Parrots Bar & Grill

If you are looking for a great dive bar in the Lakeview area, this is it! Walked in for the first time and felt like a regular right away. It was a Wednesday night and Weeve was slinging drinks. Wheel of Fortune was on and I answered the puzzle with one letter. He was so impressed (as was I, let’s be honest), that he bought me a shot.
There is a separate room away from the bar with more seats and a free pool table and darts. Restrooms are sanitary and presentable. Free Wi-​Fi!
They have a food menu Friday and Saturday nights and Sunday’s for Bears games. Pizza’s are available daily.
**They are having a $ 6 Make-​your-​own Bloody Mary bar 11÷15÷15 for the Bears game! Be sure to check it out!**

A wonderful dive. Their daytime bartender is one of the friendliest people I have ever met and is always ready to rock Jeopardy on the tvs (he’s amazing at it!)
Pool is FREE and drinks are priced very fairly. The 3 rooms here have varying noise levels between them so there is a place to sit down and talk even when things get busy. Even the room closest to the hospital is great at keeping the siren noises outside!

This place is amazing. Great atmosphere, cheap drinks, and there’s a pool table. Couldn’t ask for much more than that.

Typical dive bar, pretty large space! The building is sort of U-​shaped which makes it nice for group seating. I came by before last call to meet some friends and our bartender was so so nice. I could definitely see this being a great weeknight place to hang out/​study/​meet pals.

Parrots is America. Anytime any kind of historical event goes down, I know that I can go to Parrots to clown — that’s what me and the other guys in the Birdcage say. The ‘Birdcage’ — by the way is what us Parrot regulars call ourselves.
Anywho. Whenever sh*t goes down, I know Parrots will be there for me. for instance:
when JFK was assassinated, I was at Parrots.
when the Challenger exploded, I was at Parrots.
when my first and third children were born, I was at Parrots.
when ⁹⁄₁₁ happened and I was supposed to be at work in one of the towers, I was at Parrots.
when we got that freedom hater Bin Laden, I was at Parrots.
and finally, when my wife left me, I was at Parrots.
Come to think about it, this bar just may have ruined my life.
So it begs the question:
is Parrots the worst bar in the world?
Or, is it the best?
Seeing as I’m sitting here, at Parrots as I’m writing this, I’m going to have to say it’s the best!

I visited here under the guidance of a friend local to the area who said that this simple, trusty and dated lounge would probably apply to my small town frame of reference. He was right. I really enjoyed this place and was able to get some great service from the a proprietor (who incidentially is extremely knowledgable on horse racing) and good conversation from some of the other patrons here. Great place to have a conversation, relax and have some reasonably priced beverages (by big city standards). There was an unusual musty-​sulfur odor here. It may be just «city smells» offending my unworldly olfactory system. I had a very enjoyable visit here, and would eagerly return if I am in the area.

I have been in here a number of times, some with family and some with friends, and we always have a nice time. This place has free pool and free darts which is unbelievable. The atmosphere is dive bar but it actually is never too loud and there are not too many TV’s so its great to be able to talk with friends and family. The alcohol is ridiculously cheap. Last time I was in I got a pitcher of Sam Adams for $ 8. I have also had a number of the items off the food menu that were delicious. Last year a friend and I went there to watch the All Star Game and had what may have been the best burger of my life. Previously I had the mozzarella sticks and hey were wrapped like an egg roll and fried which made them super crispy and delicious (best I have ever had). If, (lets face it), when my wife kicks me out, this is where I will go.

I really like this dive bar. It’s a great place to go to with a big group of friends. We like to head here when we get tired of yelling to be heard at other bars. It’s never packed so you can always get a table. Also, they have great deals, like $ 16 for a pitcher of summer shandy. The food, like the fries, are pretty decent and the kitchen is open late.
This is a 5 star place for me since I always enjoy the music. They play stuff like Journey and Bön Jovi, and the music is never too loud so you can have conversations at a normal speaking volume, and you can actually hear people. Plus, they have a free pool table, and two dart boards. They also have board games and card games. Overall, a great dive bar to visit to have some cheap drinks, talk with friends, and play some games!

If your expectations are realistic, I really don’t know what you’d complain about. It is what it is, and it does what it is well. Steel-​tip dart, free pool, very friendly, tolerant staff, great jukebox, and suitable beverage selection for a dive bar. And they have good enough grub that walking up to Clark Dog is a waste of time. And it’s one of the declining number of bars where the bartender will buy you a drink once in awhile. Bonus: Parrots will let you reserve the back room and set you up with a very fair package deal for drinks or drinks and food.

I really wanted to like this place, since it has a nautical theme, is not trying to be another cookie cutter bar that seems to spring up in this neighborhood like a poisonous mushroom, and (most importantly) is about 50 yards from where I used to live. However, I just couldn’t make myself like it. The locals are just a little too loud and a little too unwelcoming (think of the relative you dislike the most celebrating their 50^th birthday with his/​her rowdy friends to the lyrical sounds of Bob Seger and you’re on your way to the vibe here) to ignore and grab a drink with your friends.
The cocktails might be cheap but the beers aren’t exactly a steal and there is a very limited selection (I know, it’s a dive bar but we are living in the midst of the Craft Beer Revolution — throw something besides PBR and Corona out there for us!). If you’re in this neighborhood and want a divey experience I suggest you walk a block North and check out the L&L Tavern, or head East to Jake’s Pub.

This is a great hangout. Awesome staff, very unique «C» Style floor layout AND free darts and pool! The darts are also old school cork boards.
I must frequent this place more often!

I love this bar. And its staff. And its food. And its prices.
Divey? Yes. Fun? yes. There are always food and drink specials, The pours are generous, and it’s never too crowded or loud.
*the free popcorn is long-​gone.

DIVE!
Great drink prices. We had the sandwich special, pretty good. Nothing to write home about.
Will definitely go again.
We were on by a bunch of 55+ people that were getting hammered and clearly knew the bartender. F Bombs were flying around everywhere. It was a pretty cool atmosphere.

Seen by a friend outside of Parrots last week: a Rascal scooter.
11 stars.

this place is the definition of a diiiive bar! went to dinner with the bf and wanted to have one more drink. i’ve passed by this place countless times and have always joked about stopping in, so finally we did!
we went on a friday night and it was pretty deserted, but the music was blasting away 80s jams on the jukebox– awesome. admittedly, we were drawn in by the $ 5 kettle one and you call mixer, but i have to say, i’m glad we stayed. free pool, free darts and a really nice staff. nothing remarkable about this place, but great specials and a friendly staff make it a-​ok.

If this bar were in walking distance from me, I would be here all the time. It is totally inexpensive, the food is delicious, the drinks aren’t watered down and it is not crammed with douchy frat boys or what I refer to as «frat girls» (definition: annoying obnoxious and loud girls that are loud and obnoxious to get the attention of douche bag frat boys).
A bunch of us ladies went here after having free drinks and wine at a Time Out Chicago event. We all shared mini burgers, fries and chicken fingers. The bar is a dive and the food is practically gourmet. Everything was insanely delicious and totally affordable. I can’t wait to go back.
The only thing I don’t like, the way the bar is designed… it’s quite odd. But everything else is great, so who cares.

I fully intend on making Parrot’s my hangout! I have passed this place for years, literally, and finally stopped in last night. Not by chance but to hang out with a work pal and her bff. I had no problem catching up with their level of silliness as the drinks were cheap and poured heavy, just as I like it (thanks Sara!!). I believe the Wednesday special was $ 3 well drinks, I ordered a tall for $ 3.50, saaaaweeeet!
The place is bigger than it looks, tho the main bar area is sorta small. Big back room with free pool! Heyyoooo! Can’t go wrong with the awesome selections on the jukebox either.
I can’t wait to go back and try their chicken fingers, everyone raved about them. They had pretty decent daily food specials too. Kitchen closes at midnight unless it’s a slow night it closes around 10.
Easily accessible by Clark, halsted, or broadway bus! Permit parking on Wellington but metered street parking on halsted.
Check em out! And say hello to the parrot on the bar, baaawwwk! (he’s wooden, of course!)
P.S.
I was here on a Wednesday night, around 11:30 til close (2am). Not crowded at all and no obvious tool bags or douches to deal with. Certainly not sure what kind of place this turns into on more popular nights.

I know. Douche bar. I officially do not care.
I go there with my friends from work and usually close out the bar… though (I protest) I am not an alcoholic.
In fact, the reward for not being a heavy drinker has been the beer money that I can now spend on the totally delicious bar food that Parrot’s recently introduced.
Yummers.

I feel the need to update my review… I keep going to Parrots, and I keep loving it more than I should. They recently expanded their menu (and got rid of the free popcorn, boooooooo!) (but now sometimes give out free french fries instead, yayyyyyyyyyy!)… and have a great selection of quality bar-​eats & specials. The have won-​ton wrapper’ed mozzarella cheese sticks. Yum.
I mainly go to Parrots for the darts & drinks, but it’s resemblance to my fave Southern Illinois haunts is also a favorite quality of mine. They did get rid of the awesome old-​school jukebox, which is OK I guess. I kinda preferred my limited selection of 80s & 90s hits, but I guess I need to change with the times. Parrots, you still have my heart.

It’s definitely a dive bar. So, don’t go there expecting anything else.
That being said, I’ve always had a blast. The bar has a really odd layout and there are a bunch of different areas and places to sit. They have a juke box, pool table, and a dart board. Rest assured that no matter where in the bar you’re sitting there will be a number of old, neon beer signs and/​or interesting art selections adding to your experience.
There’s never really a set crowd at Parrot’s. It always seems as if the most random assortment of people just happen across it or stumble inside.
The bathrooms at this place are an experience – very small and one time my friend’s foot went through the floor. Consider yourself warned on that front.