Joey's Brickhouse

First post from a longtime lurker.

I recently read about the Tuesday special at Joey's Brickhouse -- all you can eat pizza and beer. The picture of the pizza accompanying the article looked absolutely delicious (4-cheese, pepperoni, andouille sausage and blackened chicken) but I'm not familiar with the place and wanted to know if anyone can vouch for it. Although, I'll probably end up indulging myself regardless...

It's owned by Buena Beef. You can draw you own conclusion if that is a good or a bad thing.

Lykorian wrote:First post from a longtime lurker.

I recently read about the Tuesday special at Joey's Brickhouse -- all you can eat pizza and beer. The picture of the pizza accompanying the article looked absolutely delicious (4-cheese, pepperoni, andouille sausage and blackened chicken) but I'm not familiar with the place and wanted to know if anyone can vouch for it. Although, I'll probably end up indulging myself regardless...

Where is this place? If you do go, I hope you'll report back on what you thought of it.

=R=

stevez wrote:It's owned by Buena Beef. You can draw you own conclusion if that is a good or a bad thing.

Are you sure you aren't thinking of Joey Buona's? (Which is apparently closed?)
[url]
http://www.centerstagechicago.com/resta ... buona.html[/url]

Joey's Brickhouse doesn't seem like a "corporate overlord" kind of place, not by a longshot.

http://www.enterthechef.com/brickhouse.html

Joey's Brickhouse is on Belmont near Southport. I've eaten Brunch here and I have to say it was rather underwhelming. Now...pizza might be a totally different thing but the brunch wasn't good enough to go back -- and I think we went maybe less than six months ago. As I recall service was problematic -- not rude just not accurate. Wrong dishes brought, no coffee refills, that sort of thing. The place is a barn of a bar -- it felt very collegiate. I do remember it being fairly cheap. I have to say that all you can eat pizza and beer is pretty tempting. So...i might have to give it another shot.

I wish i had more specifics to relate about the food but honestly..it's been awhile.

Joey Buona's gutted and moved into the space that housed the original Gino's East at 162 E Superior, when Gino's moved to the current Wells St location. When Joey Buona's closed @ 162 a couple of years ago, Gino's East moved back in to the 162 Superior space minus the ovens and booths that they had moved to the Well's location.

Go Figure.

I've never been to Joey's, but if you get there and it doesn't seem your cup of tea, check out Cooper's about 20 yards away. Really good microbrew list and "pub grub" prepared by culinary school graduates and former high-end restaurant chefs. The hand cut fries at Cooper's are some of the best around, and the ribs and brisket are slow-smoked right out back in the alley. Cooper's also has a terrific side patio.

Disclosure: I play cards with the Mandy Franklin's very proud mother. Mandy is chef and co-owner of Cooper's. She and her partner Craig are also super cool.

Coopers—A Neighborhood Eatery
1232 W Belmont Ave
773-929-2667

stevez wrote:It's owned by Buena Beef. You can draw you own conclusion if that is a good or a bad thing.

Joey's Brickhouse is owned by Joey Morrelli. He is a friend/acquaintaince of mine from college. I havent been in several years so I cant comment on the food. The atmosphere is very low key. Joey is a terrific guy. Definitely not owned by Buena Beef unless Joey has recently sold out.

iblock9 wrote:

stevez wrote:It's owned by Buena Beef. You can draw you own conclusion if that is a good or a bad thing.

Joey's Brickhouse is owned by Joey Morrelli. He is a friend/acquaintaince of mine from college. I havent been in several years so I cant comment on the food. The atmosphere is very low key. Joey is a terrific guy. Definitely not owned by Buena Beef unless Joey has recently sold out.

Isn't he a Kendall College graduate?

The place has a nicely put together website that indicates that the owner graduated from the University of Illinois and also offers his skills as a home chef.

http://www.enterthechef.com/brickhouse.html

earthlydesire wrote:Now...pizza might be a totally different thing but the brunch wasn't good enough to go back -- and I think we went maybe less than six months ago. As I recall service was problematic -- not rude just not accurate. Wrong dishes brought, no coffee refills, that sort of thing.

I wish I didn't agree with this, because the various materials for the place give off a friendly, humorous vibe, I'm sure the owner is cool, and it's in our general neck of the woods so we had high hopes it could be a regular destination for us. But unfortunately I do agree with the assessment. Service can be frustrating, not because of any intention (overt or passive-aggressive) but because of a certain "in over their heads," "not up to the challenge" je ne sais quoi. I believe this may stem not from inadequacy on the part of the staff or lack of dedication on the part of the management, but from structural issues. And the food is forgettable.

On the first or second time we went, there were some empty tables and the friendly hostess said we were welcome to be seated, but with the caveat that no one would take a food order from us for at least twenty minutes since the kitchen wasn't keeping up with the orders it had. My guess is that too much of the (barnlike, as has been noted) square footage is devoted to tables, and not enough to the kitchen. The balance is off. If the restaurant seats more people than it can serve, a core mistake in the design of the restaurant has been made before opening day.

Anyway, we appreciated the hostess's candor, and went elsewhere. We did come back one or two times, and ate there, but found the service not up to snuff for the casual, neighborhoody place that Joey's wants to be (again, no problems with intention, just execution) and the food failing to justify the aggravation.

About once every six months my wife and I end up settling on Joey's. I have to agree that the service is always overwhelmed -- even when the place is largely empty. But if the weather is nice enough to sit outside, and we're not in a rush, then the slow progress of the meal doesn't really bother us that much. They also have stuffed cheese burgers, which amuse me (pick two stuffings from a list kind of thing) and a schtick where if you clean your plate on their oversized signature burger, then you get a free beer. That beer is either (a) useless because you're too stuffed to drink it, or (b) necessary to wash down the taste of impending heart attack. I felt more along the lines of (b), and enjoyed the freebie greatly. The waiter did make me eat the piece of lettuce I had left on my plate after the fries and burger were gone (I hate lettuce on sandwiches of all kinds -- I'd explain, but it would inevitably result in a long, boring rant). That amused me, too. Anyway, on a nice early evening, when you can sit outside, and have no where to rush to, Joey's isn't a terrible option.

iblock9 wrote:

stevez wrote:It's owned by Buena Beef. You can draw you own conclusion if that is a good or a bad thing.

Joey's Brickhouse is owned by Joey Morrelli. He is a friend/acquaintaince of mine from college. I havent been in several years so I cant comment on the food. The atmosphere is very low key. Joey is a terrific guy. Definitely not owned by Buena Beef unless Joey has recently sold out.

My mistake. I guess I confused this place with Joey Buona's

I've been by the place hundreds of times, but always thought it was more bar than restaurant. Perhaps I will stop by today for their Friday special. It sounds intriguing.

http://www.enterthechef.com/whatscookin.html

Living in the vicinity, I have dined at Joey's numerous times, and have never truly been overwhelmed by the food that is put out. If you do go however, the pizza is definitely your best option. The burgers always look good, but I have not tried one so cannot comment. The remainder of the menu is a bit whimsical if you ask me and while many of the options are interesting and somewhat out of place at what I see as a pizza joint/bar, the taste and quality seems to me an afterthought. Again, the pizzas are tasty and fairly inexpensive considering the topping choices.

I agree, with other posters that the staff always seems to be overwhelmed, no matter how busy the restaurant may be, so be prepared to be there for a while. If this does not bother you, or if you are with a large group who enjoys cocktails, this should not be an issue. I also agree that the sidewalk seating is very pleasant as it is off on the side street and away from Belmont's traffic and congestion.

Kennyz wrote:I've never been to Joey's, but if you get there and it doesn't seem your cup of tea, check out Cooper's about 20 yards away. Really good microbrew list and "pub grub" prepared by culinary school graduates and former high-end restaurant chefs. The hand cut fries at Cooper's are some of the best around, and the ribs and brisket are slow-smoked right out back in the alley. Cooper's also has a terrific side patio.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'm a big microbrew drinker, so I'll be sure to add Cooper's to my list...

My meals have always been solidly underwhelming. I usually end up here by default - when I'm seeing a show nearby at the Vic or something.
The menu consists of a variety of bar food staples (pizza, hamburgers, grilled chicken sandwich, etc.) - with nothing executed very well.

YourPalWill wrote:The place has a nicely put together website that indicates that the owner graduated from the University of Illinois and also offers his skills as a home chef.

http://www.enterthechef.com/brickhouse.html

at Joeysbrickhouse.com in the bio section, it says he did go to Kendall College, after graduating with a degree in Restaurant Management from University of Illinois.

I've been there for the "all you can eat pizza" and it is not really all you can eat. It's "all you can eat up to one pizza per person" We were able to talk the waiter into reluctantly giving us another pizza on account of our objection to the misleading title of the special. He whined about it but ended up giving us one more.

moss8418 wrote:I've been there for the "all you can eat pizza" and it is not really all you can eat. It's "all you can eat up to one pizza per person" We were able to talk the waiter into reluctantly giving us another pizza on account of our objection to the misleading title of the special. He whined about it but ended up giving us one more.

This dampens my enthusiasm somewhat. I suppose I'll have to find out for myself and report back.

i've been there for their sunday brunch.. i believe it is $12 for "all you can eat" ... and $1 for various drinks...they actually had a coupon on their web page that makes it $15 all you can eat and drink, but when we showed up and told them we wanted that, they said they didn't know anything about it and their web site was outdated?

$12 all you can eat is ordering off of a special sunday menu... basically it's a mish mosh of things that sound OK, but none are really worth eating from what i found... i remember a burnt crab cake benedict that i'm pretty sure wasn't crab... some sort of bbq beef on a bagel. the catch is you have to order one thing at a time off the menu; they skimp and it's a small portion of everything. so the bbq beef on the menu was actually 1/2 a bagel, and probably took 45 minutes to deliver each round. the service was beyond lousy from a typical point of view; however it's overlookable in a way since the only way you could possibly think this brunch is good is if your goal was to stretch out your meal as long as you could and just have a bunch of drinks with friends... the $1 drinks included a variety of things including bloody marys, mimosas, and a few flavored drinks they called long islands, but were nothing of the sort...

coffee, condiment, and utensil service is self serve at the bar... (so you run up to the bar and pour your own coffee, they don't do any of it for you). they have some pre-mixed mocha thing that is pretty tastey, but one is plenty and if you drink two you've overdone it.

then annoyingly when they give you your check, they show you your "what if" it wasn't all you can eat total... "what if i wanted to spend $12 an entree for that mediocre half a bagel with bbq beef?" ... you know, so you can tip appropriately??? ... kind of annoying, given i'd refuse to pay the price they print on that receipt, and the service is so horrid it's barely worth tipping the actual dollar amount spent let alone the tip on the made-up amount.

the bottom line is, you could find a better brunch meal for less than $12 in both quality and quantity of food... but if you're specifically going somewhere w/ a large group or something and you're *wanting* slow service where you won't feel like they're trying to turn a table, this place seems to have no problemo at all with a table sitting there for 3 or 4 hours, and that's probably what you'll end up doing ...

Not that it's strictly relevant, but doesn anyone remember a long Reader article a year or so ago detailing an endless feud between Joey's and either another tenant of the adjacent strip, or the landlord over parking? No one came out of it looking swell.

dddane wrote:...they actually had a coupon on their web page that makes it $15 all you can eat and drink, but when we showed up and told them we wanted that, they said they didn't know anything about it and their web site was outdated?

I think if I had a printout of that coupon in hand, I would have replied, "Well, your website can't be outdated, because I accessed it today. The consumer information contained on it may be information you wish you had revised, but you didn't. But hey, I'm not a lawyer... you may be within the law not to honor this coupon. So, to find out, I think I'll contact the city's Bureau of Consumer Affairs and the State's Attorney's office tomorrow morning. They're sure to tell me who's correct about this."

I bet they would have honored the coupon.

riddlemay wrote:

dddane wrote:...they actually had a coupon on their web page that makes it $15 all you can eat and drink, but when we showed up and told them we wanted that, they said they didn't know anything about it and their web site was outdated?

I think if I had a printout of that coupon in hand, I would have replied, "Well, your website can't be outdated, because I accessed it today. The consumer information contained on it may be information you wish you had revised, but you didn't. But hey, I'm not a lawyer... you may be within the law not to honor this coupon. So, to find out, I think I'll contact the city's Bureau of Consumer Affairs and the State's Attorney's office tomorrow morning. They're sure to tell me who's correct about this."

I bet they would have honored the coupon.

Funny they should say it's outdated. I happened to be on their site the other day, and this is what it says on the coupons page (emphasis mine):

Limit one (1) per customer. Good only when presented in person. Offer expires never, ever, ever. Ever.
If you're still reading this, looking for a way to scam us, you should go into politics.

Although I'm cringing a bit at the hipper-than-thou website and, specifically, Joey's bio, I have to give credit where credit's due. If you click on "Specials," Friday's special is "free toilet paper with every poo." Maybe Joey's on to something here judging from previous posts.

http://www.enterthechef.com/whatscookin.html

Paul Tyksins wrote:If you click on "Specials," Friday's special is "free toilet paper with every poo."

Classy and appetizing!

Dmnkly wrote:

Paul Tyksins wrote:If you click on "Specials," Friday's special is "free toilet paper with every poo."

Classy and appetizing!

Whenever I drive by this place, I read the name as "Joey's Brick Shithouse". Now I don't feel guilty!

re the coupon... we had called to make a reservation for 10 or so and at the time of the reservation talked to a manager who told us we wouldn't need to bring the coupon, to just let them know before hand. if it was just me and a close friend or two i would have been pushy (i already kind of was, asked for a manager even), but it was a large group who didn't seem to care. the manager's response in person was "it kind of evens out anyway" ... sure, if you had 3 drinks it'd even out.. but we had 5 or 6 each..

it's funny though that the deal is still posted on their web site, since this all happened at least 3 months ago now. i'd write a letter, but I have a feeling I know which file that'd get filed into right away

Joey's on tuesday for all you can eat pizza, salad and beer gets NO BETTER-the value, the quality of food, ANNNNND they let you carry out leftovers-whoever heard of this?? Cannot beat it!!! best kept secret in chicago!

Wow, you can carry out leftovers? You mean, in a doggie bag? That's amazing! I've never heard of that before!