that you’ll have no clue what day it is, let alone that it’s the most depressing holiday of the year. That is unless you’ve celebrated your 30th birthday this year and you’re still working at Wendy’s, then Valentine’s Day might be a little bit better.

The 11th Annual Screw Cupid Bar Crawl includes trolley service between all the participating bars:  McGee’s, The Wrightwood Tap, Durkin’s, Duffy’s, Redmond’s and Maeve. You can start your crawl with your platonic friends at any of the bars. For 25 bucks, the package includes the trolley, beer, “love” punch, and food are all included. You can get all the deets here.

So, if you’ve been to any of these bars, you know they are little dude-bro, but they are fun despite it. I wouldn’t expect an amazing spread at these bars, but who’s going for the food anyway? If you’re about food that night, you and your Chinese takeout should consider getting a room downtown for a special night and hot tub access. But if you like nineteen year-old-girls who are a little desperate on Valentines Day, or guys that are sure to be wearing pink polo shirts, come out for a beer-soaked Valentines Day in Lincoln Park. I just hope none of you leave covered in Love punch. Sounds messy.

I’d also like it to be noted, that no, I don’t happen to work at any of these fine drinking establishments or know the organizers of the event. No one asked me to plug bar crawl. I just googled fun stuff to do on Valentine’s Day and then I saw the word: Trolley. It was then that I pretty much knew my fate was sealed. So while no one paid me to write this article, I will gladly accept monetary compensation from anyone who wants to surprise me with a few free drinks that evening. I won’t say no. Look for me and my lesbian friends who are probably wearing flannels in protest of all things pink.  But fair warning, odds are we’ll end up in skin revealing tank tops, skinny jeans, and painful heels all in the name of finding some weird dude to make out with on a trolley. Which reminds me, will someone tell me to remember to bring a camera?

John Barleycorn Schaumburg is similar to its locations in Wrigleyville and Lincoln Park in its atmosphere and menu, which let’s face it, is really nothing special.  However, the Barleycorn in Schaumburg is just HUGE. Walk in downstairs, and there’s plenty of room for dining and drinking. The second floor masquerades as a “club area”, with a dance floor with tons of space and multiple bars to keep the drinks flowing.

We paid ten bucks for the show, which was normal, but the drinks weren’t super cheap. In my own humble opinion that is usually always right, if you’re in the ‘burbs, a vodka soda should not cost the same as it does in the city.  Period.I was really impressed with the concert space. The stage was vast and elevated, giving the audience a great view of the band. The concert was awesome, but who doesn’t like a Beatles band that changes their super queer outfits with each era? When the show ended at about 10:30, the place transformed from a casual, laidback older crowd to a club-a-club dance scene playing the latest songs and beaty remixes.  If you like places that are sort of obnoxious, this is your new place.

If you like Affliction t-shirts and somehow Ed Hardy turns you on, you’ll be delighted with the crowd at Barleycorn, you can fist pump to their live DJs and watch the half-naked go-go dancers on stage. Even though this place wasn’t really my typical scene, my friends and I owned the dance floor despite being the most conservatively dressed women in our shirts with sleeves and average cleavage. But we started to fit in after doing our best impression of the Jersey Shore kids and ordering more vodka sodas from the over-bronzed but super-friendly boobalicious bartenders.
Bottom line: If there’s a band you want to see playing at this venue, it’s definitely worth checking out. The space is truly what makes John Barleycorn bearable, amidst all the bros bro-ing out and the girls skanking it up. It’s not the classiest establishment, but if you like making fun of the people around you and grinding with strangers, you’ll probably have a great time. Just remember to bring extra cash for those expensive vodka sodas.

By:

Ashley Spencer

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NOT SAFE FOR WORK

We made a special trip to get intimate with Jake Melnick’s February special. This bad boy is like a swingers party featuring a double chili burger, nachos, and buffalo wings.

This weekend, my friends and I headed down to the theater on Broadway. The Lakeshore Theater is in a vibrant cutesy neighborhood, but there’s not an overwhelming selection of restaurants (unless you think Chipotle is fine dining.) Before the Brian Posehn stand-up show, we stopped for vodka sodas and handcrafted beers at Wilde’s Bar and Restaurant.  We wanted to arrive fashionably late and buzzed. Plus, it’s just right across the street.

Wilde’s is sort of an upscale Irish bar, with leather booths, dark wood and the kind of decorations that makes Americans feel like they are in an authentic Irish bar. I am one of these people, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I am easily amused and impressed by such fake flavor.

Wilde’s was full of people eating meaty Angus beef hamburgers, topped with whiskey glazed bacon that smelled like heaven (sorry PETA). But we weren’t there for the food. So we just watched longingly, our mouths watering, our taste buds envious.

We squeezed in at the bigger of the restaurant’s two bars. Because we’re a sucker for drink specials, (so we can save more money on going out shirts from Forever 21 even though we’re past that landmark) most of us ordered $4 Smirnoff drinks. This is a pretty decent deal considering it was a Saturday night. The bartender was attentive and didn’t even flinch when we asked to split our bill, as not one of us makes enough money to treat their best friends to a single drink <insert tear here.>

We headed to the theater to make sure we had good seats, and grab a few more drinks. One of my friends was asked to dispose of her flask at the door. The rest of us were let in with not so much as a shocked look. This must be typical. One of the great things about the Lakeshore is there’s no drink minimum (not that this really mattered to us as our orders probably would have surpassed any imposed minimum). There was a fruity drink on special for five bucks and we all ordered two drinks, double fisting them into the theater.

Part of the reason my friends and I have been going to comedy shows is that we can be human beings at shows, drinking what maybe an average person does. But we might have overdone it; we were overly giggly and kept telling each other we we’re peeing during the peak of the show. Luckily, no one followed through with this.

After Brian Posehn’s nerdy, self-deprecating stand-up, we headed to the bar next door, at the Theater’s urging. I have no idea what it’s called. It was that kind of night. We had a drink, I talked to the theater ticket rippers about how funny I was, which is neither funny nor impressive, and then we headed home. Stopping at McDonald’s first of course.