Tenenbaum Hardware & Paint

Great old-​fashioned customer service from a neighborhood hardware store, really feels like a throwback to times gone by. Very helpful and friendly staff, they have most things I am looking for when I stop in which is impressive for a small neighborhood hardware store. I am very happy they are close to home and that they almost always have something that will work for me. Love the staff here, top notch. Keep up the great work!

I live out of state, but every time I have had occasion to shop here, I find the staff to be knowledgeable and very helpful. This usually occurs when I’m in the area, babysitting for the grandkids. I stopped there to get 4 screws that I needed for a project. I had both kids in a stroller, explained what I needed, before realizing that I had forgotten my wallet. I apologized and turned to leave the store, when the clerk said I could have the screws, so I wouldn’t have to make another trip to another store, as they were about to close for the weekend. Mike demonstrated the true essence of customer service and the value of local merchants! Thank you!

What a gem of a store! When I first moved to Chicago over 10 years ago, I lived right around the corner from this place and was so happy to find such a friendly spot in the neighborhood. Last week, the same kind store owner who cut my first set of keys a decade ago made 3 new sets for my new home and they work like a charm. I realize that all of the big box stores will cut keys for you cheaply (in more ways than one!), but the owner spoke with me about the types of locks I had and made suggestions on the best key type (one brass, one silver), and they were still incredibly inexpensive. It seems silly, but that extra moment of caring was really lovely and it’s always a wonderful experience shopping here.
In addition to the exceptional customer service, this store has an incredible stock of your basic hardware needs and will go the extra mile to order items that may not be on the shelf. I highly recommend this neighborhood spot and hope that it’s around for another 10 years and beyond.

I came here with a ridiculous question about bolts, and they were able to quickly point me in the right direction, and show me a selection of options. Come here for quick answers to questions and friendly, competent service.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND
How did I not know about this place? The people here are so helpful, friendly and know things. I went to five other places before finding Tenenbaum. They took the time to figure it out, what a relief. So glad I got directed here by Crest Lighting when they couldn’t help me. This place is a Chicago Gem

Love this Old School hardware store.
People are really friendly and helpful.
Go here. It has what you need.

Such a friendly and helpful staff. Our dogs were even welcomed with open arms and treats! I was able to find everything we needed and much more.

My wife and I absolutely love this place. Dave, Tony, Mike, all of the people that work here are great. We moved into the neighborhood about a month ago and we visit them at least once a weekend as we are getting our place fixed up.
The entire staff is incredibly knowledgeable about everything from painting to lighting fixtures to pretty much anything that you could need a hand with. One of the most obvious items that comes to mind is that we needed our locks rekeyed when we moved in. We were at Home Depot picking up some plants and I asked if they could rekey our locks for us. The woman running the key station looked at me with an amazed face and said ‘You can rekey locks!!!’ The team here rekeyed our locks in minutes. On top of this they are so nice they even helped my wife carry multiple items from the store back to our place when I was out of town!
The prices are very comparable to Home Depot too, so you won’t feel like you are getting fleeced.
I would 100% recommend this place for any of your needs. If they can’t help you they’ll point you to someone who can.

I was in a rush to pack, move and do a lot in a little bit of time. My first time here — and as soon as I walked in, I was offered assistance. No pushy sales people. The gentleman answered all my questions and was kind. He even carried my 50-​lb bag of rock salt to the bus stop for me! The woman who cashed me out was a sweetheart. And the prices were fine. Beats the big stores for sure.

Small, neighborhood hardware store. Always friendly and attentive and will help you with pretty much any project you can think of. Small, family owned business. Highly recommended. Glad to have such a great business in my neighborhood.

The employees here are incredibly helpful and friendly. I would absolutely give this place 5 stars, but due to its size they don’t have absolutely everything. With that being said, if you go to a «big box» hardware store, you just don’t get this level of customer service. Glad to support a local business!

I love this place! What a great store to get what you need without having to walk through a bunch of aisles searching all over the place. You just walk in, the very nice salespeople HELP you (kind of an interesting concept these days). They know their trade and they try to talk you OUT of stuff you don’t need, instead telling you a better/​cheaper way to do it. So give them the details of your situation and let them do what they’re great at — advising you. And believe it or not, some of their stuff is even cheaper than the big box stores. Hard to go wrong here!

This is my neighborhood Hardware store and I am really glad it is. Everyone is super friendly and they pretty much have everything you need. I buy my cleaning supplies and I am happy to support small business. They make keys and even rent carpets cleaners for the day. My favorite thing about the place is that they are dog friendly. I love that I can bring my dog while I pick up a few things.

I had the pleasure of shopping at Tenenbaum’s Hardware store today. The store took me back nearly fifty years when I would travel with my Father to Crescent Hardware. He would spend hours at a time at Crescent Hardware and now I know why.
The people at Tenenbaum’s at knowlegable, courteous and helpful. I got exactly what I needed and it worked perfectly. They have a customer for life in me.
Next time you want to go to Home Depot go to Tenenbaum’s instead. You will be glad you did.
Thank you Pam.
Ken Kelly

Tenenbaum Hardware reminds me of the hardware store from my childhood. Granted, I grew up in a tiny town, but still. You walk in, and everyone is smiling and joking with each other. It’s got a good vibe, like people come here to make their home better and not just to fix emergency situations.
Unfortunately, I fell into the latter. I was cranky and it was hot and I know I’m not the nicest person when that happens. But I walked in and within a few minutes someone came up and offered to help me. I assumed he would just show me where the product was and then ditch, but he actually stopped and talked me through the different options, as well as demonstrating how to use it. He also suggested that I purchase gloves, which hadn’t even crossed my mind until he said it. Most importantly, the guy helping me put me in a better mood and actually (cheesey moment about to happen) gave me the confidence that I could fix the problem.
This is my new go to hardware store. It’s a little bit farther from me than Stauber Hardware, but I think it’s well worth it. It’s not expensive (they sell individual gloves for 35 cents!) and the staff really know what they’re talking about.

Local hardware stores are places I always try to frequent when I need to dabble in the art of home repair and other things I know NOTHING about, and Tennebaum didn’t disappoint whatsoever.
This is one of those stores where you walk in and feel comfortable immediately, by which point someone has asked you if they can help you, in a genuine «I really would like you to have a good experience» tone of voice. I’ve been in 4 times in the two weeks I’ve lived in the neighborhood, and on THREE occasions I’ve had employees utter a version of the phrase «that’s a great product, but follow me. Here, this will save you money, and the quality is just as good/​you get more.»
I’ll definitely be going back for anything and everything I need.

I like it here. Convenient location. Friendly, helpful staff. Excellent prices. Local (right?). Only complaint would be it’s kinda small. They’ve always had what I needed, but the selection isn’t the greatest.
They suggested and assembled a beer bong for me once which was cool.

For price, it ain’t the Home Depot. You pay a little extra for the convenience, and they also deliver with customer service. Unless they are swamped, you won’t get far without someone asking you if you need help.
I have had hundreds (literally) of keys made here without an issue. I have had a few window screens fixed here, too.
Just today, they punched holes into the corners of my For Rent sign before I paid for it. Thought that to be nice and trusting.

So I am not the handiest of girls and my recent move into a very small studio apartment has made this very clear. I need shelves in my closet. I have NO space. So I thought that my brother (a carpenter) and a VERY nice cordless drill would solve all this. Not so much. I pulled an entire shelf on top of my self and a bracket right out of the wall. So on to a hardware store for the correct equipment.
Now there are no hardware stores all that close but Tenebaum is not too far. However, I hate walking without my dog so I set off with Atlas (my Great Dane in tow). I hate leaving him tied up outside, especially after the fiasco when he chewed through his leash and ran into Trader Joe’s. Point being I wanted to be able to bring him in.
They are dog friendly! He got lots of treats, they listened to my problems and we set out with brackets and anchors in tow. I am more than willing to trek up here for ANYTHING. Plus now I can’t pull my shelves down on myself. :)

I work in theater, and if there’s one tool that’s indispensable in my line of work, it’s a cordless drill. I also happen to be a young woman, and I was prepared to deal with the typical «oh are you getting it for your boyfriend?» spiel that most hardware stores like to offer me. Not so at Tenenbaum – not only did the dude help me pick out the biggest and baddest drill in the place, when I got to the checkout register the lady ringing me up asked if I knew about the special on drill bits that they had. I didn’t, so she went off into another part of the store and came back with this huge pack of drill and driver bits that was 30% off. In all, I made out like a bandit, and the icing on the cake came when the checkout lady told me that she owns the exact drill I just bought.
Favorite hardware store in the whole city!