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It’s time to sip on toasty and boozy cocktails
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The last warm fall days have passed and Chicagoans are settling back into the reality of winter with its cold temperatures and overcast skies. Pandemic fatigue isn’t doing locals any favors either, but the city’s drinkers may find solace in a toasty cocktail treat. Below, find a variety of belly warmers from traditional toddies to boozy, brown-butter-infused concoctions.
If there are spots that should be added, please email chicago@eater.com. In the search for bars and restaurants serving hot alcoholic drinks, few south or west side bars and restaurants came up. Help fix that.
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Andersonville dive bar Simon’s Tavern will in November bring back its annual Scandinavian glögg, or hot mulled wine, for the season. The sweet, spiced, and fragrant concoction will become available on Thanksgiving Eve for on-site drinking and to-go bottles in 32-ounce, 64-ounce, and 99-ounce quantities. It’s cash only, so come prepared.
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This farm-to-table pioneer is still forging ahead in Lakeview following the closure of its Edgewater outpost. There are plenty of hot cocktails on the menu, including the aptly named Cold and Flu Buster (chamomile tea with a shot of ginger vodka and honey liqueur), rum-spiked hot apple cider, orange liqueur-spiked hot cocoa, and Irish coffee with Jameson and whipped cream.
This Midwestern-themed tavern has an ideal resource at its disposal when it comes to seasonal ingredients for cocktails: co-owner TJ Callahan’s Brown Dog Farm in southwestern Wisconsin. The farm is home to an apple orchard, so the team has created Not Your Grandma’s Tea, its boozy take on hot apple cider with Jeppson’s bourbon, cider, orange, and star anise.
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Bucktown’s new American staple The Bristol is prepared for inclement precipitation with Sweater Weather, a tummy-warming blend of Johnnie Walker Black and Drambuie Koloa Hawaiian dark rum.
Logan Square’s mellow beer and burger bar has sparked its toasty outdoor fireplaces for the season and introduced hot toddies and hot spiced cider with an optional whiskey or rum upgrade.
Acclaimed cocktail haven the Violet Hour is right on time with a selection of three new snuggly cocktail options. Belly up to the bar for Monk’s Cocoa made with green chartreuse, rum, dark chocolate, and toasted marshmallow; Queen Bee with gin, passionfruit liqueur, ginger, and honey; and A-Pear-Ently So with bourbon, spiced pear liqueur, and black walnut bitters.
River West cocktail bar the Dandy Crown has a penchant for crockpot cocktails, and this current submission is a straightforward seasonal smash with rye whiskey, Metaxa ouzo, Falernum, lemon, and aromatic bitters.
James Beard Award-winning chef Carrie Nahabedian has a hit on her hands with Tipsy Tea Parties, her boozy take on high tea at Kostali inside the Gwen hotel. Groups can opt for Spill the Tea packages featuring alcohol-infused cuppas like Glow UP (Hennessey infused with apple cranberry tea, cinnamon syrup, and apple) alongside towers of sweet and savory snacks. Reservations and more details are available online.
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Chicagoans and visitors can warm up in River North at Lainie Bayless’s speakeasy-style cocktail bar with treats like a Hot Apple Butter Whisky. It’s made with Wahaka Reposado con Gusano, Abasolo whisky, apple butter, and orange bitters. Cold apple-themed cocktails are also on the menu.
This tropical bar from local hospitality heavyweight Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises is putting an island-style spin on hot seasonal cocktails in Chicago. Its hot buttered rum is a blend of aged Jamaican rum, baking spice, Nordic butter, and hand-whipped cream.
This spot tucked inside the Pendry Hotel at Chicago’s gorgeous and historic Carbide & Carbon building has an alcohol-fueled tea service of its own, dubbed Bar Pendry Boozy Tea. In lieu of packages, however, drinkers can order a la carte selections like HollyToddy with Suntory Toki whisky, cranberry-apple tea, tea sugar syrup, and lemon. Groups can opt for shared selections, which include Dream Punch, a concoction of vodka-infused Gingerbread Dream Rooibos Tea, Prosecco, citrus tea syrup, club soda, and orchid.
This lovely Loop restaurant from sisters Clodagh and Amy Lawless has a cure for cold fingers on its cocktail menu: Gluhwein, a mulled red wine with brandy, ruby port, allspice, cinnamon, clove, star anise, and dried apricots. It’s a tasty treat for any time of day.
Hyde Park’s reliable hotel bar gets into the spirit of the season with its own hot toddy, pumped up with Jack Daniels and passion fruit tea.
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Andersonville dive bar Simon’s Tavern will in November bring back its annual Scandinavian glögg, or hot mulled wine, for the season. The sweet, spiced, and fragrant concoction will become available on Thanksgiving Eve for on-site drinking and to-go bottles in 32-ounce, 64-ounce, and 99-ounce quantities. It’s cash only, so come prepared.
This farm-to-table pioneer is still forging ahead in Lakeview following the closure of its Edgewater outpost. There are plenty of hot cocktails on the menu, including the aptly named Cold and Flu Buster (chamomile tea with a shot of ginger vodka and honey liqueur), rum-spiked hot apple cider, orange liqueur-spiked hot cocoa, and Irish coffee with Jameson and whipped cream.
This Midwestern-themed tavern has an ideal resource at its disposal when it comes to seasonal ingredients for cocktails: co-owner TJ Callahan’s Brown Dog Farm in southwestern Wisconsin. The farm is home to an apple orchard, so the team has created Not Your Grandma’s Tea, its boozy take on hot apple cider with Jeppson’s bourbon, cider, orange, and star anise.
Bucktown’s new American staple The Bristol is prepared for inclement precipitation with Sweater Weather, a tummy-warming blend of Johnnie Walker Black and Drambuie Koloa Hawaiian dark rum.
Logan Square’s mellow beer and burger bar has sparked its toasty outdoor fireplaces for the season and introduced hot toddies and hot spiced cider with an optional whiskey or rum upgrade.
Acclaimed cocktail haven the Violet Hour is right on time with a selection of three new snuggly cocktail options. Belly up to the bar for Monk’s Cocoa made with green chartreuse, rum, dark chocolate, and toasted marshmallow; Queen Bee with gin, passionfruit liqueur, ginger, and honey; and A-Pear-Ently So with bourbon, spiced pear liqueur, and black walnut bitters.
River West cocktail bar the Dandy Crown has a penchant for crockpot cocktails, and this current submission is a straightforward seasonal smash with rye whiskey, Metaxa ouzo, Falernum, lemon, and aromatic bitters.
James Beard Award-winning chef Carrie Nahabedian has a hit on her hands with Tipsy Tea Parties, her boozy take on high tea at Kostali inside the Gwen hotel. Groups can opt for Spill the Tea packages featuring alcohol-infused cuppas like Glow UP (Hennessey infused with apple cranberry tea, cinnamon syrup, and apple) alongside towers of sweet and savory snacks. Reservations and more details are available online.
Chicagoans and visitors can warm up in River North at Lainie Bayless’s speakeasy-style cocktail bar with treats like a Hot Apple Butter Whisky. It’s made with Wahaka Reposado con Gusano, Abasolo whisky, apple butter, and orange bitters. Cold apple-themed cocktails are also on the menu.
This tropical bar from local hospitality heavyweight Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises is putting an island-style spin on hot seasonal cocktails in Chicago. Its hot buttered rum is a blend of aged Jamaican rum, baking spice, Nordic butter, and hand-whipped cream.
This spot tucked inside the Pendry Hotel at Chicago’s gorgeous and historic Carbide & Carbon building has an alcohol-fueled tea service of its own, dubbed Bar Pendry Boozy Tea. In lieu of packages, however, drinkers can order a la carte selections like HollyToddy with Suntory Toki whisky, cranberry-apple tea, tea sugar syrup, and lemon. Groups can opt for shared selections, which include Dream Punch, a concoction of vodka-infused Gingerbread Dream Rooibos Tea, Prosecco, citrus tea syrup, club soda, and orchid.
This lovely Loop restaurant from sisters Clodagh and Amy Lawless has a cure for cold fingers on its cocktail menu: Gluhwein, a mulled red wine with brandy, ruby port, allspice, cinnamon, clove, star anise, and dried apricots. It’s a tasty treat for any time of day.
Hyde Park’s reliable hotel bar gets into the spirit of the season with its own hot toddy, pumped up with Jack Daniels and passion fruit tea.