Home Run Inn

Taste in pizza is obviously very subjective. It’s one of my all time favorites and I really like the new location. It’s definitely worth a try either way.

Upon entering Home Run Inn, after a very odd experience at Cheesy’s down the street, we were just relieved that the music was NOT blaring and the tables were NOT jammed with angsty college kids. The interior was pleasantly low-​key, exposed brick tastefully accented with stenciled wall art and track lighting. There were also a number of televisions, which isn’t my favorite, but I understand some people can’t just have a drink without a screen nearby.
We sat at the bar, relieved to hear only low-​level background music and the quiet chatter of other patrons, including a few young families. They had a great draft selection, and we enjoyed an order of their homemade pretzel sticks as well — you can’t beat warm pretzels with whole-​grain mustard, and these came with cheese sauce as well.
Our plans for the evening included dinner and a show, so we didn’t venture further into the menu than the appetizer section, but we were grateful for the peaceful respite after the madness down the street.

Love the pizza and atmosphere here. Great neighborhood pizza restaurant that is committed, first and foremost, to creating a family-​friendly environment. Home Run Inn is the place to go if you to want to enjoy a meal with menu items that everyone in the family can enjoy, want to watch a ball game with your friends over some beers, or want to take out your significant other for some good pizza.
As far as the food goes, my favorites:
Appetizers/​Salads:
–Bleu Cheese Fries (goes great with some beer!)
–Signature salad
–Harvest salad
For the salads, the strawberry vinaigrette and house Gorgonzola italian dressings are the best
Pizza:
–Carolina BBQ Chicken
–Grilled Artichoke, Roasted Garlic & Spinach
–All others are still really good
Other:
–The legend burger is underrated since it’s a pizza place but is actually a really good cut of meat and solid
–mac n’ cheese skillet
–gooey butter cupcake
Very happy that HRI came to Lakeview, I’ll continue to eat here!

I had heard that Home Run Inn had taken over the former Leona’s location and saw it in passing on the EL, so I earmarked it as a definite place to check out. Last night we got the chance. I took the hubby and our 3yo to try out their pizza. I had sampled their frozen pie available at supermarkets over the years and found it to be pretty good. You can tell a lot about a pizza place by their basic cheese pizza (sans toppings). I’ll break it down by Pro’s and Con’s.
Pro’s: Location, location, location. Right off the Belmont stop. You can’t beat that. Really nice décor, exposed brick, wide isles, plenty of tables. The place basically screamed «sports bar», but the volume level wasn’t obnoxious and conversations were easily heard. After ordering, I watched quite a few plates go by with salads and desserts. I will definitely give them points for presentations. Everything that passed by looked and smelled delicious.
Con’s: The pizza was OK. If you like your sauce on the sweet side, then this pizza is for you. I found it just a tad TOO sweet. The cheese, which was plentiful almost to the extreme, was perfectly melted. The crust was thin and crisp but lacked any true doughy flavor that I personally look for in a pie. Still, it was cooked perfectly and the X-​large was more than enough for the three of us. I lost track of how much my little guy ate. He really liked it.
As mentioned in other reviews, the service was just a spot off. Our server was perfectly nice but couldn’t answer some questions on serving sizes for drinks. The pizza took around 30 minutes to arrive. As it was cooked perfectly, I won’t complain about that too much. We did make sure to call for the check before we were completely finished to speed that along.
The biggest letdown: There was a big, chalk drawn sign out front proclaiming that they had the local Right Bee cider on tap. Being a huge cider fan, this would have pulled me in the door had I just been walking by. When I ordered one, I was told that they’d just gotten it in yesterday and it wasn’t hooked up properly so it «wouldn’t taste right».
Summary. I’d probably go back to this location to try out all their other options rather than pizza (I’ve heard their salads are awesome) but my only word to the wise for them is… don’t advertise something that you can’t deliver, Especially cider.

Welcome to Lakeview.
Having spent years driving to the 31^st street location, having this just a block from my house is dangerous.
Food is delicious, service was great. We went there opening day with a party of 10, server steered us to the right amount of pizza and salad. Was really tempted to order the largest salad for the table, he recommended the medium and he was right.
Love it, welcome to the neighborhood!

Finally got a chance to try Home Run Inn on Friday night with a couple friends. There were quite a few people eating there around 7:30 pm but there were still plenty of tables because this place is MASSIVE! Holy cow, I was shocked how big this place is. There are booths surrounding the exterior of the main area, with a huge bar area in the middle. There’s also a side room with several more tables. The interior is really well done, with some pretty cool lighting, exposed brick/​pipes and some cool Chicago pieces up on the walls.
Staff was super friendly, probably the nicest people I had spoken with in weeks. We were checked up on frequently throughout the meal. When our server accidentally knocked a piece off one of our pizzas when bringing it over we even had the manager come over and apologize profusely for it. My one friend got a stupid cheeseless pizzza so I won’t talk about that but my other friend and I split the Garlic fireball. Jalapenos, giardiniera and sausage with the garlic crust. Wow! So good and really spicy once you got a few pieces deep. A 14″ pizza was plenty for the two of us plus a bunch of leftovers.
Really, my only knock on the place was the pizza took a little while to come out despite being thin crust and it was kinda pricey. You really don’t want to approach deep dish prices as a thin crust place. But overall, ambiance, service and food were great!

Visited tonight for the first time. I have never eaten at an actual Home Run Inn restaurant though their frozen pizzas are my favorite. I’ve been wanting to visit since they opened the Laveview location and I’m so glad I finally did. We were pretty hungry and concerned that it might be a bit of a wait for pizza. But, we were wrong. We ordered a salad as an appetizer and by the time we were through, the pizza was delivered. Both the service & the food were excellent. I don’t remember our server’s name but she was delightful and very attentive. She even offered us coupons before ordering. The manager also stopped by to make sure all was good. Looking forward to returning soon!

I never write reviews, but this situation called for one. I took my mom and niece here for a dinner out as they were visiting Chicago, needless to say I will not come back. Time management was so poor, which is a shame because the food itself was good, but all meals came out at separate times, with mine never coming out. After my mom and niece finished their meals completely, I told the waitress to just cancel my sandwich as I had to leave. They apologized and cancelled my sandwich, but nonetheless still had the nerve to charge me for the side salad that came with… If you’d like a nice night out, go elsewhere.

For almost 30 years, I’ve driven from downtown Chicago to the original HRI location on 31^st whenever I was «fiendin» for a HRI pizza. Why? The crust. Specifically the edges. I love the buttery flavor. They’ve changed suppliers over the past few years, so the cheese is saltier, but that hasn’t stopped me from going behind the kids (now grandkids) and eating the crust edges! So I was ecstatic to see this location open, but as you can see from the rating, it’s not the same. No, I can’t rate the atmosphere or the beer selection. And I can’t tell you about «the vibe». I’m just saying that I’ll continue to hit 31^st street when I feel the need for HRI pizza.

Have been to other HRI and was hoping this one would be as good.
Big disappointment.
The food was great but the service needs much improvement. Biggest issues:
1) Food came incredibly slow. We had to wait for at least 30 minutes before the appetizer came out. And restaurant wasn’t even busy (five tables max.). What will they do if they are busy?
2) Server was not helpful. Couldn’t tell us the status of things — we almost walked out. Low level of confidence that she knew what she was doing.
3) No one came to check on us. We could have dropped dead at our table or walked out and it probably would have taken them a couple hours to realize. Don’t even ask us how long it took to get our check. We had to tackle the guy bussing the tables.
Too bad. We really enjoyed the food. Liked the ambiance. Hated the experience.

I was fortunate enough to visit this Home Run Inn during their grand opening event. I’ve been a fan of the frozen Home Run Inn pizza every since I was a young girl. So when I heard that a Home Run Inn restaurant was opening within my neighborhood it was music to my ears. I lucked out and got a coupon for a free large two-​topping pizza that I could redeem at a later date.
I decided to finally redeem my coupon roughly a month later by grabbing a few friends and checking out Home Run Inn again. I was thoroughly impressed by the overall décor of the restaurant. The restaurant is very spacious and the bar area is enormous. I can see this location easily becoming one of the best places to watch any type of playoff game.
I had a little more patience when it came to the slow service only because the place hasn’t been open for that long. The waitress was friendly enough but not too attentive but it could’ve been a case of her just trying to get into the groove of things at the restaurant. The pizza was pretty good but it wasn’t as good as the frozen pizza that I normally enjoy. I will admit that the food is on the pricier side but Home Run Inn has never really been that cheap.
I would love to see how the staff handles the bigger playoff crowds and see if the pizza quality gets a little better. I can’t want to visit this location again after they’ve been open for a little longer. Overall I enjoyed myself!

The décor at the restaurant is nice, but the service is slow and the server and manager were really confused by the payment system. After fumbling several times with the bill, our server inexcusably overcharged me by more than double. I didn’t discover this until later in the week when I checked my bank statement. When I returned to the restaurant to rectify the situation, the manager questioned me over and over again as if I was fabricating the whole situation. It was obviously the server’s error based on the amounts listed on the bill and the amounts charged to my bank account, which I showed him on my phone. After nearly an hour of reviewing it, the manager did eventually refund the amount we were overcharged, but the whole experience left a really bad taste in my mouth.
On top of all that, the pizza was not very good and also left a bad taste in my mouth. It tasted kind of like a frozen pizza that was slightly burned and the sauce was a weird mixture of overpowering spices. Considering we live in Chicago, a pizza Mecca, we’ll not return. The service issues will likely resolve themselves with time, but there are way more flavorful pizza options all across Chicago.

I was so excited when I saw a Home Run Inn opening in my neighborhood. I love the pizza at their Woodridge location. was I disappointed! This pizza tastes, looks and I believe is their frozen recipe. especially the sausage… don’t bother going here… if you want real authentic Italian and Sicilian pizza do yourself a favor and go to Renaldis pizza on Broadway north of Diversey… you will see what I mean
I will never go back to this Home Run Inn location… I will buy it frozen and save myself some money

I normally don’t write reviews but I have to on this one. I love, absolutely love Home Run Inn. I have been to almost every location. I’ve even had parties in some of their locations. I know this is a new location and the idea is great, but they need new staff.
I was there about 11:45 and my experience started off weird. I pulled up to street parking where the host ran outside and blocked my parking spot as I was trying to park to chase down a customer who they gave the wrong pizza too. Once inside I saw them talking to the guy they made the mistake with and they kinda treated him like he made the mistake. I was seated and the host was cold and impersonal, not rude but definitely not friendly for a new establishment that needs customers. The waiter came to us and gave us the special, they gave us an interactive menus and told us draft was $ 3 bucks. I clicked on draft and it still showed everything so I asked the waiter what cider is on tap. I’ve drank each type of tap so I know it comes on tap and in bottles. The waiter acted like I was Stupid and repeated «it’s all our draft». So I orders a common cider on tap, «smith and forge» which I’ve had on tap many times. He came back and said we don’t have it, it’s in a can. I was annoyed and said give me water. He finally asked the bartender what cider was on tap which is what he should have asked from the beginning. We ordered and while there an elderly women ordered soup and returned it because it was cold and after 15 left. They came out looking for her and made a comment «why did she leave if her food was cold». Umm she left because she sent it back and no one came out to check on her. Nearby the manager I believe was in a meeting with an outside company and even he had to go up to the host and ask for him to get someone to take his order and he was the manager. Another lady nearby with her husband had to get up and ask for waitstaff and I could hear them complaining. When we were ready to leave we asked for two to-​go boxes and 10 mins later the waiter came back and said «oh he never brought your boxes» this is rude because he shouldn’t put blame on someone. As someone who worked in the public service industry this is unacceptable. I wanted to talk to the manger just to give him advice but he was still in a meeting. I decided to write this review.
The food is great, service is horrible so maybe they will retrain staff. Maybe take this review and share with staff. I give 1 star for service and 2 because I love the food but highly doubt I’ll try this location again.

This place wow, was far above all the expectations I had.
The décor is very nice modern and great for the area.
The food (pizza) great and delicious.
The beverages are very well made and tasty.
Come by and have some fun and food.

Even better than the frozen pizza! Love the sauce and crust. Great food, good service, and perfect place to watch games!

I’ve had the frozen pizzas many times and went in with the expectation the pizza would be the same as the frozen. I was pleasantly surprised that it was far better than the frozen! It’s obvious a lot was invested into this establishment, everything is new and clean including the restrooms. If you like the frozen pizza you’ll love the fresh cooked pizza here!

Holy man their pizza is delicious. I’ve never had it before and I think it changed my life. The thin crust is buttery and crunchy and made of some sort of magic. There’s some sort of wizardry that goes into the making of their pizza pies. I’m hooked. Minus one star just cuz there was a mysterious lemon seed in my water and the bartender had no idea where it came from, and didn’t offer to replace my water. I don’t really care, but I can’t justify the 5^th star cuz of that. Don’t hate me.
Edit: coming back in to talk about the ambience. Think Rock Bottom Brewery. It’s upscale feeling but definitely casual. You can belly up to the bar in your favorite sports jersey, but you def don’t feel like you’re in a dive.

Home Run Inn’s frozen pizza is really good but this, my Unilocal friends, is pizza at a whole new level. No not just because you don’t have to cook it, serve it, or do dishes… the pizza is THAT much better. Hard to explain but basically the crust is as good/​buttery/​flaky as the frozen on the edges, but not as dense/​hard in the middle… the best part is the toppings, as they were so fresh and the amounts were generous. But in my best infomercial voice: wait, there’s more!
They did an amazing job with the physical space — exposed brick, sidewalk front windows that open, natural hard wood ceiling, cool light fixtures… it’s awesome!
Aside from the amazing pizza we also tried the wings. Almost as many flavor options as that wing place, and just as tasty and meaty! But, we only had buffalo and honey garlic so I have homework to do… I will need (twist my arm!) to come back and try other flavors in the future, and the boneless wings too.
Some pricing seemed a little on the high side — $ 27 for a specialty pizza, $ 8 jolly rancher shots, but that was offset by daily specials. Like real specials you would actually order (see photo). Service was spectacular, but I’m a huge water drinker and my water was never refilled… so I drank my partners. Small kinks that surely will be worked out over time — again, not a knock… overall the service was great. A neat touch was how the specials and beer/​wine/​drink list came on a iPad like tablet… although our battery died during our meal. There is also free wifi so you can stare at your phone the entire meal — its the American way.
Not sure if I’m happy or sad, for my belly’s sake, that HRI is now in Lakeview. Who am I kidding…

Was so happy to see Home Run Inn replaced Leona’s! Welcome addition to Lakeview! This is a great spot with reclaimed wood tables, exposed brick & Chicago inspired art. Most modern Home Run Inn I’ve seen!
LOVE this pizza. Great thin crust. Such bright red luscious sauce I could drink it! Tried the garlic butter crust for the first time & did not disappoint! They have gluten-​free options & cook in separate pans (didn’t try but good to know for others!) They have great specials every day of the week. Lots of local beer on tap!
Service was great & liked the iPads they provide to view all the drinks & specials. I’ve never seen that before!
Many Chicagoans on the north side have probably never tried Home Run Inn as its a south side establishment! Give it a shot for thin crust!