Suburban hangouts offering Super Bowl specials
Watching the Super Bowl with a group of friends and plenty of food and beer is a blast. Doing all the shopping before, and the cleaning up after, not so much.
Get the good stuff without the hassle by gathering up your buds to catch all the plays, plus the commercials, on the bountiful screens at local sports bars and restaurants.
Birch River Grill, 75 W. Algonquin Road, Arlington Heights, (847) 427-4242: Snack on complimentary chips and salsa while you watch the game. If you want some more substantive fare, for just $3 you can get chili, a hot dog and fries, six chicken wings, chicken fingers or cheese sticks. Drafts are also $3.
Caps Sports Bar, 347 W. Saint Charles Road, Villa Park, (630) 279-0005: Come to watch the game and you'll get a free raffle ticket for the chance to win a New Orleans Saints or Indianapolis Colts jersey. Hot dogs are $1 and include access to a toppings and sides bar featuring chili, cheese, baked beans, chips and pickles. Quench your thirst with $3 domestic bottles.
Douglas Street Sports Bar and Grill, 231 Douglas Ave., Elgin, (847) 695-5659: Cover is $10 or you can pay $30 to $40 for a package including a top shelf open bar from 4 p.m. to the end of the first quarter and a dinner buffet from 5 to 7 p.m. The party also features NFL paraphernalia giveaways.
Durty Nellie's, 180 N. Smith St., Palatine, (847) 358-9150: Watch the game on 14 TVs and a massive 16-by-19-foot high-definition screen, taking a break for a $10 halftime buffet. Drink specials include $10 domestic buckets, $5 Svedka bloody marys and $4 Jameson and Jager shots.
Famous Freddie's Roadhouse, 510 S. Park Ave., Fox Lake, (847) 587-9677: Watch the game in the loft where $20 gets you an open bar and a buffet until halftime. The party also features quarterback jersey giveaways every quarter, $1.75 Miller Lite and MGD drafts, $2.75 Smirnoff bloody marys and $10 Miller buckets.
Finn McCool's Irish Sports Pub, 1941 E. Algonquin Road, Schaumburg, (847) 303-5100: Enter to win a quarterback jersey each quarter and other prizes from Miller. Specials include $5 Absolut bloody marys, $2.50 Miller Lite drafts, $10 Miller buckets, 35 cent wings and $5 12-inch one-topping pizzas.
Glen Prairie, 1250 Roosevelt Road, Glen Ellyn, (630) 613-1250: Get complimentary appetizers in the lounge during halftime plus half price Miller and Budweiser bottles.
Harry Caray's Italian Steakhouse, 70 Yorktown Shopping Center, Lombard, (630) 953-3400: Fill up on half-price burgers while sharing $10 Budweiser buckets.
Jimmy V's Sports Bar & Grill, 816 E. Grand Ave., Ingleside, (847) 587-6965: No matter what team you're cheering for you could wind up a winner with raffles during halftime and at the end of the game. The party also includes a free halftime dinner buffet, $6 Coors Light pitchers and $2.50 Coors Light bottles.
John Barleycorn, 1100 American Lane, Schaumburg, (847) 619-5540: Throughout the game you can feast on a $12.95 buffet featuring boneless Buffalo wings, hot dogs, Italian beef sandwiches, mini-burgers, corn dogs and subs. Just want to snack? The bar also offers free chips and salsa. Drink specials include $7 Miller Lite pitchers and $15 domestic buckets.
The Lucky Monk, 105 Hollywood Blvd., South Barrington, (847) 898-0500: The bar's nine HDTVs are tuned into the game and a $22 deal includes a 16-inch pizza and a 22-ounce bottle of one of their house-brewed beers.
Official's Time Out, 2354 W. Higgins Road, Hoffman Estates, (847) 310-3227: Save some cash with a free halftime buffet, $1.50 Coors Light drafts and $5 Jager bombs.
Real Time Sports, 1120 W. Devon Ave., Elk Grove Village, (847) 534-5000: Giveaways include the chance to win a HDTV. Order from a $5.99 menu featuring pulled pork sandwiches, pizza and more, plus get $12 Miller buckets and $5 Jack Daniels cocktails.
Roundhead's Pizza Pub, 275 W. Roosevelt Road, Lombard, (630) 705-3333: Reserve a seat to watch the game for $50 and you'll get an all-you-can-eat buffet with wings, pizza and fried chicken, plus an open bar. Excludes shots.
Shark City Sports Bar & Billiards, 2240 Bloomingdale Road, Glendale Heights, (630) 893-9346: The Miller Lite girls give away prizes including a flat screen TV at a party featuring $10 Miller family buckets, $7 Miller Lite pitchers, $4 UV bombs and $5 cheeseburgers and fries.
Sideouts Bar & Eatery, 4018 Roberts Road, Island Lake, (847) 526-7174: A $25 to $40 package includes a premium open bar from 5 p.m. to the end of the game. Until the end of halftime graze on a buffet featuring Buffalo wings, potato skins, lasagna, steak kebabs and more.
Sports Page Restaurant & Bar, 1330 E. Rand Road, Arlington Heights, (847) 392-5332: A no cover bash features a free halftime buffet, giveaways, trivia games and a raffle for a 26-inch flat screen TV. Drink specials include $14 domestic buckets, $17 import buckets and $3.25 bloody marys and screwdrivers.
Tailgaters Sports Bar & Grill, 431 W. Boughton Road, Bolingbrook, (630) 679-1994: A $35 package includes a buffet featuring pasta, pizza, wings and more, plus Budweiser and Miller drafts from 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. The game plays on 40 TVs, and partyers have the chance to win prizes.
Timothy O'Toole's, 5572 Grand Ave., Gurnee, (847) 249-0800: Catch all the plays on 24 LCD TVs while snacking on $5.99 Buffalo wings and keeping your mouth cool with $2 Miller Lite and Coors Light pints and a $5.50 bloody mary bar.
Walter Payton's Roundhouse, 205 N. Broadway, Aurora, (630) 892-0034: Watch the game on an 8-by-10-foot HD projector screen and test your luck with bingo, giveaways and a raffle for the chance to win a stocked Red Bull cooler and other prizes. Fill up with free chili until halftime, and 50 cent Buffalo wings all day. Drink specials include $3 14-ounce seasonal microbrews, $4 Jack and Cokes, $5 Jager bombs, $9 draft pitchers and $9.75 Budweiser family buckets.
Wool Street Grill & Sports Bar, 128 Wool Street, Barrington, (847) 304-0313: Guess the score for each quarter for the chance to win gift cards and other prizes. Food and drink deals include $7 burgers with fries, $2.50 Miller Lite pints and $9 pitchers.