The new Tiny Lounge

Made my second stop into the newly moved and reopened Tiny Lounge last night,
reinforcing it as an excellent, though imperfect, new addition to the neighborhood.
Beer list is pretty great - a lot of Germans, including my favorite, Schneider Aventinus.
Microbrews from Three Floyds, Left Hand, Bells, etc. A few Belgians, including Affligem
on tap (yum). Amstel et al for those who don't care what they drink. Lots of liquor
to pick from as well, including some buffalo grass vodka and nice bourbon selection.
Cocktail list is nice, and for $8 you get a BIG drink - not as huge as a $10 Stinker at
Trader Vic's, but slightly larger than anything at the Whistler at the same cost.
My Caipirinha was packed with crushed ice and plenty of lime, and just enough sugar
to taste. Lasted me twice as long as my beer due to its strength.
Service is hit or miss - most everyone is very NICE but their knowledge of their
product is somewhat inconsistent. The staff and clientele were mostly older but
represented the neighborhood well (half yuppies, half former punks).
The preliminary bar snack menu sounded pretty ambitious (duck confit empanadas?),
and a $14 bowl of mussels in a bar (that's not Hopleaf) better knock me off
my stool, but I look forward to trying it once the kitchen opens up regularly.
The space is, well, loungey - reminds me a lot of Bungalow on Belmont, but
kicks that place's ass across the board otherwise. Nice granite/concrete bar surface,
a few high tops, uneven wood walls, a couple of U-shaped booths and a small private
section. Despite the name, it's not nearly as tiny as I hear the former location used to be.
Give it a shot, let me know what you think.

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Tiny Lounge
4352 N. Leavitt (at Montrose/Lincoln)
Chicago IL 60625

I am so happy the Tiny Lounge is open again! Loved the old space on Addison but this space is even closer to my workplace (which means trouble after a busy Thursday night at the cafe.) Coco-tini is my fav, but the Manhattans and other mixed drinks are yummy too. Staff is personable. Their kitchen should be open in a few weeks and the menu sounds really interesting - Best "new" place in Lincoln Square!

My wife and I had a great evening at Tiny Lounge the other night. We split three dishes: the mini-burgers with fries, the duck confit empanadas, and a spicy lamb flatbread. All of them were great! They were larger than we expected (especially the mini burgers and fries), and we ended up with more than we could finish.

The drinks were well made. We sampled the Sazerac, the Side Car, and Mint Juleps. The Mint Juleps weren't on the menu, but our friendly bartender made them exactly as we like them, more of an evening cocktail than a flavored soda.

Glad you enjoyed. I've been trying to evangelize the heck out of the place,
given that it has no sign (with is probably a net positive).
I returned recently and service had definitely improved - everyone was
friendly and quick to help, as well as knowledgeable about their products.
Planning on stopping by again myself this weekend to try some of the eats.

I’ve been to the new Tiny 3 or 4 times now. I’m a big fan. I was a little suspicious the first time I went there. I was kind of taken aback when first walking in as this place is definitely a bit loungish/trendy. That's fine with me, I was just a bit surprised given the location. Fears of snooty staff and ultra expensive drinks were immediately put aside when both bartenders were about as nice as could be and actually seemed to enjoy working there and interacting with customers. I will say that they may need a bit more staff behind the bar. I guess there is a bit of give and take in a place that specializes in very well mixed complex drinks. Read – it takes a bit of time to make them and thus you may be waiting a while for a bartender as he/she masterfully concocts a fellow patron’s drink. The food I’ve had there has been really good. The lamb flatbread pizza, mini burgers on pretzel roll and duck empanadas were all standouts. The housemade donuts were not so great. Same for the other white pizza we had there.

All in all, a great new addition. It’s nice to have a bar in the hood with no tvs and no neon. As noted above, clientele ranges from yuppie to middle aged married couples. I think it’s an awesome mix for a bar that would have quite a different clientele closer to the loop.

I DID in fact return last night, this time getting the aforementioned lamb pizetta, which also had ancho chiles, tomatoes, feta cheese, yogurt, and mint. It was delicious and substantial - but the heartburn it gave me totally ruined my sleep last night, and by extension, today. I was also pretty bummed that when i ordered a "Gimlet with Right gin" the waitress brought a Gimlet with . . . . Rittenhouse Rye? Does that even qualify as a Gimlet?
Long story short, I drank the damn thing, and it was pretty yucky.
Tiny Lounge nevertheless remains my choice for a local quiet night out. Just order from the bar vs. a cocktail waitress.

Would anyone happen to know if this place gets packed on Friday nights? Is there any hope of having a couple of relatively relaxed cocktails around 10:30 tonight? Or would my evening end with me standing in a crowd 3-deep at the bar waiting 20 minutes for a bartender to turn his/her attention my way?

We've got an 8:30 reservation at Bistro Campagne just up the street, so I thought maybe Tiny Lounge would be a nice place for a nightcap.

Thanks in advance for any info

Khaopaat wrote:Would anyone happen to know if this place gets packed on Friday nights? Is there any hope of having a couple of relatively relaxed cocktails around 10:30 tonight? Or would my evening end with me standing in a crowd 3-deep at the bar waiting 20 minutes for a bartender to turn his/her attention my way?

We've got an 8:30 reservation at Bistro Campagne just up the street, so I thought maybe Tiny Lounge would be a nice place for a nightcap.

Thanks in advance for any info

It's a popular bar, but I doubt that any info you get here will be an absolute or accurately definitive picture of what the situation will be at a particular time tonight.

It doesn't seem like much of a gamble to walk the block and a half and poke your head in and find out.

eatchicago wrote:It doesn't seem like much of a gamble to walk the block and a half and poke your head in and find out.

Having just returned from the monsoon that has been this Chicago evening, I beg to differ.

Lincoln Square's Tiny Lounge expanding to Navy Pier

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/ ... -navy-pier

any recent experiences eating at Tiny Lounge?