Poor Phil’s

Poor Phil’s is a neighborhood sports bar and seafood restaurant at 139 S Marion St in Oak Park’s Pleasant District, next to the Carleton Hotel and a couple of blocks from the Harlem Green Line and Metra Oak Park stops. The bar pours 36 draft beers from a list of about 100 and cooks Louisiana-style shellfish: raw oysters, gumbo with andouille, garlic snow crab claws, a butter-toasted lobster roll and beer-battered shrimp baskets. Sidewalk tables under string lights run along Marion Street, and the TVs make the bar a game-day spot.

What to know

• Dennis Murphy opened the bar in 1985.
• Wednesday Journal included Poor Phil’s in its June 2026 survey of the area’s oldest restaurants.
• A cheaper oyster window runs Monday through Friday from 4 to 6 p.m.
• Bluepoint oysters were $24.95 a half dozen and house James River oysters $18.95 in 2026.
• Thursday Night Out music in the Pleasant District brings waits on summer Thursdays.