How much would you pay to watch the Cubs play the World Series this weekend?
Not at Wrigley Field, where a $150,000 pair of dugout seats is currently available for Sunday night’s game, but at a bar in Wrigleyville where you’ll watch on TV screens? If you said $1,250, then you’re not alone.
A growing number of Wrigleyville bars and restaurants are offering special World Series meal packages for hundreds of dollars, guaranteeing food, drink and your place among fellow fans, but not always a seat — unless you pay hundreds more. And some are already sold out for the Friday, Saturday and Sunday night home games this weekend.
The most expensive meal package to date can be found at Stretch Bar & Grill. For $300, you’ll get one appetizer, one entree and a nearly open bar (excluding shots) but no seating. You can order from the regular menu, where the most popular item is the wings with Jameson and chipotle barbecue sauce, said a manager, who stated the package service would end at 10 p.m.
If you insist upon a seat, saunter over to HVAC Pub, where a reserved table plus food will cost $1,250. For $250 of that total, you get all-you-can-eat pizza and wings, plus beer, wine and well cocktails 7-11 p.m. The other $1,000 reserves a table, which also includes one bottle each of Grey Goose vodka and Mionetto prosecco, said a manager. While the table seats six, you could have it all to yourself. Since the food and drink package is per person, the table and food will set back a group of six a total of $2,500.
Four-seat tables can be found for $500 at Deuce’s and The Diamond Club, Casey Moran’s, Old Crow Smokehouse, Moe’s Cantina and John Barleycorn. That cost is on top of meal packages, which range from $200 to $250.
“We put this deal together because of our experience on Saturday,” said Sam Sanchez, CEO of Samco Enterprises, which owns Old Crow, Moe’s and John Barleycorn. “It was overwhelming, with people at the door and in line. People couldn’t get in. They waited at the door for hours, and you feel bad. This way, they know they can have a nice experience.”
Sanchez said the mozzarella sticks are their most popular item at John Barleycorn, his closest location to Wrigley. “We’ve been hand-cutting and hand breading them for 30 years,” he added.
At Trace, the live music bar one block north, there will be no charge to enter. “We don’t have covers ever. We feel like now is not the time,” said spokesperson Angela Zoiss, vice president of marketing for Bottleneck Management. “It’s first come, first served for tables.”
Why would fans pay thousands of dollars to watch televisions in bars? We asked one Cubs fan who’s a keen observer of fanaticism, food and sports: Doug Sohn of Hot Doug’s. “There’s such a real humanness to it,” said Sohn. “That’s what I love about sports, but especially the Cubs.”
“And it’s such a different experience from watching it alone or at home. It’s hearing the roar and being with other people who are cheering or people who are commiserating. There’s just that real bond to be a part of it.”
Hot Doug’s at Wrigley Field will debut two new sausages exclusively at the World Series home games. But Sohn will not be working. Instead, he will be watching from the bleachers. “I like to eat before the game,” he said. “During the game, I don’t like to leave my seat.”
If you choose to join the humanness by watching the games in Wrigleyville bars, check our listings below for what some restaurants and bars are offering. Please note availability and prices are changing quickly.
For addresses, phone numbers and websites of these places, check out our guide of every bar in Wrigleyville.
Twitter @louisachu
Cubby Bear
Cost: $100 cover
What that gets you: entry
Home or away games: home only
HVAC Pub
Cost: $250 meal package; $1,000 table reservation add-on
What that gets you: $250, guaranteed entry, 4-hour food and beverage package including beer, wine, well cocktails, and all-you-can-eat pizza and wings. (Does not include neat or on rocks drinks, shots or Red Bull); $1,000: 6-person table top during game, bottle of Grey Goose, bottle of Mionetta
Home or away: TBD
John Barleycorn
Cost: $200-$250 meal package, varies by game; $500 table reservation add-on
What that gets you: $200-$250, guaranteed entry, one appetizer, one entree, unlimited drinks through ninth inning; $500, four-person table during game (must be purchased as add-on with meal package)
Home or away: home only
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Moe’s Cantina
Cost: $200 meal package; $500 table reservation add-on
What that gets you: $200, guaranteed entry, one appetizer, one entree, unlimited drinks through ninth inning; $500, four-person table during game (must be purchased as add-on with meal package)
Home or away: home only
Merkle’s Bar and Grill
Cost: $100 cover
What that gets you: entry
Home or away: home only
Old Crow Smokehouse
Cost: $200-$250 meal package, varies by game; $500 table reservation add-on.
What that gets you: $200-$250, guaranteed entry, one appetizer, one entree, unlimited drinks through ninth inning; $500, four-person table during game (must be purchased as add-on with meal package)
Home or away: home only
Casey Moran’s
Cost: $225-$250 meal package; $500 table reservation add-on; TBD cover charge for first come, first served.
What that gets you: $225-$250, guaranteed entry until 7 p.m., appetizer buffet, drinks from 7-10:45 p.m.; $500, four-person table top during game (must be purchased as add-on with meal package)
Home or away: home only
Deuce’s and The Diamond Club
Cost: $250 meal package; $500 table reservation add-on.
What that gets you: $250, guaranteed entry until 7 p.m., appetizer buffet, drinks from 7-10:45 p.m.; $500, four-person table top during game (must be purchased as add-on with meal package)
Note: Tables sold out Friday and Saturday
Home or away: home only
Stretch Bar & Grill
Cost: $300 meal package
What that gets you: choice of one entree or appetizer, premium open bar from 6-10 p.m. (but no shots)
Home or away: home only
Nola Pub
Cost: None, first come, first served
Roadhouse 66 Gas N’ Grill
Cost: $75 chair reservation (sold out)
What that gets you: $75, reserved seat
Home or away: home only
Yak-Zies
Cost: $25 cover charge; $50 per hour surcharge on any table
What that gets you: $25, entry; $50, retain hold of table, which are first come, first served
Home or away: home confirmed, away TBD
Trace
Cost: None, first come, first served
Myron Mixon’s Smoke Show Barbecue
Cost: $50 optional meal package
What that gets you: all-you-can-eat barbecue
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Home or away: TBD
Uncommon Ground
Cost: $25 cover charge
What that gets you: entry
Home or away: home only
Note: Reservations for tables are sold out, but bar stools and outdoor patio will be available on first come, first served basis
Sheffield’s
Cost: none, never have a cover charge
Higgins’ Tavern
Cost: none, never have a cover charge