Third Rail Tavern

3^rd rail is like no other… My wife and I have been here for 6 years and the place is awesome. Food is great, and the staff treats you like family.

Came here to meet up with some girlfriends I haven’t seen in a looong time so needless to say drinks (and lots of it) were in order. Oh and it was also $ 3 Thursday night so… #winning! But, the experience was dampened because the bartenders here just could not get it right! All the drinks were watered down and not even what I ordered. For example, I wanted a Raspberry Vodka martini… I get back a bright red fruity drink. Ma’am that’s Bartending 101. I just want a flavored vodka martini. Anyhow, my girlfriends all ordered the burgers and all of them looked amazing. They ate them in record time so I’d think to say they were delicious. Our servers Anthony was so great! He was so accommodating to our loud and boisterous banter and even joined in on the fun. Loss of two stars because of the messed up drinks. I go to a bar to drink-​I have to love my drinks to return so I don’t think I will be returning any time soon.

I gave this place a try a few months ago when I had friends in town. The experience wasn’t good. We had to remind our server multiple times for more beer and she forgot to put in one of our orders (there was 5 of us and she didn’t write anything down). Today, I was with a friend that really wanted to eat at Third Rail so I decided to give it another try. This time the food and drinks were fine but I waited for almost 25 minutes for the check. We asked for the bill and after 10 minutes, my friend had to leave. The server came back and cleared the table and so I asked for the check again. After awhile, a group of patrons came over and asked if they could have my table since none were available. I got up and moved aside standing right next to the table. The same server came and took drink orders from them, waited on several other customers and talked with some regulars. I was waving my hands and called out to get her attention and she ignored me every time. I ended up getting the bartender and another server to call my servers attention. I watched her then run the tab and she says to me «I guess I lost you, couldn’t find you». Find me? I was sitting at the table or next to it for 25 minutes.

This place is amazing. The people here are stand out human beings. We showed up with a large group and a table next to ours decide to shift over in order to make room for us. When I approached the bar tender to buy them drinks he offered to cover it, as a nice gesture. Never had customer service as good as this.

Excellent place To go for a few «pops». Always friendly, no matter what time u go and food is pretty damn good. If hawks are in town, go early

I’m writing this post to specifically address Blake M.‘s comments from 10÷31÷15.
Blake M., I don’t even really know where to start with you. Did somebody do you wrong? Perhaps you fell down, intoxicated on Halloween night before you wrote this? Are you feeling unfulfilled in your life? Do you enjoy… anything? I’m referring, you’re probably wondering, to the 91 Unilocal reviews that I personally took the time to read after first coming across your review of Third Rail Tavern.
The pattern looks something like this:
Summer House… ONE STAR
River Roast… ONE STAR
Osteria Langhe… ONE STAR
Celeste…ONE STAR
Here’s one of my favorites from your review of Wildberry Pancakes
«Waitress also upsold me a pour over coffee, which wasn’t on the menu, and told me it was only $ 1 more than a normal coffee order. Will never go back.»
BLAAAKKEEEE. WHY? This woman has done nothing wrong, yet you belittle her. Even when you like something, you refer to it as being ‘not horrible’. This is no way to live your life.
Or Osteria La Madia
«Servers have no idea how to make recommendations for wine with food, and when they do, they point at selections and say ‘guests like this one.’ Who is training these people on the beverage? Pretty lackluster showing.»
WAIT. Are you industry?
Or II Sogno
«The inside is stale and old, and pretty much lacks character and is upstairs so kind of strange, and stairs are dirty and not clean either. Pretty good idea for a first impression.»
Thanks for pointing out that the upstairs is… strange. Oh, and for making the distinction that the stairs are dirty and ALSO not clean. Because those are two entirely different things.
Lastly, from Bar Siena
«The little donuts they promote for dessert, at the end are pretty cruddy. Greasy and flavors a seem to be made from processed foods catalogue. Lazy and unimpressive.»
Jesus, Blake. THEY’RE DONUTS. You either have expectations that are unattainable or the palate of a god damn panda bear. I really feel for the woman who you’ll one day make your wife.
«You could stand to lose a few pounds, Carol.»
«Are you really going to wear that out tonight, Carol?»
«Your performance was inspired, but honestly I’ve had better. ONE STAR, CAAAAROLL.»
Poor Carol M.
In fact, I found almost ZERO Five Star Reviews. Of those I did find, one was a storage facility that you deemed ‘perfect for my needs’. Funny how easy you are to please when your persistent and insatiable hunger isn’t involved.
Listen, Blake. I get it. For whatever reason, you feel the need to prove you have superior knowledge over what’s good and what isn’t. When a highly anticipated restaurant opens in the neighborhood and rave reviews begin popping up on whatever pretentious fine-​dining blog crap that you read, you cannot wait to get on Unilocal to proclaim that it was, ‘just okay’. Look. It’s fine. This is who you are. But why. WHY Third Rail Tavern?
«This place has awful burger.» — Blake M.
Blake, Third Rail has nine different burgers. NINE! Not to mention their great selection of mouthwatering sliders. Is there a specific burger that you’re mentioning here? Are you implying that because a burger that you ate here was ‘awful’, this would suggests that all the burger (s) are then also awful? Or has the word ‘burger’ become just a word that you throw around in the singular in so many of your reviews, like ‘concept’ and ‘beverage’ to prove once and for all that YOU ARE BETTER THAN US.
At this point it doesn’t really matter. I’ve spent the last six hours trying to figure you out but I just can’t anymore. Blake, there are many things that Third Rail ‘IS’. A One Star Tavern is not one of them. So when you ‘head over to Beer Bistro and enjoy good beer and better food’, I’ll be at 1133 W. Madison with a Tavern Burger in my left and the best bloody mary in Chicago on my right, enjoying my life. You should try it sometime. Cheers.

This place has awful burger and the fries were soggy.
Beer selection isn’t very good either and no longer really competitive in the west loop.
Not sure what would attract clientele here unless everywhere else near the united center was already full.
Probably should just head to Beer Bistro and enjoy good beer and better food.

I really liked this place. My husband and I were there for a gathering with 20 other people. The staff was attentive and were great about placing our tables close to one another. The atmosphere is wonderful. It doesn’t feel like a yuppie bar. The waitresses are very nice and dressed decent. I would definitely recommend this bar. The food was ok but could be better. My carrots and celery were crispy and fresh but they could have made sure the ends of them were freshly cut because that had started to slightly oxidize. Like I said they were super fresh though and a few more piece of pita for the hummus would have made it perfect. The burgers others had ordered looked great! Everyone was happy!

Good bar for a game and some food. Relaxing atmosphere. Never too crowded and the staff is great! Didn’t have to wait at all!

There was a waitress there name lisa. H best ever by far very knowledgeable. Recommend anyone to go there you can ask for her good times great place will go back again.

Third rail has a pretty good tap menu, with some of my favorites usually on tap like Zombie Dust. It has reasonable prices and specials most days of the week, with $ 2 burgers on Thursdays. They have outdoor seating when it’s nice and it’s a good place to watch sports.
The people that work there are awesome. They’re super helpful and friendly, and one bartender, Mike, always remembers our names when we go in. It’s a good neighborhood hang out spot:

Love this place!!! Great bartenders, great food. This is quickly turning into my go to spot for a few drinks and a quick (and not super expensive) dinner/​lunch.
If you’re in the neighborhood, make sure to stop by.

I don’t have enough good things to say about this place. It has become one of my go to bars to watch sports and have one of their Amazing bloody marys. John the manager has always been so kind to me and will truly make you feel at home in this neighborhood bar.

Good spot to stop in while in the west loop. Eclectic music choices, when we were there it was 70s 80s classic rock which I like (lynrd skynrd, etc), bartenders were very cool (read complimentary tequila shots) and attentive, plus a cool atmosphere. Food menu looked good, but I was there after a dinner elsewhere so can’t say for sure. Definitely worth a stop if you’re in the area.

Third Rail is a friendly neighborhood place on Madison Street in the West Loop, convenient to the United Center. For a somewhat small-​ish place, they have a really good draft beer list and an amazing variety of whiskeys, bourbons and tequilas. We were there on a Wednesday before a Blackhawks game and they had half price appetizers. We had the onion rings and the buffalo wings, both were exceptional bar fare. Some other places on Madison Street don’t do specials on game days and don’t open until 4pm which can be inconvenient if you want to relax and have a few drinks and some good food before getting to the UC for a game. The service is really great, Amy and Mike were very professional and genuinely nice.

Go for the excellent beer selection and the sweet service from the redheaded bartender.
The burgers are tiny! About «3 in diameter which wasn’t all that. You can substitute a less than fresh side salad for the fries.
But I saw people bringing in outside food and sitting at the bar so if that’s an option, I may go back.

This is exactly what I want from a neighborhood bar. They owner is always there and super friendly. I stop by here for lunch relatively often and am always pleased with their well done sliders and burgers. When my group of friends goes out here it provides a nice ambiance without being too much of a crazy bar.
#why:friendly #why:local

Laidback neighborhood bar with excellent daily deals. Sliders were juicy & tasty. Can’t wait to return!

Cute little spot. It was a sunny Saturday and I was walking around the area. I stopped in here and there were only a few patrons. The waitress was really sweet and the food was pretty good. I ordered a chicken sandwich and onion rings. Nothing too special, but overall had a nice time.

Good Spot to stop at before a Blackhawks Game! Inside it’s a large dark bar with a great beer list. lots of cool old Chicago pictures on the walls. They have really great burgers! Highly Recommend this joint. get dat did