Illuminated Brew Works

The place is quite unusual but still comfortable. The beer is very good. The pizza is from the freezer, but surprisingly tasty. The restrooms have a nice, atmospheric vibe. Parking is a bit difficult. I’d recommend stopping by and having a couple of beers 🍺

Great customer service! Not gonna lie, the vibe was a bit creepy walking in. Other then that. We enjoyed a good cold beer after a long flight and enjoyed their picnic tables outside. Really good varied beer selection 🍻

When you see the car wash, you’ll know you’re getting close! Tucked into a strip mall on Northwest Highway, Illuminated Brew Works is a fun & funky spot that gives off “occult” vibes. Friendly folks working there with a wide range of beers to suit many tastes. There’s plenty of seating, eclectically decorating, pinball, and a small outdoor space as well. Recommended!

This place is a true gem. Funky, artsy atmosphere and decorations, super down-to-earth and kind bartenders, and the beer itself was excellent. Options for on-site and to-go. They even gave us a couple beer tokens for next time and some cool stickers. Dog-friendly inside as well. We will be back, this place is definitely an asset to this neighborhood!

just wanting to publicly thank all the fine folks at Illuminated for a fantastically good time last night for their 4th anniversary party. The beer is fantastic, but the highlight is really how everyone on staff is so good at making you feel welcome and appreciated!

So lucky to have this stellar business and staff in our neighborhood! They have so many unique events from bands to famous authors and artists. The beers are some of the best brews in the nation! Inside secret tip: patrons who bicycle there get a big discount for the visit. A few blocks from UP- NW and a 5 minute bicycle ride from Blue Line Harlem station.

AMAZING PLACE. Stopped by here because of a delayed flight and we were IMPRESSED. The beer, the vibe, the staff - excellent! We had a few beers here - Fruit Creep, Peanut Butter Pony, Mr.Monk's Cream Ale and Yes! H&ND. All were absolutely fantastic. This is a gem of a place. We got to meet the brewers and the owner of this place and they're awesome. Definitely coming back here when I visit Chicago!

Enter if you dare! This brewery is not for the faint of heart - creepy and metal rock vibes. Happy to see this neighborhood get this brew joint. My favorite out of my beer flight was Brainwash ([extra] Sour Ale with Passion Fruit). There was a rock concert later that night of a few local bands, but missed out. Rock on.

I love Illuminated. Their beer and the service I've received there are part of the reason I became a beerstagrammer (@allthebeer_morebeer). How does one describe the ambiance at Illuminated? Well, at first I would have described it as metal and possibly borderline scary, but now it just feels like my favorite neighborhood brewery a la Cheers. It's a really inclusive place, and the beer is great. I guess that's all that really matters.

I like this place. Interesting beverages and no food, but the occasional food trucks. More of a carry in place and EP is down the street, so figure it out. This is my kind of microbrew, dark and inhabited by interesting but friendly characters. I stop by when I'm in the neighborhood and enjoy myself.

I really really wanted to love Illuminated Brew Works. Unfortunately none of the beer I found to be enjoyable. The staff were very easy going and patient with my group. I absolutely loved the decor and the disco lights in the restrooms!

Great selection of beers on tab. I suggest the sampler to try a few before committing to a glass. During happy hour a sampler flight of 4 beers is just 11 dollar. The atmosphere is chill and the staff is great.

I absolutely loved IBW. This place is the type of vibe that I want when going to a brewery - super low key and good beer. It was really hard to actually find IBW, because it's located in between a car wash and some other store. If you see Zia's down the street, you've gone too far. Once we actually found it, it's actually a bit bigger than I was expecting. Plenty of tables and a pretty large bar area to sit at. When it's nice out, they do have an outdoor area as well. The beers were fantastic. We tasted a few of them and would definitely come back on this aspect alone. The bartender was super nice and even though it was really busy, we always got our beer fast. My favorite find in this place was the bathroom - I know what you're thinking, "what does that mean?!" - Just trust me and go in. You'll have a BALL.

Brewery in an odd location. Illuminated is a fairly new and small one in Norwood Park. Located in a very small plaza next to a car wash. Hard to notice unless you're actually looking for it, and it's still hard. This still took us a few times going by before finding it. After looking up local breweries, I was interested in making my way here. It's a fairly new brewery with a lot of sour beers, good stuff. There's a pretty nice variety. Has some to go cans. They also fill up growlers. Came with the girl to have a pint or a few. Turned out to be a few, too good for only one though. It's about $7 a pint. That limited us because I definitely would have had more of this. I had the Fruit Creep. This is a double IPA. It's not too hoppy. This was tamed a bit by the fruity notes. Also good is the Wiccan Chicken. This has more than just a cool name. Also there's slushies if you want something frozen. These are made with a sour beer, cool literally. Has a very interesting location and very interesting beers. It's close to the Metra station a few blocks from here. This makes it convenient to get to by public transportation.

Recently I went out with da guys as we were booted out by our respective spouses, since da gals were staying in for a pizza and games evening. Two of da guys had the home field advantage of living in the Norwood Park neighborhood, so we wound up at Illuminated Brew Works for pre-dinner drinks. IBW is a fairly new tap room with an obscure location on Northwest Highway. It's a chill environment to hang out whether you are a human or a dog. There is a central bar along with a few tables in the adjacent area. The beers have funky names such as War on Xmas, Solstice Sacrifice, and the very yummy Orange Sunshine. The industrial interior sports some artwork with an attitude, and the bathrooms are wallpapered with their beer can labels.

IBW beer has been around for a while, I've had several of their beers over the years, but they've now finally opened up their own taproom, up on the far NW side in Norwood Park. It's a bit far, but not super hard to get to, it's not far from the Harlem exit on the Kennedy. And it's good that there's a brewery up in that neighborhood now. I will say it's quite the impressive taproom, with so many cool horror and rock and satanic decorations and memorabilia all over, way more than you usually see in a taproom. They have about 10 drafts, and then they offer can pours which is real cool, if you don't want to buy a 4pack of something that's not currently on draft. Bartenders were all real cool, there's indoor and outdoor seating out back. They share a small parking lot, but street parking isn't too bad up there. I'd gladly go back and hope to more whenever I'm back up that a ways again.

IBW is near our friends' homes, so, along with them, we have become huge fans of the place. We love the beers, and service is always exemplary even when a lone bartender becomes a bit busy. We have attended a trivia night, which is a great time. I love the interior and the labels all over the bathroom walls. The whole vibe is chill and the patrons are all pretty cool from what I've seen.

While a strange and curious location tucked between a hand car wash and a wine place, Illuminated is nice enough to offer masks and buttons upon entering. Notice the brewery floor in front of you right when you walk in and the free masks and buttons as well. You'll see ALL the beer options in cans on the left. Once you make your way toward the large square bar, you will see lots of seating options for groups of people. What was the most surprising is I notice a good balance of women and men here. A nice surprise. Find a seat at the bar and the female bartender will direct you to the sign above for beer options. Don't forget you can get the canned options too! Maybe split it amongst the people around you if you're up for trying it out. I did this with the Wiccan Chicken. The bartender poured some in glasses for 4 of us and we all got to try something that, honestly, was underwhelming. Strange enough the male behind the counter did not have any words to describe this beer we were drinking. And neither did the bartender. So bust out the Untapped in this place to get a description of what you see on on tap or in the cans. What did taste great was the Outer Space. There was an offer to have a side by side pour with the Inner Space for $9, but I wasn't feeling having more than one when I first sat down. I posted a picture of what the difference is between these 2. Really glad I stopped in for a beer! And will be back as I tried another brew on tap that was a Slushy Thing, a fruited sour. Not comparable to the Fruit Creep I had back in Oct. 2020 which I found was both dank and delicious. And I really need to get my brain around their assortment of varieties. But hey, new brewery in my hood, I'm sure I'll figure it out. Last thing: I Wish they had an option to get an assortment of canned brews.

This place is a strange place hidden in the back alley. I tried all the beers on tap and could not find one decently tasting beer. As for the bartender he had no clue about anything. He may as well be a fly on the wall or bump on a log. Dresses up as a biker but is not in a biker club or even owns a motorbike. If the beer was good I could get over the rest but with a bar stuck in the alley, a biker that's not a biker and shit beer is enough for me to avoid this place. Like I said overall a strange place.

Always like my beer experiences in the Chicago area as the breweries from past outings and tastings have proved to be enjoyable and memorable. Illuminated Beer Works is no exception in the slightest. Steve and I enjoyed two different beers from this brewery and we enjoyed both of them considerably. Our first one was the Fruit Creep. It's a take on the zebra striped gum so many people got nostalgic for( and eventually got distributed and produced again if I'm not mistaken). This is a very fruity beer but one I liked pretty well. Some fruited beers don't sit with me very well as they feel heavy afterwards and are just too sweet but this one was definitely one of the better ones. The other beer was the Astronaut Eye Scream. A New England IPA which was pretty good. It had good hoppy, citrusy and creamy aspects to the flavor profile. Perhaps not the best New England IPA I've ever had but a nice solid one that is considerably better than many others. Good beer experience all the way around with this brewery!

A brewery on the outskirts of Chicago that's seems to be a gay brewery as there are like three or four gay flags everywhere the beer here was very good if pricey and the overall look is a very unique Style for a brewery and I like everything about this place. This place is not easy to find and you might have to get out of your car and look for it it is very clean inside and has the usual Brewery type activity of games and so forth board games

It's like you have found platform 9 3/4 to Hogwarts. You need to park on the street(free) and walk to the car wash parking lot entrance. Look to the left and you have found the secret (beer) garden. Cool tasing room in a old bow truss building. Fantastic beers served by knowledgeable brewmasters- thanks Rob - who may have learned their trade at the bigger Micro breweries in Chicago. Great addition to the growing restaurant scene in Norwood Park. Get out and have a quaff. Pro tip. Happy hour 4-6 Tu Wed Thur and other times if you Nike there they discount 10%.

Highly recommend this hidden gem in the Edison Park/ Norwood park area. Tony , Rob , and Ed are GOD TIER servers. They make you feel welcome and are the most attentive bartenders I have ever experienced. They play the best music. Music that you will hear and think to yourself "WHY HAVE I NEVER NOT BEEN TO THIS ESTABLISHMENT BEFORE" They have a wide selection of craft beers, and seltzer drinks that will fit any palette. Get your car washed and COME ON OVER FOR A DRINK 10-4 HOSS FROM AN OVER THE ROAD TRUCKER

Great little cozy spot. Had a flight with a few different styles (IPA, sour, stout and saison) and all were really good. Bartender was friendly too. Bonus - free popcorn!

Not enough stools. I went to sit down at the bar where there should have been a seat, but instead there was only cold, hard ground. More stools should be added to the bar in order prevent future injuries to both asses and egos. They do have great beers, though.

This place is definitely a hidden gem. The beers are amazing , the vibe is great , and John was the most friendly accommodating guy with an awesome personality.... He made for a great experience!! Can't wait for a return visit

Five times a billion stars we be awarding to these crusty weirdo-savants who keep their surreal candle burning for all the pointdexters, goldbrickers and no-counts. Go team!

This is a cool brewery, the kind that's for adults, not little kids. Nice sis e, great warehouse. More Brony please.

What an amazing addition to the far northwest side!!! Great atmosphere with very friendly and knowledgeable bartender who is passionate about their high quality craft beer. I'll definitely be back soon. It's tucked back next to wine styles.

The counterculture is alive and well in what looks to be a car wash in Norwood Park. I was excited to find this gem having recently moved to Edison Park. My wife and I are huge fans of breweries so finding a nice one down the street is huge. Unique setting, friendly staff, and delicious double dry hopped IPAs (a personal favorite). However, it was really a seltzer that sent it over the top for me. Fantastic flavor unlike what I've become accustomed to with the seltzer trends of the last few years. These guys don't shy away from a little experimentation, and I look forward to seeing what they come up with next.

I love breweries. I've been to my fair share. But this brewery is a gem among the giants in the Chicagoland area. While places like Revolution and Metropolitan have their hipster vibes, Illuminated attracts an unpretentious and more interesting crowd nestled in Norwood Park of all places. It's literally easy to miss. This is a cool little place to meet new friends while drinking good beer. After living in the city for a few years, this makes my temporary return to the NW burbs more interesting and I look forward to spending more time here, exploring more of their beers and events. The ambiance is eccentric and the beer is worthy. Definitely a unique, worthwhile experience.