Piece Brewery and Pizzeria, 1927 W North Ave, Chicago, IL 60622 #(773) 772-4422
website: PieceChicago.com
Hours: 11AM - 10PM Daily

Experience before you go . . .

I'm on a great team at work and we actually like each other so we decided to go on an outing together. Our team likes to collaborate and in order to reach consensus, we use the survey. So it was a team effort to plan our "Let's go do something on a Wednesday" night out. During the surveys (yes, there were several), the main components that surfaced to the top were Beer, Pizza and Mini Golf. Hatchet throwing and Goat Yoga did not make the final cut. So with that in mind, off we went to Piece Brewery and Pizzeria. Our plan was to . . . looking back at the agenda . . . drink craft beer and eat (craft?) pizza and when we finished with that, we'd go to a mini golf (and bar) right around the corner. Our event would take place in a fun Chicago neighborhood near Milwaukee and North.

We all busted out of work early and hopped into our own modes of transportation and met back up at 1927 W North Ave. I got there and, being well trained by Clyde, snapped the front sign selfie and went in. Piece has a wide open feel inside with high dark ceilings that have an industrial look, lots of glass way at the top letting in the sun, a nice curved bar with lots of TVs, and surfaces of brick, wood, paint, glass and of course, stainless steel! My team had already found a spot, had been served, and were talking about Pizza. I joined them and met our beer-tender and host, Charlie. The American Pale Ale they call "The Weight" was calling to me, and Charlie was prompt to deliver. I found out that this was a multiple award winning beer, one of many beers they brew that have received awards. It was 6.5% abv and delicious. My second was exactly the same. The other popular beers, at least at our table, were the Premier Pilsner (5.5% abv), the Galaxy (Hazy Hoppy Pale at 5.5% abv) and the Massive Hassle (IPA, 7% abv). Many of their awards were displayed around the brewery. Gold, silver and bronze, dating back to 2002. They opened in 2001 so it didn't take long for them to get it right!

The Pizza was just as good as the beer! I didn't see any pizza awards on the wall but I gave them two thumbs up! There were some great specialy Pizzas, and lots of good and not totally usual toppings. I can honestly say that it was my first Pizza with mashed potatoes on it. My favorite was the Honey Butter Fried Chicken Pizza with green onions and buffalo sauce. I ate a few of those. And then the Pepperoni . . . I'm a big fan! The Pepperoni was extra crispy and not too spicy. The crust (we had all thin crust) was perfect! So good. The Pizzas were also enormous! We got three mediums and each one was as big as a normal large sized. We didn't finish them all and I think some of it went home to Gus in a doggy bag/box. One thing I regret is that we were one day late to experience "Lobsterpalooza!". Every Tuesday in August is Lobster Loaded Pizza day! Maybe next week. Am I talking too much about Pizza? Maybe we should start a Pizzeria tour. Brad and Clyde's PieFace Pizzeria Tour.

Charlie told us that one of the investors in the brewery was none other than Rick Nielsen, guitarist and co-founder of Cheap Trick. I grew up in Madison, WI and Cheap Trick is from Rockford, IL just across the border, and they were very popular so I have a lot of good memories of all those things we did while Cheap Trick was on the radio! Piece has some of Rick's old guitars on the walls, including his three stem and a model of his five stem guitar. Charlie told us that he has seen Rick at the brewery a few times (a guy's gotta make sure his beer's cold) and he has even conducted talks there about his adventures. We also found out that his son is part of a band and they have played a few gigs at Piece! They have a great spot at one end of the brewery for live music.

My sight caught a glimpse of a wild t-shirt so I decided to go take a look. Turns out it belongs to Ryan, the General Manager. While I was talking to him I noticed that he and all the other people who worked there were super friendly. I think they took all took a friendly course together because all of them were smiling like they liked us. It must have been an advanced course and I think the shirts were a part of it. Of course, Ryan invited us back and I look forward to it, we might need to make it a regular stop. Charlie described the place best saying, "Lots of cool chillin' people".

Friends, Chicago has a lot of great breweries and Piece is certainly one of them so put it on your list to visit!

Until next time, we hope you are enjoying new breweries near you! My next brewery tour stop will be in Minnesota. St. Paul I believe, and I know Clyde has been touring the west coast so I think that'll bring Oregon into the mix!

On our way to 500 . . .

Brad
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