Latest reviews from Blue Island

“I finally brought the family here tonight after my sister-in-law’s glowing recommendation and two previous attempts (once they were closed, and I gave up after waiting for a table an hour and a half on a Friday night). The ambience is comfortable and the service is great and knowledgeable. The food is rich and tasty, but the beer selection is even better: 24 taps with Three Floyds Zombie Dust the most common, and including three barrel-aged imperial stouts, Not cheap but not pretentious either.“

ccex 2647 days ago

“Nice little brewery located between Chicago and Three Floyd. Nice location with plenty of artwork. Staff were nice and willing to help. Beers is not bad but still needs a bit of work. Plenty of parking. Love the Moog and the fact that it is still functional.“

Boutip 2890 days ago

“A little hard to find with one-way streets but worth the visit. Owner and staff were nice, coffee beers were great and so were the stouts. Unique artwork on the walls. Down to earth atmosphere“

BlackBeerPG 2932 days ago

“Industrial space brewpub in HISTORIC Blue Island. They let you bring your bike inside and have fussball. Beer’s good too.“

envane 3056 days ago

“Visited with a couple of locals and a coworker....very cool spot. Thursday at 7 found a batch of empty tables....seated in the former porch area...now very nice dining area. Beer menu excellent; a little heavy on the heavy / hot beers but no matter; plenty for all. Had to have Zombie dust first...no way to avoid...second was a really good sour...recommended by the wait staff person who nailed it. While there...check out the Blue Island Brewery right down the street. All in all...excellent place; interesting neighborhood. Go for it.“

dwm1034 3059 days ago

“Off the beaten path but well worth it! Great ambiance and food/beer selection (extensive draft and bottle offerings). Especially if you like cajun food.“

BrewMstr 3856 days ago

“My old standby in the South Burbs. Thought I actually had entered this place many moons ago. Cajun/Creole food is the game here with a old school laid back New Orleans vibe to accompany the vibe. Charlie Orr passed a few years back which is a loss, but a loss that brought with it immense progress courtesy of his daughter who took over. The place has become more refined and consistent in my opinion with better attention to the service of craft beer (no more dirty lines). I miss Charlie’s gruff old self and mood swings, but his place is showing great and really hitting a sweet spot in the south burbs. Don’t miss this if you are in the area and absolutely make the trip if you are in need of a laid back evening out with some great bayou cooking and quality beers.“

EddieG 3858 days ago

“Everyone involved in this business is knowledgeable, friendly, and welcoming. Owners Dave and Jen are outstanding hosts. The place has a great dark beer cellar feeling...wild taxidermy all over the place. No blaring wall of TVs with 12 different sporting events I don’t care about. Bartenders are all beer geeks and really know their stuff. Taps are constantly rotating...when a keg is drained another great beer immediately takes it’s place. No dead tap handles here! New beers come on daily. No food, but you can bring stuff in or order out and have it delivered. Juke box is wildly eclectic. and fun...sometimes staff share their music from their iPods...or they’ll let you play your stuff if you ask nicely. I have never had anything but a great time in this new beer joint...and they really are just getting started. And the Maple Tree Inn is just a few doors down, so you can park and do your own Blue Island pub crawl all on the same one block strech. But best of all is the high quality of their tap list...really outstanding beers, some quite hard to find. They even do a sample tray...four 5oz. pours of ANYTHING they have on tap, regardless of price or abv, for $10.00. Many special events held frequently...I was there one Saturday night and they had the distributor for La Trappe pouring free tulips of trappist brews for charity, trying to raise money for a bike path/hiking trail along the canal in Blue Island. I have never NOT met cool people in this place.“

RAYBOY01 4020 days ago

“Wish they had better hours, but enjoy going when they are open. Great selection of crafts around world, some local, and food is excellent. Value, ok, not coming here for deal“

Beerealist 4232 days ago

“New Orleans’s themed with a 26 beers on tap as well as a selection of loose bottles. Cajun and creole food, including pork ,ribs, and seafood. On of my favor places to be. Great staff and people. Not only good beer good mixed drinks too.“

IanIPA 4496 days ago

“Judged a competition here and had a chance to drink and eat as well. Very cool old school vibe with heavy wooden stools and a ton of great beer on tap. The food is damn fine as well. The cover the gamut with the beer selections. Nice.“

NobleSquirrel 5008 days ago

“New orleans type theme. Cajun and sea food. Small place. Seems like people mostly go for the food. Always someone eating. Quiet. Owner is friendly. Great lakes christmas, affligem, sierra nevadas, goose island including bourbon county stout, founders rye, flossmoor beers. About half belgian or imports, half american micros. Great place to have a couple or enjoy the grub. Overly sweet bartenders. Ha.“

3Faveryrogue 5581 days ago

“Great NO ambiance. I’ve always been promptly seated and well served here. Their tap and bottle selection is top notch for the area. Their food is cvajun style and does not disappoint. In fact IMO it’s the best NO/cajun joint in town. I drive from the west suburbs to enjoy the Maple Tree“

Kodos 6101 days ago

“a favorite place. i love the aligator soup. you can sit at the bar and sample beer, or get a table and enjoy a meal on new orleans style cuisine. they even have a large patio. there is usually a good selection of beer, and a friendly staff to keep it pouring. i’ve been coming to maple tree (starting with his place on 107&western) for at least 25 years.“

dm9831 6729 days ago

“What a great little place in my neck of the woods. Why has it taken me so long to try it out? The food at Maple Tree makes the beer pale in comparison (yes... I know I’m reviewing on a "beer" site). From awesome appetizers like fried pickles and "voodoo nuts" (breaded & deep-fried balls of Andouille sausage impaled with a clove of garlic) to Cajun/Creole entrees including an awesome Catfish Pecandine with sweet potato fries and truly "hot" spare ribs with a rub that will make your mouth (and eyes) water. Even the red beans and rice (with big chunks of shredded pork) was way above par.

As far as the beers go, yeah... 26 taps with a rotating selection. And the owner knows beer well enough to reject "off" kegs. Running down the list: McEwans IPA, Radegast Pils, BBK Kutscher Alt, Anchor Steam, Liberty & Porter, Dogfish 90, Newcastle, 3F Alpha King, Great Lakes Moondog, Wychwood Hobgoblin... and the list goes on. Good stuff, all. Plus, running into Cornfield and RAYBOY01 was a treat.

I’ll have to go back and look for Drnk_McDermott’s glove, too.

“

frankenkitty 6804 days ago

“Nice atmosphere, interesting food... more like an individual improvisation on Cajun food. I had a pork chop that was about two inches thick after cooking, tied up like a London broil, and incredibly well-smoked. Beer selection is best available in the southern suburbs, with the beers mention in the other reviews, plus Abitas, some not-found-in-regualr-bars Germans, and an ecelctic selection of Belgians. Hmm... seem to have lost a glove there... I’ll have to go back and look for it.“

DrnkMcDermott 7081 days ago

“Charlie, the owner and sometimes host, is a great guy... putting up with the likes of me and my friends for all of these years. (We were there at the original MT on 106th & Western.) His current thing is to keep a goodly selection of craft beers on tap, with an occasional surprize bottle or two of fine stuff. Look for changes of the on tap every two months or so. You’ll always find something new to try or a good friend to revisit. And the food is Great. Not 100% Cajun or Creole - - - the area couldn’t deal with such food. But what Charlie offers is a nifty blending of Louisiana styles with what most Chicagoans can deal with, and the compromise is excellent. Blend that with the good brews, the friendly folk behind the bar and waiting the tables, and you have a fun place to visit. For sometimes wild fun, drop in on a (almost monthly) Sunday event. You get a southern styled, all you can eat buffet, live music, and good, good beer. This upcoming Sunday (10/3/04), for example, features Little Al Thomas. Great blues. Fat Tuesday is a must. Fun atmosphere.“

Cornfield 7151 days ago

“Impeccable beer selection. Always seems to be a Schlenkerla (great with the smoked food), some good Belgians, and plenty of fresh local beer from Two Brothers, 3Floyds, and Flossmoor Station. Food is a bit pricey, but worth it--great cajun-inspired dishes that are generally better than the stuff you can get in most places in NOLA. My wife would rather that it was not so heavy on the seafood, though. A very concerned and considerate proprietor will often say hi at your table and make sure everything is up to snuff. Great place.“

npdempse 7178 days ago