The Red Lion Pub

This review is for an early lunch for three in the front dinning room on a Saturday in mid-February.service: Jake was awesome. Very professional and incredibly knowledgeable. bar: Excellent draft list. I drank Guiness ($9 for 20 oz. as of 02/2024) and it was great. Shout out for having Old Speckled Hen on draught! They keep most of the Samuel Smith offerings in bottles, if that's your thing. food: My wife had the wedge salad plus chicken ($20), I had the Four Cheese Toastie with a side of tomato soup ($17), and another person had Shepherd's Pie ($20). Everything was fresh made, high quality, and very enjoyable.details: We were able to snag street parking, but that appears to be the exception, not the rule. The interior is fantastic, especially if you're a military history buff or Anglophile. The books and memorabilia are not to be missed. We especially enjoyed the fireplace on this frosty day.

cool, unique spot in Lincoln My recs: Irish handcuff + burger & fries A great place to hang out with friends! It feels like the perfect escape from a typical Chicago pub. You can feel the care and attention to detail that's been put into this place. Cheers

The beer pours here are solid. I particularly recommend the Belhaven Scottish Ale nitro pour, the Guinness, and the Old Speckled Hen.The food here is also a cut above the usual bar fare. The pretzel is huge and coated with a buttery glaze. The burgers are spectacular; meaty and compact with a simple cheese and onion garnish. The fish and chips is solid, as well, and not at all greasy.For dessert, get the pot de creme. Its as creamy as jello pudding and studded with a scorched layer of marshmallow, tantalizing your inner smore lover if you have one.

This is our favorite bar in the city! Now here is my caveat - this is a place to come and speak to your friends or GOD FORGIVE make new friends by speaking to strangers IRL. Don't be that weirdo who sits and scrolls through ticktoc at the bar. BOOOOO! Make a friend, use your skills of conversation and strike up a conversation - trust me these are your people. My fellah and I enjoy a boozy brunch here monthly. We meet new friends every time or chat with the amazing Owner Colin and bartender Jake. Are you a history buff then Colins is your guy to strike a conversation with always.I love the food here. It is authentic as can be for a place on this side of the pond.The scotch egg rocks my world every time.The ambiance is grand - high ceilings, library feel with the English pub mentality.Tell Colin and Jake Gigi and Robin sent you.

This was a blast from the past from me. I spent many an evening here with the previous owner (John Cordwell) and the current owner (Colin Cordwell). Many a night was spent watching movies while having a meal or drink. I was not prepared for what I walked into when The Doctor and I went there for a meal. The original Red Lion, while it had a second floor, most of the activity took place on the first floor. There was the main bar, some tables in the front and a fireplace. Walking into the Red Lion, I was amazed at the transformation! I felt like I had walked into an English country estate library room. The second floor was gone, and the main room had an expansive view. The walls were covered in books and interesting memorabilia. While everything was new, it was good to see that the TV and Colin were still there.I will say the food was better than I remember, definitely a step up from general bar food. The Irish Nachos were a big hit with me, and I would definitely get those again. The Scotch Egg was also very good, but I am a sucker for those. The mac and cheese with the fried egg was a good side and the Shepherd's Pie was delish as well. The Doctor got a half house salad with chicken. While it was only a half of a salad, there was a lot of chicken on that sucker. The Ploughman's Plate was also a nice side, definitely would recommend that as a snack if you want something to munch on while having drinks at the bar. And they have bubbles, so that is a win win for me.Service was a little slow, but not a deal breaker as there was one person serving as hostess and waiting the tables. Staff is friendly and Colin is still Colin, full of jokes and a good conversationist, so it was great to reconnect. Jake, another bartender, was also lovely and good company. So glad to see that The Red Lion is still around and doing well. Definitely will be adding this to our rotation of places to hang.

Very cool spot in trendy Lincoln Park. A ton of history on the shelves and their DNA. It sits across the street from the Biograph Theater. If you're a Chicago history fan, that's pretty cool spot. Now, the food was great; fish and chips, beef stew, and a variety of English fare. It's all served by a great staff! Good stop if you're hanging out, or just there for a show (the Apollo is down the street). Enjoy! My compliments to the entire staff there!

What a great bar!! We met friends here the other night for drinks. Our server was friendly and we got our drinks quickly. I love the overall atmosphere and decor- so cool! We all got the draft and whiskey shot special (Irish Handcuffs) for $13- great deal! If we hadn't already made dinner reservations we probably would have stayed because we were having fun and because the table next to us ordered dinner and their meals all looked fabulous.

I love the atmosphere here - I kept saying I would love to come here and work or do homework because it's so homey with the tall ceilings and feels like an old library but is also so light and airy in the front room. It's great to be able to hear the people you are sitting with for good conversation!I wish they had a happy hour, but they don't. Note if you order wine, there's a chance they opened the bottle multiple days before (my friends wine was sour and we sent it back). This is definitely more of a beer place. That being said, they really FILLED the 5 oz glass which I appreciated. To eat I got the curry and it was actually very delicious. For $20 I was expecting a bigger portion, but it was quite tasty. Overall, the atmosphere is so iconic here that I would go back. Food and drinks were pretty much what you would expect, but I just loved the setting!

If food were the only measure of a pub's greatness, The Red Lion Pub would be crowned king. The fish and chips were so on point they practically stuck a Union Jack in my taste buds and declared culinary independence. The beers? Delish enough to make you forget your own name. And oh, the grilled cheese and soup combo - my personal Everest in a sea of culinary options.But alas, even in the enchanted kingdom of gastronomy, there lies a dragon named "Service." The adventure began at the host stand, where we, a party of two, stood eagerly awaiting our table destiny. Our noble host, however, decided to play favorites, abandoning chivalry to help a group of ladies who sailed in after us. Apparently, our plea for a table was less alluring than a pirate's treasure map.As if that weren't enough, our charming host decided to sprinkle a dash of disappointment by not only flirting with the ladies but also seating them before us. Cheers to awkward encounters and a side of awkward seating arrangements.Now, onto our server. With all the charm of a damp napkin, this server sailed through our dining experience with all the enthusiasm of a snail on a Sunday stroll. They checked on us once, leaving us feeling lonelier than a castaway on a deserted island.To make matters more tantalizingly tedious, the food embarked on a world tour before gracing our table. We waited so long that we contemplated writing our own cookbook in the meantime.In the end, The Red Lion Pub proved that even the mightiest fish and chips can't salvage an evening marred by lackluster service. If you're seeking a dining adventure that rivals a Shakespearean tragedy, The Red Lion Pub is your stage. Just be prepared for a performance where the food steals the show, and the service is merely a supporting actor struggling to remember their lines.

Came on a Sunday for lunch and the bartender was the only one working. Granted they weren't busy but it took quite a while for the bartender to finally give us service and he asked us what we wanted to drink. I asked for a cocktail list and his reply: "we're a pub. We don't make cocktails". Thought that a very bizarre comment to make when he had a full bar behind him and jiggers/shakers off to the side. It's was very clear that he could make cocktails with what was right behind him. He also asked us if we had a chance to look at the food menu to which we replied "well we looked at it online" and he cuts me off and tells me that it's 10 years old and none of it is accurate. This is the moment we were finally given a physical menu and wouldn't you know it, the menu was the same except the prices were different. He was overall unwelcoming and we just wanted a little snack and a cocktail- we left and went to another establishment. Pretty disappointing since I took my friend there who was visiting from out of town because I heard great things. The atmosphere here is great though, hoping we just caught this place on an off day.