I am working my way thru trying many of the recently nominated GNR spots and will report back on those when I try them out and or make much needed return visits. In the meantime, my previous posts on Toons speak for themselves. I love Toons as a GNR and support it's nomination. It seems to me like there's alot of different interpretations of what a GNR is here on the site. Which is fine, why wouldn't there be when there are already so many GNR's that are different like day and night. You got a list that includes Johnnie's and Moto, Katy's and Calumet Fisheries and so on. I look at the GNR list as great because you can find a great burger shack on the southside, a Belgian beer place with great bar food up North or a good meal with some taste and value in a yuppified part of town. It's got the city and the land around it covered. I mean hey, the Southside is as much a part of Chicago as the Northside is if you think different, your probably not from the city anyway, Montclare is as much a part of the city as the Magnificent Mile and so on. Hell, this is a list that's got great spots in the boondocks if your ever out that way.
So I don't see why a GNR cant be a place with a big time chef or a blue collar joint, a bakery or a local neighborhood bar where people stop to drink good beer and sip on not so skimpy mixed drinks. Why not when with the good drinks and people you can also eat better than good American bar food and chit chat with friendly folks? and if you happen to be a sports fan (god forbid) you can watch the game no problem. Just a heads up since I know so many here are anti sports which might cause for people to be anti Toons, just because a place serves beer and has fried foods on the menu as well as sports on the TV doesn't make it a sports bar first. I was at Owen & Engine last week eating fish and chips at the bar while watching Chicago Bulls basketball. Yes at Toons they do cater to KU Jayhawk basketball fans (I'm not one, haha) but that's because the owner is a proud alum and is taking advantage of a way to make some money in these tough times, nothing wrong with that...
Piggy Fatoons say's stop hating!
Toons is worthy of a GNR because that's what it is. A great neighborhood spot to eat and drink, it isn't ESPN Zone or Dave and Busters people! Nonetheless its a bar with great food and entertaining times with good convo, where you can also watch sports at, still it's not a sportsbar. The hospitality is always warm and they remember you when you come back and before you know it your a regular. Another reason I love Toons as a GNR is its a place for everyone. It's not one of these newly opened trendy spots started by a "celeb" chef who invited everyone "in" to a special preview dinner so he could hear them tell him/her how great they and they're spot are. I have met so many LTH'ers at Toons (multiple times and more so than not by chance) that I wont name names because I'm afraid I'll forget a few and thus might offend someone. haha. Hell I met Danny the owner, thru LTH, long after I was going there for food and sports. But not just that I've met many other great LTH folk at other events that I attended because I became friendly with people who I met at Toons, that, to me anyway, is a great neighborhood place along with so many other things like this.
Whether your hungry and want a good bite to eat and need to check some email, they have free wifi for you. Or maybe you want to get out away from the computer and lay off the twitter for a while and get some sun at a time when its around? they have an outdoor deck that's great for eating, drinking and watching those pass by
They still got a shuffle board when most places got rid of theirs a longtime ago and in an area like Wrigleyville where there are so many sports bars serving straight from the freezer to the fryer foods, Toons is a great change of pace from both the people and foods in those places. This is the best spot for some eat and drinks pre or post Cubs games. Nonetheless its still a neighborhood bar first that also serves great bar food and that's what I'm trying to get at.
I know most of that was about the freindly and warm welcoming staff, top notch American micro brews along with many reasons other than the food but I thought I'd let it be known. I don't see any problem with handing out free samples of made from scratch soups and gumbos and giving regulars a piece of fresh from the smoker pulled pork and what not. Why not? if the foods good and it is, they'll order some this time or the next time around. So many places do this, it's not a big deal and not done to make friends, it's good business. I didn't know a place had to have an old man mad at the world 'cause it left you behind grouch like Burt running it to be considered a GNR type spot
Now I also know GNR's are many things including great ethnic gems found in neighborhoods not in Timeout's demographic but I didn't know that's all they were. I love sports and I love the food that goes with it. The problem is most of these places these days don't care and just want you to buy $12 buckets of Miller Lite and whatevers on special which is usually what needs to go because its old. So Toons is great for a guy like me. I'm born and raised in LP and was here in the 80's (probably) before you and all this thats here now.
But sometimes I just need a chill spot with good food and the games on nearby, something that's not what I described above and that's Toons. No ones calling the food groundbreaking but it is great. The aforementioned made from scratch soups, stews and gumbos are so great in the winter this is my go to spot when I want some fresh made soup with flavor, the fries are fresh and never frozen and they have the best cheese fries of any bar outside New Orleans (they do them NOLA style). I'm a Wing King and their chicken wings are best in the city by far. So many chicken sandwiches suck that I stopped ordering them but nowadays after finding it at Toons, I get the San Diego Chicken sandwich a few times a year. The burgers are fresh hand patted and anything but skimpy, the BBQ is better than most bbq shacks and the ribs gotta be the best bar ribs in the city too if I may say. But hey like all other bbq joints, its about timing so don't judge one bad experience as the norm. I love the pulled pork nachos and Irish nacho (fries instead of chips) with brisket and would say these dishes epitomize great gameday grub. Lot's of talk and chat on this thread has been about the special event parties and those are something special.
People might want to wonder "ya but if it's not done everyday or available all the time then it's not a part of the menu and its food" and I guess you can, but you cant get fresh crawfish year round and the weather for roasting a full pig isn't always right in Chicago. So as far as I'm concerned, when you add everything together Toons equals a great neighborhood spot.
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The specials are so varied and good that you usually can't go wrong with whatever is on offer though.