They want one that isn’t too scenester, yet isn’t populated with hillbillies, old men, and chest-leerers. It’s a hard time trying to find a good ol' bar these days.The Ram makes me believe it's possible.
This is belied by the fact that it’s not small and cozy. In fact, it’s the opposite. It's a large building that can be seen from the highway and inside it is spacious, with high ceilings, a giant TV, and what seem to be thousands of liquor bottles covering the wall in the main bar area. The seating is tasteful dark wood, and the décor is standard traditional American. But it’s the atmosphere in this restaurant/bar that makes it such a charming place to go.
The Ram is a national chain with three locations in the Northwest suburbs: in Wheeling at Milwaukee and Lake-Cook Roads, in Schaumburg near Woodfield Mall, and a new location in Rosemont. The Wheeling and Rosemont locations have become favorite gathering places among friends and colleagues alike, but for my own purposes, I’ll be praising the Schaumburg location, because my cousin works there, and I’m all for nepotism and getting her bigger tips.
The Ram is both a restaurant and bar, neatly subdivided down the center, with a bar as large as the restaurant portion. The bar is large and u-shaped, with ample seating. A number of booths and tables populate the main bar area, and there’s a smaller, cozier room off that with plenty of tables and chairs.
If you go early, the bar tends to be full with the dinner crowd, but it will thin out between 9 and 11 p.m. on a weekend before things get into the full swing. And swing it does, as it can get packed in on a weekend evening with a crowd largely composed of 20- and 30-somethings, yet without becoming claustrophobic.
There’s no dance floor at the Ram, and the tables are more suited for casual gathering with friends than massive commingling, but the atmosphere itself is friendly and welcoming, as is the staff. Because it’s not a place to "see and be seen" like other suburban clubs I’ve visited. It’s more a place to occasionally meet honestly interesting people, instead of those simply trolling the town looking for someone to bring home.
The Ram is a full-scale brewery with a rotating assortment of their own microbrews, some of which I’ve been told are average and others great. It also has a complete selection of imported and domestic beers for those who prefer to stick with the tried and true. As a non-beer drinker, I’m partial to their specialty martinis myself, which pack a punch when you’ve already been drinking for several hours with the publisher of a certain online magazine.
All in all, The Ram is a great place to go for a low-key atmosphere when you’re not up for braving a nightspot with a "scene" and want to spend a casual night with friends. It’s not the hippest place around, but the drinks are reasonably priced and the food is good, and for this laid-back girl, that’s all that matters.
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