This place is a good vibe. Came here on a whim to watch the NBA playoffs.. Definitely glad we came. Was greeted the right way as though they were very grateful for our service.. Dannie was a great server and drinks were good... Walking distance from hotel was good too as we stayed on Wacker... Definitely a sports bar worthy of checking out.

(Last visited 7/24/2021.) Hanging out downtown Chicago for the weekend with a bunch of friends and you already know what time it is... time for brunch! So before coming out here I did some research to find out who serves bottomless mimosas because... that's of the utmost importance to me. Lol. So I found this place, Theory, only a 10-minute walk from my hotel so here we are! Here's how it went. Atmosphere/Appearance: Set right on Hubbard Street is this gem. It's like a sports bar, but a little more upscale. It gave me GOOD hipster vibes, good energy and I really liked hanging out here. The restaurant was of a medium size, which I think it great for a big city downtown location. Service: I can't remember the young lady's name who took care of us, but she was awesome. She was snarky, fun, energetic and made sure our table of 6 had everything we needed for the hours we stayed there. Lol. Food: So any chance I can try a restaurant's wings, I like to. It's my thing, if you haven't learned that by now. Lol. Check out "The Hungry Road" on YouTube to see how serious I am about my wings. Lol. The first of 2 flavors was the "Kill Bill" wings. These reminded me a lot of the "Bang Bang" sauce that I've seen at so many restaurants. It was delicious, creamy, savory, garlicy and just a TTAADD bit sweet. Decent. The next flavor was their Buffalo. It had a great, classic flavor which I really enjoyed. The bottomless mimosas were on point and had me feeling GGRREEAATT. Lol. Value: The wings are sold by the pound. So you could get 6, 7 or 8 depending on their size. My Kill Bill order came with 7, but Buffalo came with 8. $16.00. That's STEEP. I know we're downtown, but eh... whatever. Still steep no matter how you look at it. Drinking unlimited sparkling wine helps with paying more for stuff. Lol. So, on Saturdays and Sundays this place offers a bottomless mimosa package for $45.00 that lets you drink from 11:00am to 2:00pm. In the package include the drinks, unlimited Bloody Marys and an entrée. (The wings counted, though I can't remember if they let me combine 2 orders or if I payed for the extra one. No matter.). Bring your wallet if you're coming to hang out. In conclusion, I'd totally come back here and try out some of their other menu options out. I know they are more than their wings so I'd love to try out a burger or one of their specials! If you made it this far in the review, I appreciate you reading. Please do me a favor and head on over to "The Hungry Road" on YouTube and subscribe! My channel features a lot of food, car and exclusive shoe related content! Help me grow! Thank you so much!

Theory was great! Let's start with dessert since it's on my tongue still...the cookie skillet with iced cream!!!!! It's fresh baked in a skillet and served warm. WOW. Save room and an absolute steal at $9 enough to feed definitely two people three as well. The turkey wrap and fries was on point. Delicious and fresh ingredients. Fries were crisp and tasty. Hummus had a unique taste to it that I couldn't quite figure out but I really liked it. The pita was warm and fresh and they brought us several more pieces upon request. Bathrooms clean. The absolute best part was the availability of NFL games both inside and out. The curbside seating was perfect on a gorgeous day with 3 HDTVs and 3 different games on as well as every other game on the NFL ticket on inside. Food was more than reasonably priced as well. Service was impeccable and the managers were very nice greeting and asking how our experience was at Theory.

Another "not my first time here, but first Google Review" for this place! So glad this place has lasted so long on this Hubbard strip. Came around 1pm on a Sunday to catch the NFL AFC Championship Bengals/Chiefs game, and it was not as busy as I expected it to be. The only thing I can think of was because of the COVID-19 Vaccine mandate, but an hour to a couple hours later, people began to trickle in and seats began to fill up. 5-stars are for their service but food can be a bit better. Pictured here are the Bottomless Mimosa deal and ordered Avocado Toast with Hashbrowns.

This place rocks! Plenty of beers on tap with different happy hour deals each day. TVs covering every inch of the wall and they always have the game on. The food is great too especially the Kill Bill wings. Have had many great times with Sam and the rest of the staff. Best sports bar in the city

Theory always provides the best vibes whether it’s game day or not! They have the friendliest staff and the manager, Sam, always ensures everything is perfect and that we have an outstanding time! We seemingly never overstay our welcome although we spend hours and hours at Theory! We now proudly call Theory our home!!! It won’t disappoint!

Excellent food and drink selection. Great place to catch a football game, plenty of TV's with multiple games on. The owner was super friendly and welcoming.

Listen, I don't care why you go here, just make sure you don't leave until you've had a plate of the wings. These wings have the perfect balance of flavor, spice, and seasoning. This wing is avoids all the pitfalls and masks. It has the right ratio of sauce. It's not soaked in sauce. It has the perfect amount of breading, it's not this heavy, thick battered breading. It has seasoning seemingly applied prior to saucing, so it gives the wing a bit more depth of flavor. Most places, a wing is a wing is a wing. These guys nail it. I'll stop by ANYTIME I'm in the area now, and next time, I'm going after the Carne Asada burger, which from what I can read, is basically a taco burger. That's happening. Don't pass on the wings! Street parking and spot hero parking available close by.

I’ve been coming to Theory for Tuesday Trivia night since 2019 and somehow haven’t left a review. This is what every River North bar should aspire to. Excellent food, great staff, fun vibes, and some good drink specials considering the area. The owner Joel takes great pride in his bar, and we love all of the Tuesday night staff. Adding a picture of my recent Taco Flatbread for context!

Anita was our server and she was fantastic! She was so sweet and attentive, despite how crazy busy it was! Within 2 minutes of our table sitting down she was right there to greet us, super friendly and kind. We loved her!

New Englanders here, visiting from out of state and looking for a good place to watch the first Pats game of the season. We absolutely found it here! Great location, tons of TVs playing the game, impeccable vibes and music to groove to between plays. The staff was super attentive even though they were beyond slammed, and the food was delish game day fare. We ended up canceling our dinner plans to stay for the experience. 11/10 would recommend.

Wow - my first time at 'Theory' in River North, and I'm very pleased. That was just about the best tomato soup and grilled cheese that I've had. Three types of cheese, tomato and onion, thick, fresh bread... yum! My wife had the Southwest salad and she loved it. The pineapple cider to drink was delicious too! The Cookie Skillet for dessert was enough for four to share - a hot cookie and cold ice cream make for a pretty amazing combination! My wife and I had the kids with us for dinner, and the music was a touch on the loud side but it is a bar, after all. Prices are reasonable, but a touch on the high side for some items. Wonderful service - we all loved our server, and hope to see her again the next time we're in River North!

Had a nice time watching football at Theory. Lots and lots of TVs. Seemed clean other than the bathrooms.

In town for business for the week. After being turned away as a party of 1 from Mother Hubbards rude security, I came here and was very happy I did. The security was polite, the service was great, I was able to get a table and order food for some Sunday football. The food was great! All I can say is this place is ran right and it worth checking out for game day. It will also continue to benefit from the bar next door hiring rude security.

Went to watch the F1 and it was a great experience. Atmosphere was amazing and the service was top notch. Will definitely be back for other races. Great bar - would highly recommend.

Went Sunday after the Chicago Marathon to watch some football. Theory was awesome. TVs everywhere and they do an excellent job with the audio AND making sure the game you want to watch is accessible to you. The food and drinks were great but what really made the place stand out was the staff. Every staff member we encountered was friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. They go out of their way to serve you and make sure you have a good experience.

We were in Chicago for the weekend and wanted to watch the Iowa Hawkeyes play football vs Minnesota Gophers. So happy we found Theory! This place was rockin!! Full of Iowa fans. We had pulled chicken quesadilla and couple of drinks. The staff was so darn friendly and into the game also. It was as if I was in Iowa City and not downtown Chicago!!

Great Sports bar to watch fights. Plenty of Big screen televisions everywhere. Good food. Bar food served after dinner.. Full bar up & downstairs.

Standard bar food. GOOD Sliders, we ordered twice. Juicy, seasoned decent and fresh with a toasted buttered bun. The accompanying Tator Tots were lukewarm and disappointing. Not worth sending them back. Service is efficient but listless if you are not a regular then it becomes a bit more perky. The exception is the Angela Bassett doppelganger, who was friendly, very welcoming and personable, while remaining productive with our seating and other guests who came behind us. The Buffalo wings were coated and came room temp at best. You can tell they're pre-cooked with possibly a quick refry then maybe a light toss in sweetish sauce that soaked into the floured coating. This is why a hard fry without a floured coating is better, unless you fry the coated wings FRESH, which they did not do by a longshot! Additional Buffalo sauce will cost extra, which sucks because the sauce they toss in is soaked into the breaded chicken and come dry. A "sports" bar/pub, in particular, SHOULD BE providing unlimited condiments! The accompanying dressing is your choice of either flavorless Ranch or Blue Cheese with a few sparse pieces Celery and Carrot crudite. The drinks are NOT worth the price. If anything, maybe the "strong" Manhattan with Pig Whistle Bourbon at $16. The Apple Cider Mimosa, at best, ONLY should have been $7-9. The $11 price is robbery, especially when I told them a splash of Cider and the wait person stated, "Well, you won't get anymore Champagne, your glass will be a little over half full." Overall, this place can easily be a HARD pass!

We really enjoyed our time and service here. We came in with a large group last minute and they were able to accommodate us and provide great service. The food and drinks were great along with the atmosphere with all of the TVs to watch the games on. We will definitely come back next time we are in Chicago!

Theory was the best part of my getaway to Chicago! The atmosphere and wait staff make the experience amazing. I felt at home as soon as I walked in the door. The owner greets you as soon as you walk in and the other workers are very attentive! If you want to watch ANY game this is the place to go. There are TONS of tvs and amazing food!

Amazing time spent here with great vibes . We Came for Bottomless mimosa and enjoyed every moment of it - Our table waitress did us so good shout out to Courtney! Will definitely come back and recommend!!

I booked online and joined the waiting list since there were no reservations available, got a text a little after from Sam, he was extremely nice and helpful and booked us even with a full house. Great people, atmosphere and super friendly. Thank you for making our night perfect...Go Jazz!!

Love theory! The owner and staff are so friendly and I always have a great time when I'm here. The food is delicious too!

Came from Michigan to watch a football game, not knowing this was an Iowa bar. The real surprise was how great this place is on every level! The staff (especially the owner) could not be more welcoming! The brunch food was great! The bartenders were extremely nice! Loved everything about our experience! If anyone is looking for a great place to watch a game, with great food and drinks, this is where you need to be! Can't recommend this place enough!

Was there to get some food and drink last night. Unfortunately the kitchen was closed the time we got there. We then stayed for drinks. Did spend over $200 on drinks between five of us. It’s not a bad location .

Food was delicious. The Mac & Cheese Flatbread really was amazing. The wings were incredible. They had bottomless mimosas. Atmosphere was amazing. Not mad at all!

The manager is amazing! The food is fantastic and the service is great! Best sports bar in Chicago. My husband and I have been twice and both times have been great. The manger makes you feel like you are a regular/VIP. He is very genuine. The waitress we had today was Robin and she was wonderful! We will definitely keep coming back.

Really cool spot to stop by on a Saturday afternoon to enjoy a cocktail and/or beer. The staff were nice and attentive. They never let me feel me feel like I couldn’t have what I wanted when I wanted it. Prices are on par with Downtown Chicago prices, but the atmosphere is what you’re here for.

I heard about Theory from a friend. He frequently visits for F1 watch parties. The owner, Joel and his crew, made us feel welcome at every "turn!" Maria was super attentive and Joel made an effort to meet the patrons coming for the race. The Brunch menu offered something for everyone without overwhelming customers. The coffee was ON POINT. Joel serves Hexe Coffee, which is a local roaster. Not many restaurants/bars give much thought to their coffee... clearly not the case with Theory. Nice crowd and great vibe for the race on a Sunday AM! Worth the trip from the burbs.

Its pretty rare I feel compelled enough to actually write a review, let alone a positive one. I cant say enough about this venue, the staff, and the hospitality shown. Theory provided us the upstairs for a Football themed hospitality event for ~150 people. Holly was very attentive and couldn't have been more helpful. She took care of everything and treated us like we were best friends. Nothing but compliments from the guests. I would highly recommend this space for any event you have coming up. Thank You so much!