The Geek Bar Beta is in Wicker park at 1941 West North Avenue. A friend told me about the event and I dressed up, though I think my outfit turned out more like a pirate then steampunk, and met my friends at the bar. The Geek Bar Beta hosts a lot of events. The night prior to the Steampunk tea party they had a Harry Potter winter feast, so packed there were no seats left, and their new years event sold out. The Steampunk tea party was free to enter with many people dressed in their Victorian goggled clockworkish finery. They served tea, with alcohol and had two special items added to their nerdy menu. I ordered the Verdant Verne and their tea snacks (the two special event items).
The Verdant Verne was Rishi Jasmine Green Tea, Koval Chrysanthemum Honey Liqeur, and Combier. It was light, refreshing, and somewhat potent. The tea snacks were a chocolate chip scone (Gluten free) and a chocolate almond Brioche (vegan). The scone wasn’t great, but the brioche was warm and soft and amazing.
My friends ordered the Bluth Family special which was waffle battered chicken strips with house made honey mustard that wasn’t a particularly large amount, maybe good for a single person or as an appetizer. We also split the AWESOMESAUCE! with fries, which was a big bowl of house cut fries with awesome sauce of black garlic aioli and ketchup. The sauce grew on me as time went on, but my friends preferred to dip their fries in the honey mustard from the Bluth family special. The fries were big enough for three of us to easily share. The menu at Geek Bar beta rotates so some of these items may not be on there if you go.
The Geek Bar was a lot of fun. They play movies, are decorated with all sorts of nerdy things and to find the bathrooms just follow the signs leading towards the ministry of magic. They also have games you can borrow and books to look at and you can pay for an hour of playing with a 3Doodler (a pen that allows you to doodle in 3D). Our waiter was friendly. They’re also open outside of events, so you can go and check out their menu without being there for some special event. (Unless it’s a big ticketed event) There were a few people in a different section of the space playing games. You also don’t have to dress up for events, though its encouraged, sometimes with discounts. Children are also allowed in the space until later in the evening. The Geek Bar Beta has been waiting for some paperwork so they can open up their full Geek Bar (without the Beta) at 1960 North Clybourn Avenue, which should open early this year. (2015) We had a lot of fun and it seems to be a positive safe space for all to enjoy some nerdyness.