RACIST!!If I could give this place zero stars I would. Me and a group of friends went to Trader Todd’s for my good friends birthday. I went to the back side of the bar to put my name in for a song. The first song I requested was not “on the playlist.” The dj working the booth was giving me so much attitude for simply trying to ask for a song. So I gave him another song and even tipped him. When he asked for my name I said put it in under my last name since I knew there would be another Eric in the bar. He proceeded to tell me, “no I’m putting it in as Eric.” So like everyone else I waited my turn. I finally hear the dj call Eric so I figured it has to be my turn. When my friends and I tooo the stage the dj kicked us off and told me how I was “making his job hard.” If he would have listened and put in my last name, this confusion would not have happened. I went to find a manager to tell him what had happened and his response was, “that doesn’t sound like something he would do.” Manager had zero sympathy for a paying customer. This place felt RACIST! As I was walking out the bouncer yelled at me saying “you’re lucky we let you in here.” Again, I did nothing wrong and got treated horribly. It is safe to say that I will NEVER step foot again in trader Todd’s. If you are a person of color, I do not recommend coming into this establishment. It was honestly just embarrassing and disgusting.

We came here recently to celebrate a birthday of our dear friend and I can say we had a blast! This was my first time at any karaoke bar and it is so interesting! Whoever wants can go, choose a song and sing! Sometimes it can be funny, sometimes you can hear some great singers! Anyway, if if you are not confident and make some mistakes, other people support you with applause so you can feel better and not ashamed. Server was excellent, so friendly and nice! Unfortunately I forgot her name. I had a virgin mojito (it was good) and veggie pizza (the best veggie pizza in my life, spicy). Didn’t try the food that others ordered, but they said it was good! Bar was full, and the atmosphere was wonderful! Great place to celebrate something or just have fun with friends!

“DJ” KEITH CAVANAUGH = DISASTER 👎🏼 SUNDAY AUGUST 28TH 2022 - I really wish I took the time to read the reviews before coming here. Yelp isn’t the first place I go to vent frustrations but when I went on Yelp looking at all the other reviews I saw a common theme. Keith was rude, gave an awkward vibe and really ruined the karaoke experience for his claim of “Chicago’s Best Karaoke.” I will have to say the service was great. Our server, Katie, was attentive, took care of my table and was pleasant. She is the reason why I didn’t rate 1 star because food / service was great. So thank you Katie! 🙏🏽 But when you come to a karaoke bar and the karaoke is the worst part about the experience it only makes sense. When you go to Keith to ask for a song and he doesn’t agree it’s a song for you… he won’t let you sing it or questions why you are choosing that song. Karaoke shouldn’t be a place where you feel uncomfortable singing a song. It’s not a Grammy performance… it’s about having a good time singing regardless of how good you are. Not sure who Marissa is but man at least that girl can sing because at least hearing her made listening to “DJ” Keith bearable. I would leave her a tip before I leave Keith one since he was practically begging for one. Thanks Keith for making fun of the homeless, “What does the homeless guy say to the girl he is dating. Your place or your place?” Really?

I’ve been here multiple times and have gone here with friends since before the pandemic. I really want to give this place a raving review but this last experience has left a sour taste in my mouth. I walked outside to catch a breath of air because it was so loud and crowded, but they wouldn’t let me back in. They said they didn’t recognise me so I was trying to be understanding and offer that I had recently came out of the bar to catch a break and offered to show them a receipt of my purchases at the bar (which they refused to even look at, and acknowledge) I even had friends come out and talk to me but the man at the door who lied and told me his name was “Steve” (which I know it was not) would let them all back in “no questions asked” and refuse me because of what he claimed was “bad behaviour” even though I only addressed him in the same manor he treated me. Even one of the servers came out to smoke and ask what was going on. I am not at all an angry person and managed to maintain an appropriate manor even in the face of his allegations against my so called “attitude.” He was not in any way accommodating to me even as I waited for my friends to close their tabs and move our business elsewhere. This has been a tough review to give as my friends and I love this bar and I’m not saying the service and bartenders are horrible, but the way I was treated from “Steve at the door” was completely out of line.

Our experience at Trader Todd's was far from what we originally thought it was going to be. We started the evening off w appetizers (Buffalo Wings/Coconut Shrimp/Fried Pickles along w/Chips & Salsa) followed by The Santa Cruz pizza. The food didn't sit well w our stomachs & the service wasn't very good either. We were actually checking the place out to inquire about hosting our birthday party here, but we couldn't even get the manager to come out & speak w us, which I felt was extremely unprofessional. My hope is that your experience here would be much better than ours.

I had a fantastic experience at trader Todd’s. Typically I’m not so much of a karaoke fan, but the environment and the service has made it easy to really get up on stage and chill out. The Security outside was jokingly nice, and the bartenders inside were also very hospitable. The only unfortunate thing I saw was that the DJ was not able to play a certain songs that I wanted to do for karaoke. I wanted sisqo! Look like there was pizza being passed out I did not get a chance to take part in the food, but the drinks and the fun and the environment were unmatched

Such a good vibe, love me a shot ski. Billy our server was on point and made sure we had a great night. Lots of good music with lots of very average karaoke singers.

I've had a good time usually when I go here, but that changed yesterday. There was some kind of a mix up behind the bar and they lost my card. The lack of concern they had was pretty bad. It was their mistake and they basically said "you can stick around til close and see if we find it or just get a new one". So for THEIR mistake, I now have to wait 3 days for a new card. Didn't even offer like a free drink or something for my troubles.

Pretty cool place. I was served by Ella, she is really cool and helpful. She helped us to choose drinks and oh my gosh. Drinks were awesome. Thanks so much Trader for this experience

This is a great place to go for karaoke! Expect to wait an hour or two to actually sing your song, but the drinks and atmosphere is good so it goes by fast. Good food and good drinks at reasonable prices for a bar. Right near the Belmont stop.

Trader Todd’s is a cool place to hit up every once in a while, I would recommend putting in song requests right as you come in through the door because it usually takes 40-1 hour+ to get to your turn. Personally the DJ in the back is a cooler vibe than the one up front. The one in the front is kind of rude and doesn’t allow you to request more than one song even if you’re a group of people so different people have to request songs which is a bit silly. If you’re sitting at a table you will have a server come up to you and take your order so don’t go to the bar or they’ll be upset about it. Overall always a good time, some days are chiller, some days are crazy busy, kind of a toss up.

I LOVE trader Todd’s! Kyle is my FAVORITE KJ (don’t love AL or Keith…) and my favorite server is Billy! He is so attentive and helpful and always gets us good drinks and food. Come to Todd’s for good food and ask for Billy!

This place has really great atmosphere and bar service. The mozzarella sticks were really tasty. We loved singing kareoke; but, the DJ was a little weird... still a really good time.

Love this place. It’s a cozy tiki bar and it’s a really fun place if you want to do karaoke in front of a bunch of strangers that will always support you! Everyone is friendly and nice, drinks are great. If you want a table get there early at 7 and get your songs in for karaoke early because it gets crowded and the queue for songs gets very long. Otherwise, one of my favorite bars to just have a great time at!

We got greased by the bouncer. Had to bribe him $100 to let us in. Bar had capacity, people were leaving. People were cutting ahead of us. Karaoke was average for a place that describes itself the best karaoke. Acoustics and mic’s are terrible. It’s a sub par bar. Better dives in the city.

Not only has this place started charging a cover fee, but their drinks and food are overpriced. The people that work there are heavily racist. Maybe it’s not the people who work there maybe it’s just the clientele. Either way, I felt completely isolated. Worst experience I have ever had at a Chicago bar. 100/10 would not recommend. Unless you are ready to spend an entire paycheck just to sing a song.

Security was too abrasive for no reason. I've worked as security for 3ish years, and Trader Todd's ought to re-assess their door guys. Cozy place, but overcrowded for Karaoke. Had fun for my friend's birthday. I would come back, but maybe not on a Saturday night. $5 cover was worth it.

This place is a must! The food is great, but the drinks are even better! Jasmine is literally my favorite bartender. She always makes sure my time here is top notch - even when they are busy. She always has a drink recommendation and makes it to perfection. Come sing karaoke and drink with her!

My guy Billy treated us great and the drinks were not only great, but reasonably priced. 20-something crowd on a winter Friday night and it's a fun vibe off hours too. I'm 36...not knocking, just saying Billy, you rock

Fun, Iconic place. Waitstaff can be avoidant, had to wait 15 minutes at the bar until the other patrons directed bartender to me. There were also large pools in the bathroom to wade through.

Fun, friendly place, the karaoke is awesome!! The karaoke DJ rocks, always a great time!! I bring friends often!!

My family and I had a wonderful time. Food was great, music was great and we really enjoyed karaoke with DJ Noah. He knows how to have a good time. We adopted him into our family. Our bar tender Jasmine was AWESOME! She was friendly with a great personality. Our family will definitely come back soon.

Transport yourself to Florda's Key West without leaving Chicago's Lake View area. Surrounding yourself with sharks 🦈 swimming overhead will give you the courage to get on stage to sing your heart out. Overall, a fun place for kareok! 🎤🎶🎵

What a great environment and ambiance! The only thing better than getting to sing songs with your besties is the service here. Payton went above and beyond to make sure we were taken care of! Super personable and great energy and caters to you personally even when the bar is busy. We will definitely come back

Waitress was nice and very attentive. Food is what you would expect at a typical bar. The karaoke…the guy has low energy. Made the experience a little boring. Played songs in between singers. Dude, let the next person sing! Don’t have all night! Bunch of fraternity and sorority people getting drunk, flashing, and yelling in a microphone. Girl got up to the microphone and flashed three times and said “I’ll never see y’all again”…hope not. Trashy.

Billy took amazing care of us, he went above and beyond! Drinks were very tasty! Will definitely be back a bit earlier in the day next time so we can try out the food.

Our sever Billy was so great!!! He made sure we were taken care of the entire night and we had the greatest time. I was nervous about singing and he was so encouraging and FUN!!! We will definitely come back and I hope we have him again, he really took care of us and made us feel so comfortable and welcome. Thanks Billy!!!!!

My favorite karaoke bar. If you like a fun, colorful, kitschy Americana environment with great service this is the spot for you. P is a phenomenal bartender- always love when they serve me! Can’t rave enough