We're getting walloped out there, snow-wise. So there's only one thing to do: drink. Here, our picks for the best places to hunker down with a stiff drink and a roaring fire. Just one warning: they're all BYO bearskin rug.
The dark and smoky den in Edgewater has been churning out burgers since 1959—with every peanut shell ever cracked there seemingly still on the floor. The strongest point of light in the place is a roaring fireplace, where you'll snuggle with one of their hot tonics like Cinnamon Toast (amaretto, hot cider) or Banana Mocha (crème de banana and hot chocolate), should you need breakfast in booze form.
You're looking for soul-warming comfort—cheese fries, a house-ground burger, a cold Schlitz. With Trio/French Laundry/Alinea alums in the kitchen, this Lincoln Park spot has what you're after. Get cozy next to the fireplace with a neck lamb stew and pray the snow never stops falling.
The secluded side bar teems with all the dark, East Coast club feel you want while you're sipping a brandy by a blazing fireplace. But if your brandy doesn't have quite the nip you're looking for, move on to their cocktail-coffee menu, featuring The Constellation (with Kahlua and Baileys) or the Keoke (Kahlua and brandy). See, it always leads back to brandy.
Yes, you could be out there doing mundane things like shoveling. But your efforts are needed elsewhere: specifically, investigating cocktails like the Elkhorn Toddy, bringing together Weller Special Reserve bourbon with Douglas Fir Eau de Vie, a brandy made with the spring buds of the Douglas fir. The best tree you'll drink all winter.
Nights like these are made for a pair of leather club chairs parked in front of the fireplace, two glasses of scotch and one big Steak Diane that's finished tableside. But since your butler/chef is trapped in a snowbank elsewhere, the RL lounge has everything you need until they dig him out. Don't worry...we're sure they will.
