Radio Maria

February 4, 2008
Kinda disappointed. Spent the afternoon across the street at The Blind Pig, more my style. Fair beer selection and the tapa selection good. I definitly would stop in to decide for yourself!

January 29, 2008 [ Updated May 17, 2008 ]
What the hell is this place? Went here for lunch and some beers on everyone’s glowing recommendation, and was almost crushed with disappointment. Trendy and cold-hearted and full of pretty people, I realized immediately that we would not fit in. The food on the menu was a meat eater’s nightmare buffet, with a $7 cheese plate but not a real sandwich or burger in sight. Yay. The beer list was pretty extensive, if you want eclectic Belgian beers you’ve never heard of at $11 a pint, sure. This place is certainly not worth it. The waiter seemed more preoccupied with his facial piercings than with taking care of our order. With all the options for beer in Champaign, I honestly can’t believe this place is ranked as high as it is. In my opinion, this would be the one place to avoid. Incidentally, we got up and left, and won’t be going back.

January 14, 2008
Nice place with an inviting ambiance, and right in the ’hood with The Blind Pig and Mike and Molly’s. Food and service was good, as was the selection of handles. On the night we were there (a January Saturday), a quick survey revealed far more tables sipping wine than drinking beer. Of course, the tapas-heavy menu may be the major influence to that observation. In any event, we enjoyed Radio Maria and will definitely return next time through.

October 6, 2007
Finally went to this place. The decor is very appealing (nice work, Tom) and the staff friendly and accommodating. The beer list is extensive but, except for one from Flossmoor, nothing that I haven’t had before. Beer prices are reasonable. The appetizer menu was extensive but pricy for what you get. Here’s where RM is more a trendy wine bar than a beer bar. Speaking of wine, the selection is excellent with some sherry and madiera of exceptional quality. I like the place and the people and the wine.

August 4, 2007 [ Updated October 7, 2007 ]
I have been so excited to visit this place, but I don’t get home to Champaign as often as I like. Located in the revitalized area of downtown, this place is yet another nice addition for beer drinkers. The design of the interior was very well done. They left the brick walls and hardwood floors, but everything else is contemporary. The long curved bar illuminates blue. Nice selection of beers on tap, that covers a wide spectrum of styles. I was lucky enough to get two beers from Flossmoor Station. They also have a full bar and some nice mixed drinks and martinis. Service was good, and prices are reasonable. What I like about this place is that it has style and caters to all types of customers. It is trendy without the snobbery. I could even bring my parents here. I had four tapas items, all of them good. The best thing is that Bling Pig is right across the street, and Mike and Molly’s is a block away. You can do a nice pub crawl. But this is now my new favorite CU beer bar, with a Mike and Molly’s a close second. The Pig is a distant third.

August 1, 2007
Been here a few times now and I’m finally getting around to rating it. The restaurant side has a pretty interesting/exotic food selection. Each plate is anywhere from $15-$20. Not sure about the tapas, haven’t had any of that fare. Awesome beer selection; both draft and bottles. Some good stuff from Founders and Flossmoor Station can usually be found, making it worth your while to stop in if you’re in the area. Heck, it’s worth it to stop in just to see the bar itself. Very cool back-lit bar and overall a very cool place to sit down and have a beer or two.

June 1, 2007 [ Updated June 14, 2007 ]
Radio Maria has an atmosphere which can be described as "Neon-Deco-Bohemian" and I truly enjoyed the artist-loft-like setting. Head bartender Tom was totally accommodating to our large group and was a true saint for allowing us to indulge in our Reinbeer games. Radio’s beer menu was simply awesome... and it changes constantly. When all is said and done, there are few ways to surpass a bar owned by someone who holds a profound love of craft beer. Agreed with all previous... this joint rocks.

May 20, 2007
Nice roomy place with the dining area set off in in a spacious room next to the bar. It’s an interesting mixture of old and new, wooden floors with brick walls but a glossy new bar. The circular tap station is unique and interesting. Interesting food list. But (here we go again!) we me it’s always about the beer. And they certainly had a great selection here, both draft and bottles. The bottle was as good as you could expect, seeing that a fellow RateBeerian was taking care of us. I’ll be back, I’m sure.

January 4, 2007
This truly is my favorite beer establishment that I have ever been to. Was there opening weekend and understand that things can only go up for this place. Beautiful looking place, modern but soft. Being that this place is NON-SMOKING is wonderful. Service is top notch and their selection is as good if not better than you will find throughout the entire state of Illinois. SERIOUSLY. Food is tappas but the restaurant is next door and I can imagine that you can order anything off the menu. One thing is that the place before the bar opened up had a reputation for being a bit pricy. This can not be said about the bar area. Tappas is priced reasonably and the beer is SPOT ON. For example, Storm King was $3, most of the others were less than $4. Kentucky Breakfast is $7 I think for a bottle. Cant go wrong if you are in town.

January 3, 2007
Nice to be the first rater of this fine establishment. AMBIANCE: Wood floors, exposed brick, leather booths, great lighting, and well designed bar. SERVICE: With Tom at the helm, you can’t go wrong. SELECTION: An outstanding tap list of roughly 25 beers ranging from solid standards such as Victory Prima Pils and Rodenbach Grand Cru (maybe that’s not a standard!) to Founders Fresh Hop, Flossmoor Station Kind IPA, etc. Tap list changes frequently! FOOD: Regular menu and tapas. Tapas look excellent. OVERALL: I think I’d be there a couple of times a week if I still lived in town.