Motor Row Brewing

I love Motor Row and every beer they make. As a lager guy, their Zwickel is probably the best I’ve had outside of Germany. Frank and his team love what they do and it shows. The folks are really friendly, and the taproom itself on South Michigan Avenue near McCormick Place is really a beautiful space, too. As a taproom they’re OK with you bringing in food, too. Go now!

Ask the bar manager about Ben Franklin and grey pussy. She will explain to you about mr franklins obsession with older women and how he preferred to sex their vaginas over younger those women around the same age. She is very friendly overall with food and other brewery recommendations but may get shy about ben’s exploits. However she will always remember ben is a greyhound.

Great selection of brewed beers with a very descriptive menu. No food purely beer but a very friendly and knowledgeable staff. It’s a very clean and comfortable atmosphere.

I love this place. Great beer, free popcorn, friendly bartenders, and never that crowded.

Small but unique selection of beers you won’t usually see elsewhere. Also, $ 6/​beer is a pretty good deal, considering it’s craft beer. They had seven beers to choose from, maybe less than some beer gardens, but the beer I had was tasty nonetheless, and the noise taproom is very tolerable, so this is a good place to go if you want to have a conversation with someone while sipping on a beer. No yelling required. Free pretzel sticks and popcorn on case you get hungry… Great local spot in the neighborhood, I’ll definitely be back to sample their other brews

I agree with all the positive reviews regarding service, beer quality, and value. It’s a great location, especially for neighbors, but worth the trip for anyone who likes beer and is interested in Motor Row history, buildings and culture (the blues museum is right over on Wabash and a car museum is supposedly opening up the street). One improvement I’d suggest, and why I don’t give them 5 stars, is because of the slightly sterile décor, but that may be easily solved with lower lighting, maybe some candles, some black and white photos of beer and classic cars on the walls. This might not be important for the brew master but can make a big difference for some of the guests.

A relatively new brewpub, opened in January 2015, on the growing edge of South Loop gentrification. Located on the second floor of an old commercial building; elevator-​accessible. A long, narrow room decorated in bare brick, with a small, six-​seat bar and blond wood benches and tables. Very clean restrooms.
Bar snacks are limited to pretzel sticks and fresh-​made popcorn, with shakers of a number of flavorings. No other food service. Friendly bartender, and the brewmaster was seated at the bar at the time of my visit, engaging with customers.
Convenient to public transportation, two and a half blocks from the new Cermak-​McCormick Place station on the Green Line. Also can be reached on the 4-​Cottage Grove bus from Michigan Avenue. Two blocks west of the McCormick Place convention center. For pub crawlers, about a mile south of Vice District Brewing.
Beers tried, in a flight of six samplers at $ 9.95:
–Reclamation Lager. 4.5% ABV. Clear gold, light head. Minimal nose. Typical pils flavor profile; likely their «training wheels» beer for timid industrial-​lager drinkers.
–Out of the Loop IPL. 6%. Rich brass color, light head. Mild aroma hop nose. Hop-​forward, IPA-​like flavor profile, though brewed with lager yeast.
–New Phenix (sic) Lager. 5%. Clear gold (though described as unfiltered). Light head. Almost no nose. Moderate bitter hop taste against a solid malt base. Grain bill includes «a touch of» rye and wheat, though these don’t seem apparent in the flavor profile.
–Dry Humor Belgian Honey Blonde. 5.5%. Slightly cloudy straw color; head disappears almost at once. Touch of honey in the nose (it’s brewed with orange blossom honey). Tart and citrusy; Brettanomyces yeast is noticeable in the taste.
Coiffable (sic) American Red Ale. 6%. Clear bronze color, halo head. Malt and aroma hop nose. Intense aroma hop taste against Munich malt, with a touch of woody «pencil shavings» at the finish.
–Blutmond über Antwerpen Belgian Dubbel. 6.5%. Named in honor of last week’s «supermoon» eclipse. Cloudy reddish brown, heavy head. Slight flowery nose. Hop variety is German Mandarina (hence the name in German rather than Flemish). Noticeably made with an abbey-​style yeast; ethanol also approaches being a flavor note. My favorite of the flight; I ordered another tulip of this.

I may never leave. It’s a tiny tap room. And that’s all you need. A dozen places to sit and drink what??? Good fucking beer! I’m all about the beer names. Dumpster Diver DIPA 8.5%. Complex. Smooth. Bites. Loved it. Had 2. It was personal. There was humor. Great visit. I’ll bring my people back her for sure. And thanks for the water labeled «Free Coors Lite». Lmfao! Love you Motor Row. Peace from the Motor City!

Tiny place that serves some kick ass beers. I recommend the Pander Bear… very different but very good. Would give 4.5 stars because they don’t serve food.

Very distinct home brew taste. Went with 2 friends, got the zwickel, ipl, and pale ale. Everyone tried everything and couldn’t finish any of these.
Great addition for the area but I would wait at least 3 more months for them to bring their beers up to the quality we expect now in Chicago.

A brewery with fantastic beer, low prices, and unbelievable friendly staff? This is the stuff beer dreams are made of.
I’ve been there twice, each time with guests visiting from out of town and itching to see the Chicago brew scene. I’ve tried the beer flight (delicious and a fantastic deal) and followed up with the Dry Humor, which was my favorite. Adrian is super nice and gets to know you right away, which really completes the ‘neighborhood bar’ feel of the place.
No pretentiousness, just really good beer with really good people. Also, free popcorn!

This is an intimate tasting room, 3 blocks from the Green Line train station, and 2 blocks from McCormick Place. The staff is friendly, and knowledgeable. The flights are priced very fair for the size of the pour.
Their beer is all very good, but there wasn’t a standout like you get from Revolution, or Vice down the street.
Plenty of free parking around the corner. Save the money the Mayor will take from you on the meters in front.

Great beer. Good atmosphere. Easy parking on the street though you have to pay. Super clean bathrooms and free popcorn. I tried every beer and they were all delicious.

Was visiting Chicago, out for a walk. Saw the place and went in to catch some basketball.
Light crowd, but everyone was friendly, it felt as if I were a regular, which I might be if I lived in town.
I started with the Pander Bear a dark beer, and sampled the Bi-​polar and Multigrain Zwikel. Even though I normally like dark beer the Multigrain Zwikel was my favorite.
Get there early they close at 10pm weekdays.

I had the pleasure of wandering around the neighborhood while i awaited a flat to get fixed. While trying to avoid the burger king’s pan handlers, I discovered this place.
While there hours don’t lend well to day drinking, with a 4pm opening, the pours encourage long visits. This small bar has stools and 5ish small tables. You are welcome to bring your own food and feign interest in the one TV.
The TV entrainment will not be missed as you can drink a generous 20oz pour of beer for about 5 bucks. Although their menu is short, they have about 6 different styles of beers all of which were under 6.50.
Be prepared to pay for parking and not walk too many other places. But with beer so crisp and refershing you may not need to go anywhere else.

I’ve been here a couple times already and not bad. Just the 1^st floor is open and that only can handle about 25 – 30 people. No food but you can order in. They need a old fashion popcorn machine. I tried several beers and I’m a big IPA guy and the IPL (IPA & Pilsner) combo was pretty good. But my favorite was the Red by far, go figure. That was one of the better Red’s that I have had. Can’t wait for the 2^nd floor to open!

Really great place with excellent staff. Went there after the auto show on a whim and could have been happier.
All their beers are really good, the Zwickel being the best. Met the manager and the bartender, both very helpful. Had driving not been a necessary that night, I would have done more than one flight. Even better they had several pans of amazing food out for anyone to try. The place was such a good find we thought we accidentally walked in on a private party or something.
Go, try it all, have a great time, and long live craft beer.

I echo the first review. Being a resident of the area makes my review bias; however if the drinks were not good and the environment was not welcoming, I would have ran this place out of town.
We only need solid places in the neighborhood and this is hands down the right venue to kick things off. Alot of future restaurants, hotels and bars are being planned, so this brewery/​tap room will soon be available at a bar near you, but for now — go in sample some beers and buy a growler to go. Expensive at first, but refills for now are only $ 13.
Belgian Honey Blonde and Reclamation Lager are my favorites (NOTE: I prefer lighter vs stout flavor).
FREE PARKING STILL ON 23^rd street and Wabash between 23^rd-​24^th.

Anxious for the 2^nd floor to open, to get a true feel for what this place will be, but for now… a decent little spot. The bartenders were friendly, and there are a couple of nice beers brewing. My faves were the Reclamation Lager and the Multigrain Zwickel. I look forward to trying the Coifable American Red Ale, but it wasn’t quite ready yet, when we were there last night.
My only complaints? First, I feel the lights are a tad too bright. My friend said he felt like he was sitting on a TV set all night! And second… the toilet in the women’s room had a ring of scum in the bowl. Ewww. The brewery seemed clean besides that, but still… not something you want to see. Even given these things… glad to see things opening in this neighborhood, and looking forward to returning as Motor Row continues to expand their space.

Great addition to the neighborhood! Visited the place twice with different friends in the past 2 weeks. My favorite beer – and my gf’s– is the Belgian Honey Blonde (if you like sweet beers). Also, the employees are friendly – one of them provided us a tour of the 2^nd FL room. Overall, a great taproom. Oh, and the Motor Row neighborhood is full of great early 20^th century architecture, if you’re into that thing.