Bootleggers Kitchen & Pub

I’ve been to the Bootleggers Restaurant twice and loved it. Loved the atmosphere and the food was to die for. They had the best burgers in the Fox Valley. I’m so sorry to see them closed and hope they reopen somewhere close by soon.
A sad customer

Restaurant has closed and is «relocating in the future» to an unnamed location…

As an update to my previous review I would like to say that the management at Bootleggers has reached out to me and has made all efforts to remedy the situation. Great thanks to the manager Juliana! I now see Bootleggers in its original lighting again, which means, good food, good people and a great dining experience!

Thursday 10÷08÷15 our party of 9 arrived without reservations. Seating was immediate.
Previous reviews on Bootleggers were mixed. I hoped we would be surprised. Well, I was so happy that we were all extremely pleased with Beth’s service. And the food was excellent
with flavors. We picked appetizers… calamari, Saganaki, fish tacos and more.
Favorite for me was the fish tacos. With three generous portions of fish and and condiments.
Others at the table loved the chicken Parmesan, burgers and soup and salads.
We all agreed that the experience was a perfect event. Oh, one more thing. One person had a birthday. A special treat for that person was a delicious chunk of chocolate cake. If you like
chocolate, try this to top the meal.

We recently moved to the area and this is the closest place to our house so we figured we would give it a try. I had read the reviews and my expectations were not that high, but I remained hopeful that the food would be decent. Well I was wrong, ugh I started with the soup of the day, cream of potato, there was one sad potato in my cup :| the rolls that they brought to the table were like rocks. The saddest part, the crackers that came with the soup were stale, I’m still having a hard time with that one.
I ordered the mac n cheese, it was presented nicely but it had no flavor, it was like eating a bowl of noodles. The other half had a burger, he said it was ok but not worth going back for.
The service, the dining room was full, but most of the people had already been served their meals around us but the waitress seemed like she needed to rush us out the door. It was 6:45 on a Saturday night, I would say it’s because she wanted to turn the table but there was NO ONE waiting for a table, not one single person. She was nice enough but we ordered jalapenos for the hamburger and they didn’t come with it. Had to ask twice for them. The waitress was nice enough, but I didn’t like the feeling of being rushed out when it wasn’t necessary.
The décor is nice and the drinks were good, that was about it.

Watched the Hawks here and they won and single malt scotch… so we had a great time that night. Feels like an English pub. Very good burger with the oddly shaped, delicious fries. Also tried the reuben rolls which I liked.

Great food! Ordered the Monday special meatloaf and it was amazing! Husband got the pork tenderloin special and for once he was stuffed! Service was great too!

Saw the mixed reviews and went in with low expectations to give it a try. Saturday night dinner. Was still disappointed. I ordered the London Broil, which came out more like Salisbury Steak. Both our dinner entrees were what you’d expect from cafeteria food. Nowhere near worth what they charged. Our server was spot on, though. She is what brought this to 2 stars. It would be one star if based solely on the food.

One star is for the service, which was quick & friendly, and the fries, which were very good.
I had the prime rib grinder special, which managed to to be incredibly greasy and utterly flavorless. The fries were very good, but the cole slaw was below the standard I’d expect from a grocery store deli. My wife’s sandwich was dry (she said the ham tasted re-​warmed) & the lettuce in her salad was dripping wet. I’m all for washing lettuce, but it needs to not leave a puddle of water on the plate.
I like my whiskey, but no one bothered to mention or promote the bourbon tasting special, which I probably would have tried.
All in all, we were decidedly underwhelmed, and probably won’t be back.

I love the concept, but overall there were small issues that didn’t enhance the atmosphere.
We went here for lunch on a Saturday, and the place was fairly quiet at around two in the afternoon. We settled in, ordered drinks, and were focused on the menu when the smooth jazz in the dining area was interrupted by the jukebox in the bar. The music, and party scene, in the bar was so loud, that it was hard to carry on a conversation without wondering why people were randomly roaring. Also, did I mention it was only two in the afternoon?
The food was good, but not great, and the server, Cassi, was super attentive to our table. I’m sorry Cassi that we interrupted your lunch break, but we were glad to meet you as you are a saving grace to this place! If there had been better separation between bar and restaurant, or if the bar didn’t have a pay-​to-​play jukebox, I think Bootleggers would be a go-​to for a quick casual meal with friends.

I have been excited to try this place since they opened. Finally got a chance to got there earlier last night and honestly… not impressed.
First off, the wait was 15 minutes, that’s absolutely fine. We headed to the bar. Bartender did not know the actual drink menu. My friend’s «supposed» problem. I ordered wine, a generous pour. 30 minutes later, still there, but the drinks were generous and we weren’t complaining, 45 minutes after walking in we got seated. Our waitress took our drink orders while we went over the menu.
We ordered, I got the steak sandwich and we waited.
And waited.
Just like before. We waited. You get what I am saying?
Food came eventually and my steak sandwich was just no…- chewy «sirloin» and burned bread. Bread so bad I took a picture of it. Why would you serve that? I picked at it for a bit until the waitress asked how things were going… obviously realizing my issue. I showed her it and asked for a new bun. I got one and piled on the rest on the new bun to take home. The peppers, I have to say, were cooked perfectly. Fries were really good. Like a twisty fry or something, hard to explain. Leftovers are still in my fridge, who wants them?
I think that the place has so many young and inexperienced staff… and BTW young does not always mean inexperienced and vice versa… but it 100% does in this example. No one honestly knew what they were doing here or what was going on. No order, no organization, nothing — no professionalism. A big mess.

Friendly staff, awesome ambience and environment. Loved the music and dim lighted bar area. Food came out fairly quick, very hot/​fresh, and everything was delicious! Will definitely be coming back and have already recommended to friends.

We have been here twice.
You MUST try the reuben egg rolls.
Food is good and the service was decent with both visits. No complaints here.

I was looking for a place to have dinner. I drove around and I happen to come across bootleggers. The bar are was small. I’m glad it wasn’t full. I found a seat. The bartender took my order right away. I was torn between the pot roast sandwich or their Monday special, which was homemade meatloaf. The bartender convinced me to get the pot roast. I say it was really good. Full of flavor. It remind me sort of pull pork without the BBQ. Enjoy!
#SenorFood

I have been to Bootleggers several times since they’ve opened and I continue to be impressed. Their service is excellent, which is why I continue to come back. The menu has something for everyone which is great for my picky family. The stuffed mushrooms and Reuben rolls are my favorite appetizers. Their burgers are hand packed and seasoned perfectly. The sidewinder fries are so unique and delicious. Save room for dessert too, because their homemade death by chocolate is worth every calorie. I’ll definitely be back.

They’re turning it up a notch … good idea with the reviews they are getting!
Being fairly local, I’ve been waiting … and waiting … and waiting … and did I mention waiting? for this place to open. When it did, I looked to Unilocalers for guidance and whoa … signs were not looking so good.
I went anyway. I’ll even admit I was a bit jaded, expecting something mediocre at best. I must say I was pleasantly surprised. They seem to have (wisely) shifted into high gear (at least on service). Hint: you can turn it down a tad so you don’t come across as insincere.
We sat down to two dirty bread plates and I thought «here we go… get ready for a scathing review on Unilocal.» But it turned out to be not so bad.
I had a Cobb salad which was good … not too difficult to do well, though. My companion had a wrap. Other than the fact that the wrap was torn (hey chef dude … put the ugly side down next time) it was fine. The fries were really good and different… crispy and obviously freshly cooked.
I am cautiously optimistic. I would have liked clean bread plates, a little bread on the table or at least with the salad to go on the clean plate they brought, and an un-​torn tortilla. I would try it again.

Never in the 30 years of my dining experience I never have the most worst experience here at bootleggers. Terrible service, terrible food. The place looked every nice but everything else… no.
Will never be back.

I’ve been here twice now. First time was on their opening day. I got two burgers for takeout and they were fantastic. Best burgers around in fact. Prices match the quality of food, service, and ambiance.
Second time I came in… I brought along several buddies. They all loved it. Wonderful place, great food, and excellent service. For all of you who are giving poor ratings… please give this joint another try. Openings are always difficult and can take a few weeks to get it just right.

Went in tonight ³⁄₁₈ at about 5:45pm. Was seated right away. Place is nice looks a lot like the old reginas set up wise. Menu was kinda small. We waited & waited … More people were seated. Waited not one wait staff or manager came to great us or take our drink order. Made eye contact with several servers, our menus closed as a sign we were ready to order and still nothing ! So we got up went to the hostess counter explained to the two teenaged hostess why we were leaving. And they just looked at us no offer to get the manager nothing … Not sure i will return seeing how this was my 1^st visit and the place was not even busy. Can just imagine on a busy night. Very unsatisfied … To say the least !!!
Update they now have a «closed for remodeling «sign out front … I doubt that is the reason they just took almost a year to remodel, it closed cuz they sucked … No 2 wYs about it

First time, yes they just opened two days ago was super excited to try. Wasnt a pleasant experience took my family and our waiter was super nervous. We had two salads and two cups of chicken noodle soup the waiter forgot one of the soups then came back 5 minutes later to ask how our food was my wife said I couldn’t tell u I never received mine. strike one. So we ordered the ribs because it was rib night no special on full slab for rib night. strike 2. Ordered cheesburger and wanted to try the chicken parmesan because the waiter said it was made fresh. The food comes but we are missing a slab of ribs the waiter forgot to put the second slab order in. Strike 3 so we thought. One of the managers brings the slab rib dinner out but the chicken parmesan was burnt and the cheeseburger was like mush. Would not recommend this place.