April 21, 2012
Good selection of beers brewed in house- great staff- great rotation of beers with seasons

March 12, 2012
First, this doesn’t feel like a brewery. It is more of a hip bar instead of people hanging out and appreciating beer. That is not a bad thing at all, but you just need to know what to expect. I think the biggest problem is that the main bar area is very small and narrow. It has been around for 100 years, and the downstairs is crammed into the original bar. For this reason, it becomes almost impossible to move at times given at how popular the pace is. The beer garden is ok. The overflow of people, which is quite a lot, streams out into the dining room/restaurant area. And it feels like you are drinking in a restaurant, not a bar or brewery. Upstairs there are very loud bands that play on a stage and what is more or less a lounge area with a dance floor. Now the beer itself is good. There are always a fairly good amount on tap as well, with seasonal beers thrown in depending on the time of year. I have always found the waitresses and bartenders to be very friendly. But given how busy they get you can get neglected at times. The food is very good. Now altogether, I really like this place and I have been coming here for a long time. I always have a good time. There is good beer and everyone is having fun. You just need to know what you are walking into and that it is very crowded.

September 4, 2011
stumbled on this place while leaving Firkin... big out door patio, bar area and some seating... they have 6 of their own drafts, one guest draft and 2 casks... service was fine but the guy wasn’t super friendly or able to chat about the beers that much... the beers were solid... good experience

August 29, 2011
Good place, nice folks. Good place to grab a bite, average place to grab a beer. I put them as average perhaps because I have the good fortune to live in an area where there is an abundance of brew pubs. In the context of the options avalible in the area it’s and average to good brew pub. If it were to stand alone with fewer alternatives within 20 min. Drive I would rate it better than you are liable to find elsewhere and place rate it as good to very good. Unfortunately for Finn’s their food is on par with many other places around and their beer (IMO) is average and does not stand out from the BMC’s beyond additional styles they brew and offer.

May 4, 2011
Mickey Finn’s is a pretty standard brew pub restaurant in downtown Libertyville. The atmosphere is nice except on weekends when it can get pretty loud. Food and beer can be hit or miss. I"ve had some good beers and some not-so-good beers here. Food selection can also be an adventure - but the burgers here are usually a safe bet. In an area that doesn’t boast many brew pub options, this is certainly worth a visit. But, it in no way can stack up to the kind of pubs you’d find in Chicago proper.

September 23, 2010
This is a decent place on it’s own, but it’s quite lacking in several aspects and could definitely improve a bit. We were there to grab a bite of food and try some of the beers. They had one stout on tap which rivaled Guinness in taste and quality - not much to say there. Being there to see the transition from dinner crowd to night crowd really gave me a good feel of the clientele of this joint. The dinner crowd was all stuck-up moms who would proudly mount their designer purses on the table in front of them and husbands who were trying to look like the 20 year olds they definitely were not. The night crowd was nothing but young kids and 30-somethings who tried to dress up a bit too much and wore too much cologne. The beer selection and food menu helped support this feel in that they were nothing much more interesting than a TGI Fridays. It appears that they hire waitstaff only on the merit of how attractive they are. Our waitress was not helpful or attentive at all, and when glancing around the rest of the tables it appeared this was very common. When asking about beers our waitress had to walk away and ask someone else which took nearly 10 minutes. This is the kind of place you might go if you think the idea of a brewpub was ’cute’ or if you met up with some friends to watch a local band and drink some Miller or Bud beers. I cannot suggest Mickey’s for anyone who has an actual interest in beers or a good pub. I am not a fan of Durty Nellies either, but would have to recommend it over Mickey Finn’s since they at least have a decent beer selection. Sorry Mickeys! I have lived in the area for a long time, and I really wanted to love your place... until I went there. - Woody

October 7, 2009
Nice to find a place like this in the burbs. Their beers are good, but seem to focus a lot of wheat beers. Food is typical bar food. (Although they do have fried pickles, which happen to be one of my favorite foods.) Next time you find yourself in the northern burbs, or are on your way to Perfect Brew, stop here for a cask ale and fried pickles.

September 27, 2008
Been here a few times over the years, a Lush cousin of mine lives in Libertyville and we hit this place every time i’m in town. Classic Midwest lounge with lots of dark wood decor, I like the set up here because it’s separated from the main dining area. Beers are decent enough, nothing that will rock your socks off. Food is pretty good. Nice place to hang and pound a few.

April 22, 2008
nice warm oaky place...service was good and the staff was friendly...northing really interesting on tap, and in fact one of the beers was bad...like bad bad too old to serve...like they just needed to blow through it already to put something new on...

January 21, 2008 [ Updated January 6, 2009 ]
Friday evening found the place pretty well packed. A lot of this crowd was people waiting to be seated in the restaurant, but I still could only find one bar stool open. This looks like an old bar in an old downtown, and decor reflects it, too. Personable regulars, and two bar staff keeping tabs on me as I wandered through their sampler. Notable in that they set out tasters for both the nitro and draft versions of their IPA. Can’t say I had the food, but in our state’s new smoke-free atmosphere, I now found I couldn’t smell the beer because of the yummy smell of the cheeseburger the guy next to me had. Still, nice selection of beers.