Punch Bowl Social
Restaurant · West Town ·
New American eats, craft cocktails, bowling, karaoke, bocce
New American eats, craft cocktails, bowling, karaoke, bocce
"MAD Social, run by Gina Stefani, recently closed last month in West Loop. It was another restaurant by the Stefani family." - Ashok Selvam
"A 1950’s style diner, a bowling alley, karaoke rooms, and an arcade room are all under one roof at Punch Bowl Social, a 30,000 square-foot adult playground in the West Loop. It’s a little kitschy but fun when you’re in the mood to let loose. Even if a round of bowling or belting out a few karaoke tunes isn’t in the cards, it’s worth a visit for the food alone, which leans towards comforting staples, like buttermilk-brined southern fried chicken and big burgers made with grass-fed, hormone-free beef. Otherwise, healthier, lighter fare is available too, including a superfood grain bowl, loaded with quinoa, kale, radishes, sprouts, roasted carrots, pickled chiles, and shiitake mushrooms. "
"I learned that Punch Bowl Social's Chicago outpost in Fulton Market, a Denver-based gaming-and-dining chain, has been temporarily closed longer than anticipated; the brand declared bankruptcy in late December and filed notice it could lay off as many as 50 workers amid a prior power struggle among former executives that left the location's fate uncertain, though the company says it is diligently working on reopening plans and issued the required 60-day layoff notice because of legal limits on furloughs." - Naomi Waxman
"A massive, 30,000-square-foot former meatpacking factory in the Fulton Market District has reopened as a dining-and-games destination offering bowling, foosball, darts, ping-pong and arcade games while encouraging small “immediate social crew” groups (eight or fewer). The operator says it will follow pandemic safety measures—masks for staff and patrons, contactless menus and payment, staff health checks—and has added game-specific protocols such as escorting bowlers to lanes, sanitizing keypads, assigning balls by player preference, and enabling song selection via a digital app. Although there were plans for a karaoke host to manage rooms and sanitize mics/monitors between sessions, a company representative later confirmed that karaoke will not be offered at this location at this time. The concept’s reopening comes amid broader financial strain for the chain, which closed at least one suburban location and lost continued investment from its majority backer, even as some other outposts around the country begin to reopen." - Naomi Waxman
"This entertainment-and-dining concept opened its first Chicago location in Fulton Market after earlier competing plans for that neighborhood evolved, effectively taking the larger property previously considered by another music-and-bowling operator." - Ashok Selvam