The Lantern

Almost missed out on this place because of the construction but glad I stopped in for the famous lantern burger. It's on the edge of downtown Naperville so parking is easier than it looks at first. First off: very chill spot - which is unusual for natty Naperville. Basically an old school tavern, saw a bunch of well off looking guys day drinking; I was the only one ordering food at 2 in the afternoon 😅. They all seem to know each other which is quaint these days. The lantern burger was amazing! Bun seems store bought but the patty is the real deal - thick, juicy, well seasoned and cooked with a nice sear on. Easy in and out and not much more than Mickey D's. Will return.

If you like dive bar vibes and fun atmosphere, this place is for you. They were playing great music. Never had to wait on a drink. Bartenders were super friendly. Great bar.

Your favorite hometown place, even if this isn’t your home. If you’re local to Naperville, you already know about The Lantern. You’ve been there and will be there again. Great food, better people, incredible atmosphere. You feel it as soon as you walk in the door.

This is what a bar should be. Great burgers (get The Lantern, not the 1/4 lb). Back room for lunch with friends and popcorn while you decide what to order. No pretence. No snobbery. No dressing to impress. And more beer options than you could ever want.

Dark hair arm sleeve tattoo bartender is possibly the worst bartender I’ve ever encountered. Looked me in the eye twice and she ignored me & walked away to serve others. Luckily the other short hair bartender was amazing. This place could be great, or terrible depending on who’s serving you.

So much fun!!! I come here every time I’m in town and always have a blast. Last time I came on trivia night and this trip, karaoke Tuesday. Shaun is amazing but the crowd here also makes it fun. Thanks for a great time!

Not much has changed, which i LOVE! This was literally my first bar as a college student quite a few years back, and been getting there fairly often ever since. None of my OG fave bartenders and managers are there anymore, but all the people still seem nice, and like i said, the place looks and feels the same, and there are still some reasonable prices to be had on certain beers and food. Come on people, everyone knows the Lantern ROCKS! Just a fun place to meet friends old & new and relax, have a good time.

Great bar with $4 bud light on draft! I came in with my friend and we had a great time watching track and field while sipping on some beers! The service was fast and the beer was cheap!

Where do I begin? It's my new favorite dive bar in the suburbs! We were just strolling through the neighborhood and I was compelled to take a peek caus there was a sign outside boasting of Naperville's oldest tavern. It is a beautiful old building, very well maintained and huge. I had to buy a souvenir shirt for my husband haha. They have a decent looking food menu but we didn't eat here. I asked a patron who was eating a burger how it was and he said the food is great. They reeled us back in later that day because they had karaoke!! This place was hopping like crazy! The DJ had an interesting way to request songs via an app. I only got one song as there were a ton of singers. We had an absolute blast. Come back for the karaoke! Great people watching. My friend was back a week ago and Cuba Gooding Jr was karaoking with the locals there! Wow

Had some great drinks and pretty average food at this long time local bar. It claims to be the oldest bar in downtown Naperville. The Lantern has only been around since the 1960s so not sure how it's possible. Basically the drinks are why people come. The food is typical bar stuff like wings and greasy things. Certainly it's a lot more casual than almost anything else around here. It's not full of hipsters and the like. The place looks a lot older than it says it is really. More like a bar that has food. You can find some pretty great specials. It's about $7 for a basic cocktail. There's also a happy hour. It's half off for appetizers. Save a lot on these. It's usually about $6 for chips and salsa, but we saved a few bucks. The rest of the menu has burgers and typical kind of stuff. Great place for happy hour. It's not as crowded as the other places around it. This is a great alternative for those overpriced hipster hangouts or wherever.

Been going here for years. It's a place for drinks. Not to eat. Sent back potato skins because they were burnt. Second serving you could definitely tell they were frozen for a while. Not good. Also very small. The fish and chips was cooked with old oil and made my lady sick. Not a place to eat.

Divey but fun. Decent selection of beer and cider. Our group enjoyed our brews. Service was decent.

Drinks were limited, small, and not good. It feels dirty and is not a place to relax and have a drink.

Loved getting hammered here with Ken, my mother in laws real estate agent. Man that guy could polish of the beers and shots. He's back drinking so we should be in soon. Coffee with Ken more like beers with Ken

Place is okay. Come here for the beer and environment. Has darts if you're into that. Gets pretty packed and very noisy. Seating is about 2-3 per table so squeeze tables together if you can. Our waitress was very busy and super helpful. Had the triple jam beer kinda fruit tasting, but not too bad. Would recommend.

Burgers are great Dive bar with history Lots of specials Popcorn and beer Ok service

The Lantern is Naperville's finest landmarks. So much history here, but what the best thing about The Lantern is that it has that down hometown feel in a big city. The bartenders are always Top Notch, and the food is really yummy. You definitely need to try the burger! Heck, order two because you might want to take one home. The atmosphere is dark and cozy with lots of energy. If you are in " The Ville" you MUST make this your first stop!

Tuesday Night Karaoke is amazing at The Lantern. A lot of talented singers and the KJ Shawn is excellent at his job. Every Tuesday night I have been there, the place was packed. The staff and other customers have been very friendly and accepting of me(I am a very intense talented unique performer and because I am "different" than others, I am not always accepted or feel welcome at some other bars). I really enjoy singing and dancing at The Lantern and I encourage other singers/dancers to try this place out ! A.Ron

I love this place. Burgers are perfect. Try the jalapeño cheeseburger! Yum. Been coming here for 20 years plus. It's a Naperville staple. Come mid-day and sit at the bar while you eat and have a cold brew. Staff is awesome. Burgers are cooked with Casey's meat so you can't go wrong!!

The bouncer was very rude. Was very judgemental toward me and my girlfriend. I would never come back to this bar. Naperville has very many better options. DONT COME HERE.

This place continues to be a fantastic, no frills, proper neighborhood tavern. It's an old school favorite with locals, a college town hangout, and a destination for people from neighboring towns and further. Burgers and sandwiches are great, service is friendly, and the value can't be beat. All these things lead a place that's moving just about every night so you can have fun during the week too. Trivia Wednesday and Kareoke Tuesday. Sometimes live music. I see a lot of people having trouble with their ID and complaining here. Total nonsense. The guys at the door do a great job keeping a busy pace safe.

The Lantern is the best place to gather with friends for great food and drinks! The staff is amazing and the sliders are delicious! We're so lucky to have a long standing establishment where everyone feels at home!

The Lantern is a GEM in Naperville! Not only do they have great food (you must have the cheese curds!) but the atmosphere is exactly what you want when you just want to hang out with friends, watch some sports and drink some good beer! Jamie and the rest of the staff are fun, welcoming, attentive and engaging! Not to mention, when I come in with my tennis team, they handle our large orders and multitude of requests with ease!

Disappointed today in our favorite establishment in Naperville. Came in after Last Fling with the kids to have a burger, which are great, but was told after we put in our drink order that the kitchen was closed and the hot dogs they had a promo for were already gone. Ultimately just a disappointing experience at the place I would choose tenfold over any other in downtown.

Stopped in to have a beer on a Saturday afternoon. There was no one seated at the bar and a few tables were taken with people eating lunch. They have lots of tvs and the bar has a divey feel but I don't think it is a dive bar. Probably 10-15 beers on tap plus a large liquor selection. Didn't try the food but everyone else seemed to be having lunch. A good place to have a drink if you are in downtown Naperville.

David is the best bouncer!!!!!!!!!! Our entire experience was heightened by him!!!!! Make sure to go on a night David is working!!!! Love this place/feel safe because of him.

The bouncer here told me my ID was fake and proceeded to use the infinity stones on me.

I have never had such terrible service. Older lady was Bartendering and she was terrible. Definitely never coming back.

Amanda was serving us. Never going back again. Terrible service. Whether she is new or not. Unprofessional.

I have lived in the Naperville area since 2011. I've been to Lantern a handful of times and have noticed a recurring theme every visit. For one, the majority of rap/hip hop and Latin songs get skipped by the bartenders over rock and country songs on paid requests made over the TouchTunes app. Service is pretty slow if you are not a regular and last call is never announced and is subjective to certain individuals.. Also, keep track of your tab, because you will not be given an itemized bill. I wanted to see what I was paying for after this specific visit because I waited longer than normal for a drink while seated at the bar and was still given the wrong drink order a couple of times. After asking for the itemized bill, I was given a sarcastic response from an older bartender and given a handwritten bill with no drink names or prices. There are many local bars in surrounding area with more professional and consistent service than Lantern.

Great place to meet up with friends. Stay for a drink or all afternoon! Staff is super friendly and great bar food. a Naperville staple !

Their fried pickles are to die for!!! My absolute fav!! Such a cute atmosphere as well!!

Andy?!?!?!?! King. It's st paddy's day and he has made me feel so welcome and taken care of. Need a seat? He's gonna bring it to you. Need a table cleared? Andy's your guy. Fucking KING. Thank you Andy for making my st paddy's night incredible. Slainte

Service? Ha! What service? We were ignored! I remember this place being way better. Maybe my expectations were lower. The place was overpacked with what? 2 1/2 employees! Watched us walk out. Not a word.

Walking by randomly on a Thursday night, we were drawn in by the live music and fun atmosphere. Mike, the owner, went above and beyond for my out of town friend and mom by welcoming us in with a table by the band and taking our order. Hightly recommend this place!!

If you. An avoid James the bartender who seems like you're totally wasting his time, then you'll be ok

Fun atmosphere! It's a little hidden jewel in downtown Naperville. The service is fantastic, Jamie is the best. Very attentive and on top of everything. I highly recommend the "Lantern Mule" and the cheese curds!

Tami the bartender made this place a blast! First time checking out the Naperville area and she made it feel like home. I'll be back soon!

Go to bar to have quick drinks and and nice small places with a wide variety of drink options

literally the greatest place on earth. have you ever met an angel? no? clearly you've never been to the lantern then. the bartenders are the bees knees, the cats meow. insert heart emoji. food is 11 outa 10. staff are 15 outa 10. tots are straight from heaven.

After reading all these negative reviews, figured we'd give this a try to see just how true these reviews could be. I'll start by saying maybe when posting a review, it should be preceded by the reviewers age. If you are under 40 and reviewing an old fashioned bar... just don't!! Go back to your over priced, fruity mixers you call drinks. Leave the real drinking for the adults. Now if you're looking for a place to have reasonably priced drinks, listen to music that doesn't include cuss words or gangster lyrics, then The Lantern in Naperville is the place. Staff was friendly, service was prompt and the environment reminded us of what a bar should be like. Unlike the other reviews that go straight to the race card, I'll say, we were respectful and were treated the same. Stop in, leave your race card, pompous privilege and bad attitude at home and you'll end up having a great time.

Imagine having a bouncer claiming to know what a fake ID looks like, only to be wrong but still adamant that a real ID from the DMV is somehow illegitimate.

Multiple times, multiple friends have has stolen credit cards or been extremely over charged. They think people won't notice, always check your statement!!! Not to mention I have gotten food poisoning here and will never eat here again.

This place literally is the essence of Naperville. It is a perfect place if you are 32 and want to have a good night out! The is a bit of rich pompousness and woefully underpaid employee energy going on with the customers but everyone gets into a melting pot of $3 bluemoons and semi-craft beer. It's great for that exact energy that you think it would be. Mid 2000s hits and the occasional middle aged person screaming "WOO!" semi ironically but also enthusiastic enough to make everyone be okay with it. The staff is great but always seemed overwhelmed on thurs-sunday. So service can be slow but I never got a wrong drink or was overcharged. Stay away from the popcorn.... My rating system... is based on the local area and not of the world wide scope of quality & service. Comparing an experience in Berlin to Nepal wouldn't serve either justice. However judging each establishment based on their neighbor is a great way to determine the relative quality of an establishment. 5/5 - The most stand out performance compared to all other places of service in the local area (almost shocking) 4/5 - The highest level within the context of the local area (great/fantastic) 3/5 - On-Par with local area (Edible for all persons/usually good for families or a quick fix) 2/5 - Worse than other options locally (worth it only if it's the only thing open) 1/5 - Should seek new management or completely reinvent themselves. (This review is after several trips to the establishment 'pre or during' COVID-19 and does not reflect the status of the shop post pandemic)

I see your bouncers can't admit when they're wrong and they like to take ids from women. Definitely wouldn't recommend this place.

This is a fun bar in downtown Naperville. It's kinda dive-y, but yet it's not. The beer list is decent. They have free popcorn to snack on. There's a good amount of seating. There's darts. The staff are friendly and helpful. It's definitely the kind of place where the staff knows their regulars and takes care of them.

Local Flavor, a competitor of Groupon, helped me find this place. I was in the area with my wife and we wanted a place to eat at that was not fast food and not expensive. And this was a great find! Located right off Washington St. in downtown Naperville, this place has a townie bar feeling, but since its Naperville it has a feel of a bar for everyone. Food was good. Not the best, but still good. I had the Lantern Burger which was really a cheeseburger with mayo, lettuce, onions, and picked. I had tater tots. I also had chips and salsa. My wife had chili and potato skins. She said her chili was good, but not the best. I would give this place 5 stars, but the central air was messed up. We sat probably in the coldest part of the restaurant while other parts were warm. Nevertheless....it's inexpensive with better then average "bar food." The local flavor app had an offer for 10.00 for a 20.00 value. So we had a lot of food for 20.00 dollars. We ended up paying around 14.00 with tip. Definitely check this place out.

I really enjoy this place. My dad and I came here for the first time after a kayak trip on the west branch of the Dupage River which is conveniently located right behind The Lantern. On this visit I had a caesar salad with an old fashioned. Both were great. I don't usually get salads at bars but this caesar had a fresh grilled piece of chicken and tasted just as one should. Across the way my buddy had a chili and pineapple upside down martini. He said good things about both. All in all The Lantern has a certain charm to it I can't describe. They also have a $3 beer of the month that is always pretty good. I highly recommend if you're in the area.

Super bad atmosphere would never come back food was gross and got overcharged on my CC I saw the reviews and figured people were just hating on the place but after going here I would never recommend this place to anyone not even someone I hate

I've gone to The Lantern a handful of times and have always considered it a decent spot for Naperville. I'm under 21 but haven't been carded since I don't order alcohol. Today I went to The Lantern and for the first time I was carded immediately upon sitting down. Frustratingly, I turn 21 in 4 days, was not planning to order alcohol, and was catching up with friends I hadn't seen in three years. I would've been totally content if the server simply explained that the policy at a certain hour was that under 21s can't be there and that I would need to leave. Instead, he says "if you're under 21 you need to get the fuck out of here". Total mood killer and completely unnecessarily rude. I had to awkwardly say goodbye to the friends I hadn't seen in years and it's totally ruined my view of The Lantern. Rude staff is not a good look.

While waiting for my ride home I decided to try this place for a beer or two. While watching the titans/ bengals plays. Nice crowd. Nice vibe throughout the place. I'm at the bar standing in front of four employees. Nobody bother to wait on me. After ten minutes of waiting I'm finally waited on. Then I seat myself (no problem with that). Now for a full nfl quarter with commercials no one came to ask me if I wanted something to eat.

I'm not up to date with all the Naperville bars nowadays. Naperville was a different homey downtown when I grew up there, and the Lantern is one of the few originals. Honestly, I don't know if there are any other original bars left? Yes, in my childhood, I did come to this bar regularly because my dad took me to watch football and eat chili. (That's when I thought I liked football just to be a daddy's girl) The Lantern is special to me because of my memories, and because it represents the original Naperville. I mean, pre-my childhood. My dad used to come here in the 70's in the days before carding at the door. It is one of the least hip/trendy bars in the area, but it's enjoyable and laid back. I think they still have the free popcorn that they've served for 30 years!

We've been Malorted!! A friend of mine is visiting the Chicago area from Philly for the first time and had a list of Chicago things to try. And somehow, Malort had made its way on there. If you don't know, Malort is a hometown liquor, Swedish in origin, made from wormwood and almost impossible to get outside of Chicago. So she (and my intrepid boyfriend) decided they had to try it. I called around and the Lantern was able to supply us, so we trekked down one night for a snootful. Now, I only had a tiny sip of theirs. But we had read things about "The Malort face" (due to its bitterness) and wanting more despite its awful taste. I can safely tell you that none of us wanted another round, and our kindly waitress commiserated with us about it afterward. (The Lantern must do a business in Malort, though, because you can by t-shirts that say "I Got Malorted at The Lantern" -- it's right up on the wall over the bar!) As to the bar itself, this is a casual corner hangout: dark, wood walls, free popcorn machine, darts and other gaming, Cubs game on all the TVs (occasionally inspiring deafening roars from the crowd). I've lived in Naperville for years and have never once been here, but some of my neighbors love it, and it definitely provided in this instance! So whether you are looking for a hometown tipple or just a comfy dive bar, the Lantern is shining a beacon for you.

Still a great bar...until 10pm. That's when the cockbag volume goes up.

The worst experience ever... went for dinner and drinks with a friend. The cheeseburgers were undercooked so we sent them back. The cheeseburgers came back charred... when we told our waitress she rolled her eyes! Hardly anyone in bar.... it was trivia night yet it took forever to get the waitress attention. She was too busy shouting out answers! We left and went to Fat Rosie's down the street! Excellent drinks, service and delicious food! Stay away from the lantern and head over to fat Rosie's.

I dropped in here with colleagues for lunch. The mushroom and Swiss burger I had (with tator tots) was quite generous and good for $7.25. The place was quite crowded, maybe unusually so due to US Men's Olympic hockey being on TV. Overall, looked to be a great place to have a beer and watch sports as there are a ton of TV's also.

"Where everybody knows your name..." The good 'ole Lantern. Such a staple in Naperville. I just love coming here - especially with large groups! As long as we get there by 8 we're always able to pull together huge long tables. Which is hard to do anywhere else dt nape on a weekend night. The Lantern has a super divey home-town feel which is most of its charm. This bar had all the essentials: friendly staff, cheap drinks, bar food, darts and free popcorn. Nothin fancy, just everything you need for a successful night out. Their food isn't gourmet bit it's damn good. I suggest the grilled cheese, Reuben or cheese curds! Contrary to popular belief they serve more than domestics beer! I've sipped on a handful of craft beers here and the Lantern may not advertise fancy beverages, but those bartenders know how to mix a good drink!