Billy Goat Tavern Review & Bathroom Guide
Chicago, Illinois
The restroom won’t change your life. But the tavern itself is a piece of Chicago history, and sometimes that’s more important. Grab a cheeseburger. Order a beer. Look at the walls.
Source published July 2026
First-hand Shooki editorial
Shooki’s Review of Billy Goat Tavern
By Shooki · Source published July 2026
The restroom won’t change your life. But the tavern itself is a piece of Chicago history, and sometimes that’s more important. Grab a cheeseburger. Order a beer. Look at the walls.
Billy Goat Tavern is the kind of place that looks like it has survived everything.
Bad decisions. Newspaper deadlines. Political arguments. Cubs heartbreak. A few bar fights, probably. And nearly a century of people walking in hungry and leaving with a cheeseburger, a beer, and a story.
Founded in 1934, this place became a second home for Chicago journalists, helped inspire one of the most famous SNL sketches of all time, and even managed to get itself tangled up in the legendary Cubs curse.
That’s a hell of a résumé for a tavern.
Nothing here is trying to impress you.
The room is old, loud, worn in, and unapologetically Chicago. Photos cover the walls. The grill keeps moving. Somebody is shouting an order. Somebody else is drinking a beer at an hour when respectable people are probably answering emails.
You don’t come here for luxury.
You come for the history, the characters, and a “Cheezborger” cooked on a grill that has probably heard better stories than most of us ever will.
Best for
- Chicago history, characters and a Cheezborger
- A beer in an old, loud, worn-in tavern
- Looking at the walls and staying long enough to get the place
Less ideal for
- Luxury, modern surroundings or fancy restroom amenities
The Shooki Bathroom Review
First-party restroom record · Source published July 2026
Restroom verdict
Based on my first look at the place, I was preparing for the worst. Honestly? The restrooms were much better than expected. Still basic, still middle of the pack. 5/10.
- Restroom inventory
- 1 reviewed area — 1 shared men’s restroom and 1 women’s restroom; total venue room count unknown
- Review coverage
- Photos establish one shared restroom with two urinals, two basins, a soap dispenser, paper towel containers and a hand dryer. Original visit photos also document one toilet with grab rails and toilet paper. The men’s designation is inferred from the urinals rather than a photographed MEN door sign. A separate WOMEN door is photographed closed; its interior was not reviewed. Other rooms, complete building inventory and stall lock operation were not established.
- Room reviewed
- One shared restroom with urinals from my Billy Goat Tavern visit
- Accessibility status
- Unknown · Grab rails appear in the photographed toilet area. Complete routes, measurements and accessibility compliance were not verified.
- Why this score
- Cleaner and more functional than the tavern’s rough-around-the-edges appearance led me to expect. The basic setup and amenities kept it at 5/10.
- Layout
- I reviewed one shared restroom area with urinals. Photos also show a signed women’s door, but its interior was not reviewed. Complete venue room and fixture totals were not recorded.
- Capacity
- Complete venue room and fixture totals were not recorded during my visit.
Now, the restrooms.
Based on my first look at the place, I was preparing for the worst.
And honestly? They were much better than expected.
Not glamorous. Not modern. Not loaded with fancy amenities. But cleaner and more functional than the rest of the tavern’s rough-around-the-edges appearance might lead you to believe.
Still, the setup was fairly basic, and it wasn’t enough to push the score beyond the middle of the pack.