Uncle Mike's Pub

Czap

Illinois

4.05/5  rDev -1%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5 | $

Have been to this bar a half dozen times now and have never been disappointed. If you just walk in without knowing anything about it and fail to notice the giant roadside sign boasting their expansive beer menu, you would never think it was a beer bar. Uncle Mike's has all the atmosphere and decor of your common sports pub. You may think you will be greeted with a list heavy in macros with a few safe, old faithfuls like Sam Adams and Sierra Neveda. Not even close to the truth. All it takes is a glance behind the interestingly designed bar at the 48 taps and an upward, westward look at the chalkboard with a 250+ bottle selection (with beautiful penmanship, I must say), to realize that this is not your father's sportsbar. However, that may not be altogether true, this may be your father's sportsbar as well. You will find a very eclectic mix of patrons gathered around the bar, pressed into the window-front seats and seated in the spacious beer garden.

I attribute this mainly to the prices. Cheap, cheap, cheap. So very cheap. I am a newbie to the craft beer scene. A friend of mine, and fellow advocate, introduced me to it about two years ago. One truth I have found in visiting beer bars in Chicago with him is that you better come equipped with a pocket full of cash. Not the case at Uncle Mike's, relatively speaking. Compared to beer bars with similar selections, the prices cannot be beat. This seems to invite a larger customer base and takes some pretention out of the scene. Don't get me wrong, I love a good pretentious beer bar. It creates an interesting atmosphere and keeps out the riff-raff, but at times I will trade it for an exquisite $4 barley wine.

Proper glassware, no frosted mugs, aforementioned huge selection. As expected, very Midwest brewery heavy, but also large non-local and import selection. They even had a beer from Vietnam that my dad told me to look for. Couldn't believe it.

Food is good, nothing spectacular. It is a very safe, American menu. Burgers, sandwiches, fried foods, wings, etc. I usually stick with the appetizers. Big servings. Wings are great. Get the Mike sauce. Nachos are fantastic as well.

Service is what you'd expect. There will be advocates that walk in there expecting every bartender to be beer educated, and when they discover this is not the truth, will be instantly turned off. You have to keep in mind, you are amoung a lot of swill-drinkers. That being said, there are a handful of bartenders that are very well versed in the beer art, but if they are not, I have found in my experience, they possess other attributes. Without wanting to sound like a misogynistic pig, in my visits, my bartender has either been very beer knowledgable, or has the ability to look very good in a tight tanktop and booty shorts. I didn't create the formula, I just recognize it, and guess what, it works.

So Uncle Mike's is a great place. It has become a go-to spot for me. It's a fun atmosphere. You can catch a game or a ppv fight without feeling like a meathead. Just realize what it is and what it is not before visiting. If you walk into with the right state of mind, you will walk out very pleased and satisfied, and with plenty of cash left for some bloody mary's in the morning.

10-06-2009 01:55:29 | More by Czap

Fusebuddy

Wisconsin

4.33/5  rDev +5.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

Huge beer selection, I don't know how many on draft here, but its big. The food was great fare and had Hopslam from a cask and bottle...kudos here, can't believe I had a Hopslam cask. My first time here, all I can say is its a place for beer lovers. I'll be back. All the WI craft names, plus a good selection of Founders and some Bells. This has to be the best variety within a significant mileage.

03-29-2013 03:19:43 | More by Fusebuddy

BigMikie

Wisconsin

4.46/5  rDev +9%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.75 | food: 4.25 | $$

Good selection of beers. Changes weekly. Some weeks better than others but always a large type to choose from.

Food is suprisingly good. Made to order. worth the wait. A step above "typical bar food" Always a good time.

Servers friendly. Highly recommended.

03-21-2013 02:03:11 | More by BigMikie

Tiburon

Wisconsin

4.6/5  rDev +12.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5 | $$

This is a great beer bar right off I 94 & Hwy 50 in Kenosha. I have been in there a couple times for food and it is above average. I went in for lunch @ 11:30 on Wed and had no problems getting a seat at the bar. I ordered the Dairyland Cheeseburger w pepperjack cheese and fries. Burger was juicy and tasted great. They have an extensive tap beer selection, and offer The Gauntlet. This is an array of 28? two oz cups of each tap beer on the row of tappers on the west side of the bar. This included several Lakefront Brewery and Great Lakes selections, along w old school WI favorites like Pabst & Schlitz. Not sure what the cost is, but the current fastest time to consume all of them is 54 seconds. They keep track of the shortest times on a chalkboard.

I started out w a pint of New Glarus Back 40 Bock, which went down pretty smooth. I tried for a Goose Island Bourbon County, but the barrel was dry and there wasn't any more to be had. They also offer 100+ whiskeys, which can be had neat or included in a cocktail. A chalkboard by the kitchen shows the food specials. Had I known, I prob would have taken the special and saved some $$ for an extra pint. There are also multiple big screen tv's, so you can keep up on all the sporting events known to man.

Wish I could come here every day...

12-06-2012 01:30:03 | More by Tiburon

mykd

Wisconsin

4.35/5  rDev +6.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 3.5 | $$

This is one of my favorite bars to frequent when I'm out by I-94. With 86 taps and 250 bottles available, this place is crazy good. The food is spectacular, too. The layout seems a little goofy when you first walk in as the bar area takes up the majority of the room and seating at the bar is usually a premium. If you do manage to belly up, the service is pretty great. Even if you don't the table service is good, too. Aside from a great selection of beers, this place has a pretty good selection of food, and a ton of TV's to keep you occupied. Definately reccomend this place if you're heading somwhere between Milwaukee and Chicago and looking for a good deal.

07-19-2012 22:36:45 | More by mykd

beerwolf77

Wisconsin

4.35/5  rDev +6.4%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 4 | $$

Finally got to this beer mecca this weekend.

Huge winding bar that almost feels like a maze. Look and feel of any old bar really though. We grabbed a couple stools and got ready for a long lunch.

The beer list is absolutely insane. You could spend an hour humming and hawing over what to drink. After a painful five minutes we decided on a couple beers and got to the food menu.

The food runs the gamut of pretty much every thing you could ever want in pub grub. If it's deep fried or needs twelve napkins they had it.

The servers were very friendly and prompt. It seemed like every person behind the bar served us something. Very cool.

If I lived closer i would hang out here every day.

05-30-2011 04:46:41 | More by beerwolf77

bound4er

Wisconsin

4.28/5  rDev +4.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

Stopped in on Sunday around 7:30 on my way home from Chicago. I really enjoyed this place. They have 87+ beers on tap. I had a Founders Imperial Stout and a Founders Centennial IPA. Both were fresh and awesome tasting. The food was very good too - I had the beef fajitas and my business associate had the burger. The ambiance is typical for a bar - neon lights, beer signs, tap handles of past beers served along the wall and a big, dominating bar. Our waiter was nice but not overly knowledgeable - he admitted that he had just started a few days ago. This is a must stop if you're in the area or passing through on I-94.

04-04-2011 16:20:48 | More by bound4er

Kbogac

Illinois

4.15/5  rDev +1.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 3 | $$

Great craft beer bar with easy access from both Illinois and Wisconsin. They have around 90 beers on tap and probably twice that in bottles. Nice winding bar with rows of taps. Great international selection and the Wisconsin beers are well represented. They also normally have a cask conditioned beer available which is great. Today it was a hopped Re Ale from Dark Horse. Food is standard bar fare but very good. We normally eat burgers but their wings are very popular. A really great place to hang around and sample beers.

04-03-2011 23:20:44 | More by Kbogac

Florida9

Illinois

4.1/5  rDev +0.2%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | food: 4 | $$

Like many people before me, I've driven by Mike's dozens of times without ever considering actually stopping. From the highway, the place looks more like a gimmick than a serious beer bar. But a fine beer bar it is.
However, I wasn't so sure about Mike's when I first walked in. The waitresses seem ambivalent about working there and after three of them walked by me, the first words said to me were "we don't have booster seats here" referencing my young daughter. I figured this attitude was because of my kid, but during my visit there, I noticed one group come in, stand around for about five minutes, and then just leave. Another couple sat down, ordered an app, and then said fuck it and left. I kind of got the impression this was a locals bar, but considering the location off of 6 lane highway and the flashing marquee, I can't imagine anyone would be surprised travelers would be stopping into the place.
After a shooting the shit with our waitress for a bit, she began to warm up to us. She was a decent waitress, though she didn't know anything about beer and barely even say what beers were still available on tap. I suspect the bartenders would be better informed. Our waitress certainly wasn't.
And there are a lot of beers on tap. According to the beer menu, they have 86 taps (though I didn't bother to verify the accuracy of their statement). A good selection of Wisconsin locals (Lake Front, NG, Oso, Ale Asylum) as well as regionals and some international beers as well. All available at some of the best prices I've ever seen. Quite impressive.
Food is mostly bar food, though I've got to admit it was of a much higher quality than I was expecting. I ordered a ancho chile chicken sandwich that was damn good while my wife's burger was fat and juicy. Even my kid's pizza struck a nice balance between a very thin crust and heavy cheese. Really, I just wasn't expecting the food to be all that good, but they managed to exceed my expectations. Food was reasonably priced as well.
Only criticism is that the place is kind of run down and dumpy, with a huge, odd shaped bar taking up most of the room and tables crowded into the open space. Mike's could be half empty yet still feel crowded.
I'll definitely need to hit up Mike's again in the future and will need make sure I stop the next time I flying through the area.

04-01-2011 02:12:20 | More by Florida9

BeerLover99

New Jersey

4.58/5  rDev +12%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

My brother-in-law and I went to this place last night, oh my word! What an excellent fun overload for your senses.

Atmosphere: It was jammed packed, but still able to find seats at the bar. Tons of TVs around the entire place with every sport from around the country. Hard rock music was played, but most of the customers on this Saturday night were 20s-50s, middle-upper class.

Location: right off of major US interstate (US 94) south of Milwaukee and North of Chicago. This place is small and quaint, but not rundown. I probably have driven by it many times and always wondered what it was all about.

Beer: 250 beer selections, 57 on tap (30 beers from WI),
and 1 cask a week! I asked about the cask that they opened the night before on Friday; it was already gone!

Food: The menu is massive. My brother-in-law and I shared a huge order of buffalo wings, figured good snacking source and could focus more on the beer. The wings were decent, the other items and variety of food was insane. The burgers and portions of food were excellent for the price (monster burger $10)

Service: Excellent, Knowledgeable bartenders. Our woman was probably mid-late 20's and had tried every beer in the bar and actually loved beer. It was jammed packed and we never had to wait long for our drink orders at the bar.

This is going to become one of my regular beer stops.
You will not be disappointed.

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Updated: (3/20/2011)

Just went my 2nd time with my brothers and sisters, John was our served/bartender. He was excellent! High Beer IQ, let us try a few things and made suggestions. This is an outstanding brew pub. We ordered almost every Buffalo wing they make, rather good. They now have over 80 taps! Make sure you stop here.

12-19-2010 21:25:29 | More by BeerLover99