Lunchman Chronicles

Learn about Will the Lunchman and see pictures from recent lunch outings

Featured Bar

Cunneen's

1424 W. Devon Ave in Rogers Park

Established 1972

Neighborhood bar

Beer and cocktails

Dog friendly

Outside food permitted

A few blocks from the Loyola stop on the Red Line, Cunneen’s is a quintessential neighborhood bar. Enter beneath the green awning and allow your eyes a moment to adjust to the muted lighting. You’ll find the bar on your left, extending all the way to the back. That’s where I found my friends bellied up one Sunday afternoon, backs to the pool table. The spot is walking distance for my pal Bob and his four-legged companion Donut. Our friend Dino unpacked a smorgasbord of goat, fish, and chicken dishes he’d carried out from local Nigerian restaurant Afro Taste Cuisine. The staid bartender poured me a cold Yuengling draft. Real glass, right temperature. It was the ideal beverage to wash down the satiating meat pie, fufu, and spicy egusi soup.

The Sunday feast was just beginning, as a delivery guy arrived with a Crave Case, onion rings, fries, chicken rings, and Craviolis--the brand name for White Castle’s deep-fried jalapeno-stuffed raviolis. I was full of meat pie, but White Castles are difficult to resist when the aroma is in the air. The smell captured Donut’s attention, and Bob allowed Dino to toss his friendly mutt a chicken ring or two.

Ron, the final member of our Sunday crew, showed up shortly after the Crave Case. He requested a whiskey and ginger ale, and I copied his drink order, specifying Jameson as my whiskey of choice. Bubbles and sweetness after all the heavy eating gave me the proper lift.

The bar had a solid casual crowd for a Sunday. Dino offered sliders to any and all, and several patrons took him up on it. One gentleman visiting from North Carolina experienced his very first taste of White Castle. With a pronounced Southern accent, he spoke highly of the warm welcome he’d received from Chicagoans. He and his pals were on a bar crawl of discovery and asked for recommendations regarding their next stop. Dino advised them to hit up Simon’s, where we’d been the previous day. Then he gave them each another slider for the road.

Behind the bar, there’s a record player beneath several shelves of worn albums. The ATM is housed in a refurbished wooden phone booth on the way to the restrooms. Up front, a modest stage welcomes acoustic acts. There’s a reason Cunneen’s has been in business for more than half a century. The bar is a North Side gem.

Food & Beers We've Enjoyed Recently

JUNE 2026

Irish Times - pints of Smithwick's, Miller Lite bottle(s), mac & cheese, cheeseburger

Tortazo (Sears Tower) - crispy chicken milanesa torta

Wrigley Field - Bud Light can

The Western - pint of Guinness

Italian Village - Rigatoni di Franco, antipasto, Peroni bottle(s)

Mexican Radio - bottle of Modelo

Roadhouse 66 Gas N' Grill - Modelo draft(s)

Stolen Saddle - Miller Lite can(s)

The Salt Shed - Dovetail Pils draft(s)

Billy Goat Tavern (Wrigleyville) - double & fries, Billy Goat Pilsner draft