Nutties

Nutties is a shitty place with a shitty owner — I won’t be back any time soon.
Bartenders are slow.
The ‘pizza’ is cardboard crap.
On a Saturday night, you might find 8 people in the whole place, MAX.
Worst of all is the p.o.s. owner. He is a rude, unfriendly, douchebag. My friends and I had been playing pool one night for about 30 mins. It was early, and we were NOT belligerent or obnoxious — minding our own and and just shooting pool. Friend accidentally spills a little beer on the table and the owner loses it. With no explanation, he comes out of his dark hole of an office and removes the cues from all of our hands and kicks us out. WTF?! He starts complaining about how now he has to replace the table, and how it’s so expensive, blah blah blah. I tried to reason with him. Saying we didn’t MEAN to spill. That it was an accident and people make mistakes, and APOLOGIZED on behalf of all my friends and myself! No dice, he proceeded to kick us out. DUDE. It’s a pool table in a shitty dive bar. Accidents are going to happen. Things are going to get dirty. Get a clue.
THEN. Two or three weeks later we make another visit. No pool this time. We don’t want any trouble. We chill at the bar, drink for about an hour, play jenga, eat shitty pizza that my friend ordered … whatever. My friend buys a couple songs at the jukebox, not realizing we’re close to closing time. Two songs play, then it stops. We go over to the box to see what’s up. Owner comes out of his hole again, lurking around, seeing us having trouble at the box. We tell him we paid for several songs that were not played. He basically says, not in so many words, ‘Oh well … we’re closing now. Can’t give your money back.’ Almost like ‘Not my problem, I don’t care…‘
Dude is a real piece of work, and it’s obvious I’m not the only one who thinks so. Read the other reviews.
Good luck Nutties, NOT.

Tucked away in an easy-​to-​miss corner of Lake Villa, Nutties is one of the best bars Lake County has to offer.
I should start out by acknowledging that I’m not much of a bar person. However, Nutties provides the warm, friendly atmosphere that I have had trouble finding at bars in the past and is now one of the few bars I actually enjoy going to. No over-​priced drinks, no obnoxious music (although there is a TouchTunes machine if that’s your thing). Just an eclectic mix of great people and a very pleasant environment.
They have a great selection of craft beers and both John and Anna make a great Moscow Mule. Also, they have great specials on a very frequent basis. So if you are looking for a great time without breaking the bank, this may be the place for you.

If 4 customers on a Saturday night and a rude, egotistical owner/​bartender is your idea of a perfect destination, you have hit jackpot. The owner should relegate himself to the office room as he is not customer friendly. Our first visit was cool, but the second involved the owner. We won’t return unless there are new folks in charge. There are much friendlier places in Lake Villa.

I had an interesting discussion about the virtues of socialism with the ironically Greek owner. The discussion was not initiated by me, but I couldn’t help but respond to someone who thinks that people who work for a living don’t pay enough taxes in Illinois. Besides the awkward conversation, we had one good beer, and one that came from a tap that needed some serious cleaning. John only had frozen pizza available that night, so we passed in food. We were the only ones there at first. A few regulars trickled in as we left. Not sure if we hit it in an off night or if the owner was just in a mood. I might try it again some night if I’m solo and looking to debate politics or religion in a bar (in other words, probably never).

I love coming here after work or on a Saturday night. John is the owner and this place is his baby. He makes sure to make the rounds and make everyone feel welcome. Very fair priced drinks with specials every day. Anna is a beautiful and sweet bartender that will make sure you get exactly what you want.

Great «dive» bar. Been going here for years and will continue to do so. John the owner is a really nice guy. Free popcorn and a decent TV set up. Cheap drinks. Lots of regulars. Always have a funny story after late night weekends here.
If youre expecting some fruffy, upscale, white collar pinkies up martini bar this place aint for you. This is a blue collar, like to watch hockey fights, beer and a shot type of place. Think Cheers but with more colorful characters.

Nutties is still open, cleaner, better and operating under Lake Villa Public House

Nutties is changing… and I’m not convinced it’s for the better. I’ve been coming to this bar for 8 years and I’ve always loved it. It was an unassuming local bar with familiar faces, friendly bartenders, delicious popcorn, and cheap drinks. Recently, all of the taps have been switched to micro-​brews, which is a decision I actually do support. Try the «root beer» beer or apple cider beer. Dangerously good!
They are currently remodeling and I’ve heard from the staff and the owner, John, that they’re working towards a classier image to complete with local bars like Blackthorn and Chill. Personally, I (and most of those who frequent Nutties) am not interested in another Blackthorn or Chill. I love the laid-​back casual atmosphere of Nutties as it was. I wonder if these changes will alienate the regulars. Only time will tell.
In all seriousness, though: John, you’ve got to bring the popcorn back. Getting rid of the popcorn machine was an EPIC FAIL. Classy bars can still have popcorn, right?

The service there was completely horrible. i felt like i walked into a very lower class bar. i heard nothing but good about the bar… but the experience i had there was by far the worst bar experience ever. i only recommend the place if your looking to get into a silly fight and have really lousy service.