Chicago breweries and taprooms

This guide is for anyone who wants to drink beer where it is made, whether that is a stool at a garage-door taproom in Ravenswood, a brewpub dinner on Randolph Street, or a Saturday in a suburban beer garden with the kids and the dog along. It covers Malt Row, the West Loop and Pilsen, a few suburban taprooms worth the trip, the best patios, and which taprooms welcome children and dogs.

Chicago lost several breweries in the first half of 2026, so this list sticks to places confirmed open in September 2026, with hours from each brewery’s own site. Plan on bringing your own food to the taprooms without a kitchen.

Ravenswood’s Malt Row

The Ravenswood Industrial Corridor runs along the Metra Union Pacific North tracks from about Irving Park Road up to Balmoral Avenue, and the breweries in the old factories along Ravenswood Avenue call the strip Malt Row. The southern end is a short walk from the Irving Park and Montrose Brown Line stops, with a Divvy station across from Demo. Street parking is tight on weekends and worse when the Cubs are home, since Wrigley Field is about a mile east. The Lincoln Square and Ravenswood page has more on the area.

The Belle Plaine and Cuyler block

Two of the corridor’s originals share a building at Ravenswood and Belle Plaine. https://windycitymagazine.com/business/dovetail-brewery/Dovetail Brewery, 1800 W. Belle Plaine Ave., brews continental European styles the old way, with open fermenters and a coolship for spontaneous beers, and the helles, Vienna lager and rauchbier are the reason to go. The taproom is bring-your-own-food, with pop-ups most Thursdays through Sundays, open noon to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday and later on weekends. Dovetail’s own advice is to skip driving and take the Brown Line to Irving Park or the 80 Irving Park bus.

Next door, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/begyle-brewing/Begyle Brewing, 1800 W. Cuyler Ave., was the first taproom to open along the corridor and still runs the community-supported brewery program that started in 2012, where members prepay for growler fills. Begyle Blonde and Free Bird pale ale are the year-round staples, there is a sidewalk patio, and food trucks come by regularly. Groups can request a reservation through the site.

Lincoln Avenue and Berteau

A few blocks west, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/hop-butcher-for-the-world/Hop Butcher For The World, 4257 N. Lincoln Ave., moved into the space Half Acre left on Lincoln and opened a taproom there in 2022. The draw is hazy double IPAs canned days earlier, and the to-go cooler is why people drive in from the suburbs. The store closes two hours before the taproom most nights, the whole place is closed Monday, and the Montrose Brown Line stop is a short walk.

The smallest operation on the strip is https://windycitymagazine.com/business/demo-brewing-company/Demo Brewing Company, 1763 W. Berteau Ave., a garage-door nano brewery with a tap list that rotates often, board games, house-brewed seltzer and no kitchen. Kids and dogs are both welcome. Demo is cashless and has a customer lot that opens after 6 p.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends, even on Cubs game days. Closed Monday and Tuesday.

The Balmoral end in Bowmanville

At the north end, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/half-acre-beer-company/Half Acre Beer Company, 2050 W. Balmoral Ave., has a full kitchen, a taproom and a fenced beer garden behind the brewery that made Daisy Cutter. The taproom and garden are closed Monday and Tuesday, open until 10 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday, with the kitchen closing an hour earlier. No reservations.

Right next door, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/spiteful-brewing/Spiteful Brewing, 2024 W. Balmoral Ave., is the scrappier neighbor: 16 taps, darts, board games, and Pequod’s pizza to order in with your pint. Spiteful IPA and God Damn Pigeon Porter are the flagships. The taproom is dog-friendly, keeps a covered patio open year-round, and opens seven days. The 50 Damen bus stops at Balmoral, and the Damen Brown Line stop is a 15-minute walk south.

West Loop and Pilsen breweries

The West Loop cluster is about brewpubs with real kitchens and Friday-night crowds. Pilsen is quieter and cheaper, with two taprooms a few blocks apart south of 18th Street, both near the Pink Line’s 18th stop.

The oldest of the West Loop brewpubs is https://windycitymagazine.com/business/haymarket-brewery-and-pub/Haymarket Brewery & Pub, 737 W. Randolph St., between Halsted and Morgan. Haymarket is a full restaurant with house beer, and the late hours are the practical reason to know about the place: the bar runs until 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday, with the kitchen closing an hour earlier. Street parking on Randolph is metered and scarce; the 8 Halsted bus and the Morgan stop are easier.

North of Fulton Market, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/guinness-open-gate-brewery-chicago/Guinness Open Gate Brewery Chicago, 901 W. Kinzie St., is the Diageo-owned brewery and restaurant that opened in a former rail depot. The beers on tap are brewed in Chicago and mostly are not the stout you know, which is the reason to go if you are curious. Weekend brunch runs 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and reservations are recommended. This is the only place in this guide owned by a global company.

In Pilsen, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/alulu-brewery-and-pub/Alulu Brewery and Pub, on South Laflin Street between 18th Street and Cermak Road, is a small brewpub with two dozen house beers that are only poured there, plus a kitchen that leans American and Eastern European, with poutine and beer bread on the menu. Flights are the move for a first visit, and the pub sits on a residential block, so check the permit parking signs.

A few blocks east, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/monochrome-brewing/Monochrome Brewing, 2101 S. Carpenter St., is a newer taproom in a big industrial room with house beers, guest drafts and hard seltzers. Monochrome is bring-your-own-food, family-friendly and dog-friendly, runs fitness classes and run-club meetups out of the space, and is open seven days from 3 p.m. on weekdays and noon on weekends.

Suburban taprooms worth the drive

Suburban breweries tend to have what city taprooms cannot: free parking and big rooms with space for strollers.

In Evanston, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/sketchbook-brewing-co/Sketchbook Brewing Co., 821 Chicago Ave., has been brewing on a seven-barrel system since 2014 and keeps up to 16 house beers on tap. The Evanston taproom is family-friendly, with games to borrow and outside food allowed. Dogs are not allowed in Evanston, though they are welcome on the patio at Sketchbook’s Skokie location. Street parking is plentiful, and the Main Street Purple Line and Metra stops are a short walk. The Evanston page covers the rest of the town.

On the south edge of Oak Park, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/kinslahger-brewing-company/Kinslahger Brewing Company, 6806 Roosevelt Rd., is a lager-only brewery, rare in a region that leans hazy: a pilsner, a dunkel, a Chicago Common and, in fall, a festbier and a märzen. Hours are short: Thursday through Sunday only, evenings except for a 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday session, and there is no kitchen.

West in DuPage County, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/alter-brewing-company/Alter Brewing Company, 2300 Wisconsin Ave. in Downers Grove, is the original taproom of a brewery that now also runs full restaurants in Oak Brook and St. Charles. The Downers Grove room has 12 rotating taps, a food menu and free parking, and is open seven days. If you want a sit-down dinner, the Oak Brook location on 22nd Street takes reservations.

Beer gardens for a summer afternoon

Chicago’s brewery patios are mostly fenced yards behind industrial buildings, and that is part of the appeal. Most open in April or May and close by November.

• Half Acre’s beer garden on Balmoral keeps the same hours as the taproom, with the kitchen open. Dogs are allowed on a leash, kids are welcome with an adult as long as they stay seated, and the garden shuts the moment there is lightning or rain.
• Dovetail’s patio is where dogs are allowed (they cannot come inside), and the brewery says it is usually open April through November, weather permitting. Bring a picnic; the taproom is BYO food.
• Spiteful keeps covered and uncovered patio seating open year-round next door, so this is the fallback on a drizzly day.

Two more city taprooms are worth knowing for the room rather than a yard. https://windycitymagazine.com/business/old-irving-brewing-co/Old Irving Brewing Co., 4419 W. Montrose Ave. in Old Irving Park, is a brewpub with wood-fired food, hazy IPAs like Beezer and a helles called Sonne, open seven days from noon. There is free street parking on Montrose for several blocks in either direction, with rush-hour restrictions on the north side of the street from 4 to 6 p.m. on weekdays, and the Montrose Blue Line stop and 78 Montrose bus are close.

In Avondale, https://windycitymagazine.com/business/revolution-brewing/Revolution Brewing, 3340 N. Kedzie Ave., is the production brewery and taproom of one of the city’s biggest independent brewers, open Wednesday through Sunday. Outside food is allowed, and the taproom sells snacks and soft drinks only. There is no lot, just street parking on Kedzie; the Belmont Blue Line stop is the closest train, and the Belmont and Addison buses both stop at Kedzie.

Family- and dog-friendly taprooms

Policies differ from one door to the next. Here is what each brewery’s own site says.

• Kids and dogs both welcome: Demo (Ravenswood) and Monochrome (Pilsen). Both are BYO food, which helps with picky eaters.
• Kids yes, dogs outside only: Half Acre (leashed dogs in the beer garden, kids seated with an adult) and Dovetail (dogs on the patio in season, under-21s with an adult, changing tables in every bathroom).
• Dogs yes: Spiteful, inside and on the patio.
• Kids yes, no dogs: Revolution’s Kedzie taproom allows well-supervised children during regular hours, but brewery tours are 21 and over with no exceptions, and dogs other than service animals have to stay home. Sketchbook’s Evanston taproom is family-friendly with board games and no dogs.
• Brewpubs with a full kitchen (Haymarket, Old Irving, Alter, Guinness) work like any restaurant for families.

Good to know

Checked September 28, 2026.

• The city’s brewery count shrank this year. Alarmist (Sauganash), Whiner (Back of the Yards), Illuminated Brew Works (Norwood Park), Short Fuse (Schiller Park) and Casa Humilde (Forest Park) all closed between February and June 2026, per the Sun-Times and Axios Chicago. Pollyanna Brewing bought the Alarmist brand and is renovating the Peterson Avenue space; no opening date yet.
• Ravenswood On Tap, the Malt Row street festival run by the Greater Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce, was held July 18 and 19, 2026, along Ravenswood Avenue at Berteau, and all the Malt Row breweries above poured. Expect the festival again next July.
• Patio season is roughly April through November. Dovetail’s patio and Half Acre’s garden are weather-dependent, and Half Acre closes the garden for lightning or rain.
• Oktoberfest beers are on now: Kinslahger has a festbier and a märzen, and Hop Butcher has ChicagoFest.

Know a place that belongs in this guide, or a detail that has changed? Send a correction.