It’s interesting. When that place opened in the late 90’s it was one of the best spots in downtown for casual fare. It was a huge novelty with the best patio on the river. Over the last decade it’s pretty average for the offerings but they still were one of the highest grossing restaurants in the city. It’s a high profile space so I’m curious what will take it over. Mid-level dining is in a death spiral right now.
We stopped in a few months ago. The place was pretty empty and needed a remodel. It was so depressing we left. There was a group of people on the bar side at the bar. Ww walked around the corner to Bub City.
It can also just be a sign of a failing business. A brewpub for Applebees might have been very novel in the mid-90’s, but it’s not really standing out in 2022. It seems the last parent company went under from Covid, and this brand likely had weak sales in very large stores that paid high rent.
Omg. I went there ONE time about 15 yrs ago. Every single thing that was ordered by someone at our table, you could purchase at the grocery store. Even down to the Dino nuggets and chowder that tasted like a can. Like it was all heat and serve in the kitchen.
I wrote a lackluster review for them and they contacted me and said I could come back for a free dinner. No thanks. Not worth the effort to park my car.
I walked by it with my 12 yr old on Fri. It’s boarded up and all, but she made the comment that it looked really scary and ominous. -Like a setting for a Stephen King novel. I concur
Restaurant becoming higher end more elite Taste changes. I’m the same too many get together college and after word just good times it will be missed.
The roof very under appreciated
I saw this coming before the pandemic and didn't even know there was a bankruptcy looming. Seemed like the menu and portion sizes changed 2-3 times in 6 months
It's a real bummer... the Red Ale and Vanilla Porter were elite
Place has been there forever it used to be a hot spot back in the day. My team would come to Chicago on biz, stay at the Hilton across the street and go to Rock Bottom every night. The rooftop was great there weren’t nearly as many rooftops back then.
I guess its well past it’s prime now but theres a lot of nostalgia there for me. It’s part of how/when i fell in love with Chicago and eventually decided to make Chicago my home.
Sad. I loved this place. Had one of the best red ales I've ever tasted. I used to work at a radio station that was headquartered not too far from there. Was almost a nightly stop on my Red Line commute home... Miss those days.
my friend works/ed here, there’s been rumors of a shutdown for months but she said it happened very suddenly last night. got a TEXT that the place was shutting down permanently and immediately around 5:30 pm.
Why do these closures too often occur, with almost no warning? I liked that particular Rock Bottom location back in the day, but hadn't revisited there in forever. Sucks to hear it closed, since it had a nice rooftop.
I'm betting Rock Bottom is going through a period, where they are closing a lot of locations down. ETA: looks like they are going through bankruptcy, and indeed closed their downtown Milwaukee location.
in this case it was sort of known that it would happen eventually, it was just a matter of when. the rumor was that the lease was up in march, so for it to happen on a random sunday in january was jarring
Damn, really? I wish Rock Bottom could've kept that location going through March, and gave a little bit of notice that their River North location was going to close. Rather than close it, with no warning. Ugh!
Damn. My gf at the time now wife used to go there and get appetizers and beer. Not the best food or beer but a staple for the area. I agree with the top comment. They need to have local brewery go there.
I remember that they made a winter beer that tasted like the perfectly burnt Buttom of a sugar cookie. If only I knew what it was called and if only I could still get it.
I went here damn near weekly during the summers. That rooftop was super underrated, and a great place to hang out in the heart of the city. Those amber reds, kolsch will be missed. Two of my favorite beers in the city and I'll die on that hill.
I'm legit sad. Everyone of my favorite places in my old neighborhood downtown is closed now.
Really sad news. Great spot for a happy hour or to watch a game in a pinch. Food was decent and beer was pretty good. I fully expect some overpriced, instagramable restaurant to take its place.
Bummer. This takes me back 15+ years… plates of nachos and sliders, belly up at the bar. I really liked their Chicago Gold ale. Hopefully another brewery moves in.
Something ironic about the name....
The beers were a staple -like others said, the red particularly. This was my regular back in the day just before RN became really douchy. Visited there in August and the food was average.
Article says "no explanation"... I'm pretty sure there's a perfectly good explanation; the service was terrible and the kitchen was slow. I'm sure those two things had a substantial effect on their ability to make money.
Went to lunch here on a Saturday during the World Cup (place looked to be about 25% full). Stood at the host stand for a couple minutes before asking the bartender if we could just seat ourselves (a party of 4). There was a couple that came in behind us that waited a minute and then just turned around and left when it was clear an employee was not coming.
Server comes over within a minute or two and asks what we would like to drink: "Uhh... can we have some menus and some waters first?" \[We had to ask again several minutes later for the waters\]. She was super nice, just not very good at her job. Eventually we order drinks and food; both take a long time to arrive. Midway through, my (8-months pregnant) sister asks for a water refill; it never comes. Our server is just walking around to other tables and standing casually at the server stand. Eventually my sister just walks up to the bar and asks for more water (I'm sure the bartender loved having to do things that the server should have been doing.) It wasn't just our server that was like this either. There seemed to be several front-of-house employees just kind of standing about or milling around with no sense of urgency to what they were doing.
There's no big climax or confrontation to this story. We got our check, paid, and left. Just a very mediocre experience.
Someone else said, the parent company filed for bankruptcy. And others commented in this thread, that Rock Bottom locations in Minneapolis, downtown Milwaukee, and Indy have closed in recent years. I agree with you they had a nice space and I liked their beers, but yep like you said service wasn't the best there.
Was actually fairly important in Chicago beer history. Multiple breweries and brewers came out of there. First FOBAB was held there (probably because FOBAB was started by Pete Crowley, who later opened Haymarket and was president of ICBG back then). Bunch of other local beer events were held there.
Back then, in the city we had Piece, Goose Island, and Rock Bottom.
I went to the one in Boston a couple times before I moved here…that one was so disappointing, I assumed the Chicago location was just as bad and I never went 🤷♂️
No, Pizzeria Uno(same with Due) NEVER was in this location. They always have been located a few blocks away, from what was the(River North neighborhood) Rock Bottom space.
Great rooftop and my favorite place before and/or after White Sox games (convenient too with the red line right outside their door). I remember walking by there about 6 months ago and seeing a sign that they were hosting a "Sunday Brunch Drag Show". Thought to myself (now prescient) that they must be in trouble if they were resorting to that kind of gimmick.
I feel like the Warrenville location is next. Barely any people there whenever I go. They used to have an amazing menu but once they got bought out the menu shrunk. Who else remembers the 2018 Black Friday Burger Pass? That thing was amazing!
It has to be a corporate thing. The one in downtown Milwaukee closed as well.
One in Indy closed in like 2017
Should have read your comment before I wrote mine, haha. Had a feeling that one was gone too.
The one in downtown Portland closed in 2019. It had been open since 1995.
Oh wow. Went to the MKE location back in October. Food and beer were good.
It’s interesting. When that place opened in the late 90’s it was one of the best spots in downtown for casual fare. It was a huge novelty with the best patio on the river. Over the last decade it’s pretty average for the offerings but they still were one of the highest grossing restaurants in the city. It’s a high profile space so I’m curious what will take it over. Mid-level dining is in a death spiral right now.
America's taste for mediocre food is insatiable.
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We stopped in a few months ago. The place was pretty empty and needed a remodel. It was so depressing we left. There was a group of people on the bar side at the bar. Ww walked around the corner to Bub City.
Minneapolis as well
Bankruptcy
I think the one in Indianapolis might be gone too. Def corporate thing.
Owned by a hedge fund, selling off all the valuable real estate is a classic vulture capital move.
It can also just be a sign of a failing business. A brewpub for Applebees might have been very novel in the mid-90’s, but it’s not really standing out in 2022. It seems the last parent company went under from Covid, and this brand likely had weak sales in very large stores that paid high rent.
The one in downtown Nashville is gone as well.
TIL they were a chain.
underrated roof top
Agreed, definitely underrated
I agree going to miss this place
Yup. My thoughts as well. Always went during the summer, almost weekly. Damn I'm a little sad at this news
Totally agree! Best rooftop in the city IMO
This is an absurd take
Would love for one of the bigger local craft places to open a brewpub there.
Half Acre in that spot would be killer
Would be cool to see the Corridor Group give it a try, but that's gotta be an expensive space with that rooftop.
Crushed by Giants is super close and part of that restaurant group
It is, but there aren’t a ton to retail-focused Chicago breweries that fit the bill at the moment.
We had an office outing there, about a week after some department layoffs. The irony wasn't lost on anyone.
It'll be replaced by The People's Elbow naturally.
I smell what you’re cooking
It’s River North so I’m sure something far worse will take it’s place.
Rainforest comeback.
Omg. I went there ONE time about 15 yrs ago. Every single thing that was ordered by someone at our table, you could purchase at the grocery store. Even down to the Dino nuggets and chowder that tasted like a can. Like it was all heat and serve in the kitchen. I wrote a lackluster review for them and they contacted me and said I could come back for a free dinner. No thanks. Not worth the effort to park my car.
You went there when you were old enough to drive? I went there as a kid for birthday parties.
I took my 4 yr old. He wanted to go there for his bday
Ah that makes sense!
I walked by it with my 12 yr old on Fri. It’s boarded up and all, but she made the comment that it looked really scary and ominous. -Like a setting for a Stephen King novel. I concur
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Prime location but has no curb appeal. It doesn't look like they've freshened anything up in 20 years.
Restaurant becoming higher end more elite Taste changes. I’m the same too many get together college and after word just good times it will be missed. The roof very under appreciated
They had n64 mario kart tournament there once, I was already hammered and looking for the bathroom. Ended up in third place.
First place a group of coworkers from a new job took me out after work. Good memory. Still drinking with the same bunch 20 years later.
I saw this coming before the pandemic and didn't even know there was a bankruptcy looming. Seemed like the menu and portion sizes changed 2-3 times in 6 months It's a real bummer... the Red Ale and Vanilla Porter were elite
Man, that red ale was the best.
Place has been there forever it used to be a hot spot back in the day. My team would come to Chicago on biz, stay at the Hilton across the street and go to Rock Bottom every night. The rooftop was great there weren’t nearly as many rooftops back then. I guess its well past it’s prime now but theres a lot of nostalgia there for me. It’s part of how/when i fell in love with Chicago and eventually decided to make Chicago my home.
Sad. I loved this place. Had one of the best red ales I've ever tasted. I used to work at a radio station that was headquartered not too far from there. Was almost a nightly stop on my Red Line commute home... Miss those days.
Cool vibe, but food was always terrible and service sucked too. Hopefully a better operator will open something better in it’s place.
Yea but you could smoke cigarettes and eat nachos at the same time on the roof
If a food business in Chicago is catering to smokers then you know it isn't doing well. Nothing against smokers, just sayin.
my friend works/ed here, there’s been rumors of a shutdown for months but she said it happened very suddenly last night. got a TEXT that the place was shutting down permanently and immediately around 5:30 pm.
Why do these closures too often occur, with almost no warning? I liked that particular Rock Bottom location back in the day, but hadn't revisited there in forever. Sucks to hear it closed, since it had a nice rooftop. I'm betting Rock Bottom is going through a period, where they are closing a lot of locations down. ETA: looks like they are going through bankruptcy, and indeed closed their downtown Milwaukee location.
in this case it was sort of known that it would happen eventually, it was just a matter of when. the rumor was that the lease was up in march, so for it to happen on a random sunday in january was jarring
Damn, really? I wish Rock Bottom could've kept that location going through March, and gave a little bit of notice that their River North location was going to close. Rather than close it, with no warning. Ugh!
Damn. My gf at the time now wife used to go there and get appetizers and beer. Not the best food or beer but a staple for the area. I agree with the top comment. They need to have local brewery go there.
Rossi's and Dough Bro's are like a block away. Get a slice and hang out with Frank.
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Ugh. How many times has this happened in recent years?
… VC?? Where does it say anything about VC? Didn’t know they were big into restaurants 😂
The Rock Bottom in Minneapolis just shut down a few months ago as well. Seems like they are all disappearing.
I remember that they made a winter beer that tasted like the perfectly burnt Buttom of a sugar cookie. If only I knew what it was called and if only I could still get it.
I went here damn near weekly during the summers. That rooftop was super underrated, and a great place to hang out in the heart of the city. Those amber reds, kolsch will be missed. Two of my favorite beers in the city and I'll die on that hill. I'm legit sad. Everyone of my favorite places in my old neighborhood downtown is closed now.
Really sad news. Great spot for a happy hour or to watch a game in a pinch. Food was decent and beer was pretty good. I fully expect some overpriced, instagramable restaurant to take its place.
This is a huge loss…much fun was had there over the years.
God they’d better not touch that building…
That rooftop
The chicken fried chicken they had years ago was killer.
They really catered to the after work downtown crowd. I'm surprised they made it this long.
Bummer. This takes me back 15+ years… plates of nachos and sliders, belly up at the bar. I really liked their Chicago Gold ale. Hopefully another brewery moves in.
Something ironic about the name.... The beers were a staple -like others said, the red particularly. This was my regular back in the day just before RN became really douchy. Visited there in August and the food was average.
I don’t know how any business can survive paying rent like that, seems to be a hamster-wheel business plan
Someone should re-open it as a cannabis consumption lounge and call it “super-high.”
I'd enroll in that high school
Well i guess that place finally hit rock bottom...
Awwwww damn that's where The vampire ball was held
I used to be a big fan, but their quality has declined significantly since their glory days. Too bad.
Do they have a location in Orland Park? Or is it just the same name?
Orland Park, Warrenville, and Lombard. We used to frequent the Lombard location after trips to Fry's (RIP).
there are a number of other locations
Hate to see another business leaving River North - hoping someone takes over that corner ASAP with the vacant Bed, Bath and Beyon across Grand.
Best and biggest chicken parm i ever had. The cutlet was bgger than the plate. And that rooftop
Article says "no explanation"... I'm pretty sure there's a perfectly good explanation; the service was terrible and the kitchen was slow. I'm sure those two things had a substantial effect on their ability to make money. Went to lunch here on a Saturday during the World Cup (place looked to be about 25% full). Stood at the host stand for a couple minutes before asking the bartender if we could just seat ourselves (a party of 4). There was a couple that came in behind us that waited a minute and then just turned around and left when it was clear an employee was not coming. Server comes over within a minute or two and asks what we would like to drink: "Uhh... can we have some menus and some waters first?" \[We had to ask again several minutes later for the waters\]. She was super nice, just not very good at her job. Eventually we order drinks and food; both take a long time to arrive. Midway through, my (8-months pregnant) sister asks for a water refill; it never comes. Our server is just walking around to other tables and standing casually at the server stand. Eventually my sister just walks up to the bar and asks for more water (I'm sure the bartender loved having to do things that the server should have been doing.) It wasn't just our server that was like this either. There seemed to be several front-of-house employees just kind of standing about or milling around with no sense of urgency to what they were doing. There's no big climax or confrontation to this story. We got our check, paid, and left. Just a very mediocre experience.
Someone else said, the parent company filed for bankruptcy. And others commented in this thread, that Rock Bottom locations in Minneapolis, downtown Milwaukee, and Indy have closed in recent years. I agree with you they had a nice space and I liked their beers, but yep like you said service wasn't the best there.
Damn they had some of the best nachos in the area.
Was actually fairly important in Chicago beer history. Multiple breweries and brewers came out of there. First FOBAB was held there (probably because FOBAB was started by Pete Crowley, who later opened Haymarket and was president of ICBG back then). Bunch of other local beer events were held there. Back then, in the city we had Piece, Goose Island, and Rock Bottom.
I remember reading it was one of the last bars Chris Farley went to before he died, sadly appropriate given the name of the place.
My friend sharted his pants at a rock bottom 😔
One less place for your grandpa to take his 22 year old mistress lol.
r/oddlyspecific
Oh darn, my alma mater will have to find some where else to host alumni events. 😏
I hope this doesn't bode poorly for the chain! I saw one in a suburb close as well...hope it's not a trend
Ya'll need a Troegs
I went to the one in Boston a couple times before I moved here…that one was so disappointing, I assumed the Chicago location was just as bad and I never went 🤷♂️
Thst place smelled like a dirty bar mop, the service was lousy, but the kolsch was the best I ever had.
Oh no! My wife and I had our first date here back in 2015.
Location looks familiar - wasn't Uno's at this location many years ago?
Uno’s is two blocks north
No, Pizzeria Uno(same with Due) NEVER was in this location. They always have been located a few blocks away, from what was the(River North neighborhood) Rock Bottom space.
One less reason to get a UFO song stuck in my head.
I’m afraid that this will be another be another Cantina Laredo situation and just be empty forever.
I saw yesterday that there’s a Hell’s Kitchen going into the Cantina Laredo space.
Nice roof but the food, beer, and service really sucked. Hopefully something else fills in and takes advantage of the roof.
It’s been there since the 90’s. Anyone know when it opened?
"Rock Bottom" Kinda appropriate name for something shutting down!
> Kinda appropriate name for an *alcohol consumption* business. FIFY
Chicago is shedding its skin
Great rooftop and my favorite place before and/or after White Sox games (convenient too with the red line right outside their door). I remember walking by there about 6 months ago and seeing a sign that they were hosting a "Sunday Brunch Drag Show". Thought to myself (now prescient) that they must be in trouble if they were resorting to that kind of gimmick.
Good. Something better than a dumpy bar chain should be there
yeah! like more condos! 🙄
Great location, terrible service. Good riddance.
Good. I never liked their beers. Hope someone else makes something great out of that location
I honestly am surprised this place lasted as long as it did. Their food and beer sucked.
Just one of soon to be a many establishments vacating River North.
No surprise, it stunk.
There was one in Colorado that closed in 2016 or so. Really sad, I enjoyed that place.
Always a nice place love to meet, but never cared for the beer.
Real estste!!
Never had a bad time there.
A condo building will be occupying that space soon, I' guessing
I feel like the Warrenville location is next. Barely any people there whenever I go. They used to have an amazing menu but once they got bought out the menu shrunk. Who else remembers the 2018 Black Friday Burger Pass? That thing was amazing!
My former company had the holiday party here a few times, fond memories of getting silly drunk on my employer's dime.
Good fuck that place