Bears Gameday Date Guide: Five Dates Before Kickoff

The best date in Chicago this fall is not dinner and a movie. It is brunch or dinner, then the Bears. Five date ideas, each one ending at Soldier Field. Pick the spot first: the room with the right light, food that lands, drinks that do not wreck the budget. The game is the after-party, and every room on this list is a short ride to Soldier Field when it is time to move.

The Bears are a charter NFL franchise, born as the Decatur Staleys in 1920, and they have played on the lakefront at Soldier Field since 1971. This is the town that made the 1985 Bears immortal, the town where November football along the lake is a religion. The colonnades, the cold, the crowd noise coming off the water: there is no building in the league that feels like Soldier Field on a big night, and this fall it is loud again.

Night game means dinner date. Noon Sunday means brunch date. Here is where to go.

The Gage

The Michigan Avenue workhorse, Loop

Official site · (312) 372-4243 · 24 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60603

Photo: The Gage (official site)

Photo: The Gage (official site)

When to go: brunch Saturday and Sunday from 10. Lunch and dinner daily from 11. No published happy hour, so the play is the meal, not the deal.

The lemon ricotta pancakes land first on a brunch date: a tall stack with berries, syrup going on at the table, a Bellini alongside. Later in the day it is the poutine royale with braised short rib and Wisconsin curds, the crab cake eggs Benedict, and the beer-battered fish and chips. Twenty years on Michigan Avenue and The Gage still eats like it means it: a vintage gastropub with the fireplace going, a bar that knows what it is doing, and an award-winning wine list behind it. This is the one you book when you are not sure about the kickoff, because it covers nearly all of them.

What to order The lemon ricotta pancakes, the poutine royale with braised short rib, the crab cake eggs Benedict, and the beer-battered fish and chips.

What to drink The Gage G&T, or the award-winning wine list.

Best game It covers every kickoff: brunch on noon Sundays, dinner on the night games.

The date costs About $85 for brunch for two, about $110 for dinner, tickets extra.

Getting to Soldier Field Walkable, about 30 minutes down Michigan Avenue.

Chicago Firehouse

The South Loop room closest to the stadium, 1401 S Michigan

Official site · (312) 786-1401 · 1401 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60605

Photo: via festivals.com

Photo: @chicagofirehouserestaurant (official Instagram)

When to go: brunch Sunday, 10 to 3. Happy hour weekdays, 4 to 5, in the bar: $5 appetizers, $5 red and white wines, half-price cocktails (details shift, so confirm at the bar). Dinner Monday through Thursday and Sunday 5 to 10, Friday 5 to 11, Saturday 4 to 11.

The prime cheeseburger is the move: an 8 oz angus patty with house-smoked bacon, American cheese, dill pickles, and special sauce on a sesame bun, handcut Kennebec fries alongside. The old Engine Company 104 firehouse, 1905 Romanesque brick a short walk from the Museum Campus. The closest proper restaurant date to Soldier Field, and the room earns it.

What to order The prime cheeseburger, the prime rib sandwich, the lobster bisque, and the short rib poutine. Brunch brings benedicts, fried chicken, and a surf and turf Bloody Mary.

What to drink A half-price cocktail at happy hour, or the $5 red.

Best game Brunch on noon Sundays, happy hour at 4 and dinner by 5:30 on Patriots Thursday night.

The date costs About $90 for brunch, about $70 at happy hour, about $120 for dinner, tickets extra.

Getting to Soldier Field Walkable, about 10 minutes.

Cindy’s

The rooftop date, 13th floor of the Chicago Athletic Association

Official site · (312) 792-3502 · 12 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60602

Photo: Eater Chicago

Photo: Cindy’s (official site)

When to go: brunch Saturday and Sunday from 10. Lunch weekdays 11 to 2, dinner daily 5 to 10. No published happy hour, so go for the view, not the deal. One catch: the room closes early for private events on some dates, including October 22, the Patriots Thursday night game, when it closes at 2:30, so check before a night game.

Order the Smashburger: two 3 oz patties, caramelized onion, aged cheddar, dijonnaise, and house pickle with fries, eaten with the Bean and the skyline in front of you. The jewel of the Chicago Athletic Association: a rooftop under a glass atrium on the 13th floor, Millennium Park and the lake laid out in front of you. The most romantic table on this list, full stop.

What to order The East Coast oysters, the Smashburger, the Duck Pot Pie, and the Half Smoked Chicken with piri piri.

What to drink The Grey Garden, a Bloody Mary at brunch, or the espresso martini the regulars rave about.

Best game Brunch on noon Sundays, dinner before Buccaneers Sunday night. Skip Patriots Thursday: the room closes at 2:30 for a private event.

The date costs About $110 for brunch, about $140 for dinner, tickets extra.

Getting to Soldier Field Walkable, about 30 minutes, straight down Michigan.

Acanto

The wine-bar date for the night games, 18 S Michigan

Official site · (312) 578-0763 · 18 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60603

Photo: @acantochicago (official Instagram)

Photo: @acantochicago (official Instagram)

When to go: happy hour Monday through Friday, 2:30 to 5:30: $9 wines by the glass, $5 Peroni, $6 Menabrea, snacks from $5. Open Monday through Thursday 11 to 10, Friday 11 to 11, Saturday 4 to 11, Sunday 4 to 10. No brunch; dinner only on weekends.

The move is the happy hour: sit at 3, drink $9 Sardinian reds, eat $5 tomato bruschetta and $7 prosciutto bruschetta with truffled ricotta, then walk the park path south. Gage Hospitality’s Italian room across from Millennium Park, with a Wine Spectator two-glass list and a Michigan Avenue patio. The pregame wine date.

What to order The hamachi crudo, the lobster spaghetti, the short rib rigatoni, and the prosciutto bruschetta with truffled ricotta.

What to drink The $9 Sardinian Cannonau at happy hour, or an Aperol spritz.

Best game Happy hour into Patriots Thursday Night Football, dinner before Buccaneers Sunday night.

The date costs About $65 for two at happy hour, about $120 for dinner, tickets extra.

Getting to Soldier Field Walkable, about half an hour down Michigan Avenue.

Tapas Valencia

The shareable South Loop date, 1530 S State

Official site · (312) 842-4444 · 1530 S State St, Chicago, IL 60605

Photo: Tapas Valencia (official site)

Photo: Tapas Valencia (official site)

When to go: brunch Sunday, 10:30 to 3. Dinner Monday through Thursday 5 to 9, Friday 5 to 10, Saturday 3 to 10, Sunday 3 to 8:30. Regulars swear by the happy hour, but the deal list is not published, so ask at the bar.

Order everything for the middle of the table: gambas al ajillo, bacon-wrapped dates, patatas bravas, and baked goat cheese, with sangria by the pitcher. Spanish guitar, mosaic tile, a patio that goes late into the fall. The fun South Loop date.

What to order The gambas al ajillo, the bacon-wrapped dates, the patatas bravas, and the baked goat cheese.

What to drink Sangria by the pitcher, or the Valencia orange smoked old fashioned.

Best game Brunch on noon Sundays, dinner before the night games.

The date costs About $80 for brunch for two, about $95 for dinner, tickets extra.

Getting to Soldier Field Walkable, about 15 to 20 minutes.

The Bears, Briefly

The Bears sit at 2-1 through three weeks: a 59-37 shootout win at Carolina, a 3-9 home loss to the Vikings, and a 27-7 Monday night statement over the Eagles at Soldier Field. Caleb Williams has MVP buzz in his third year, and the defense that carried last season’s 11-6 NFC North title is ball-hawking again. Only one game out of first place, with the Jets coming in Sunday at noon. On November 22 the Saints come to Soldier Field at noon, so New Orleans gets a front-row look at this team.

THE SCHEDULE, IF YOU NEED IT

Sunday, Oct 4 vs. New York Jets, noon CT, FOX. Tickets start around $335.

Thursday, Oct 22 vs. New England Patriots, 7:15 PM CT, Prime Video (Thursday Night Football). Tickets start around $395.

Sunday, Nov 8 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 7:20 PM CT, NBC (Sunday Night Football). Tickets start around $310.

Sunday, Nov 22 vs. New Orleans Saints, noon CT, FOX. Tickets start around $305.

Sunday, Dec 6 vs. Jacksonville Jaguars, noon CT, FOX. Tickets start around $265.

Friday, Dec 25 vs. Green Bay Packers, noon CT, Netflix (Christmas Day). Tickets start around $415.

Sunday, Jan 3 vs. Detroit Lions, 3:25 PM CT, FOX. Tickets start around $220.

Ticket prices are the cheapest seats on SeatGeek, checked October 2, 2026, and they move. Date costs are our estimates for two people. The formula: pick the date first, then check the kickoff. Noon Sunday means brunch (The Gage, Chicago Firehouse, Tapas Valencia, Cindy’s). Night game means happy hour (Chicago Firehouse, Acanto) or dinner (The Gage, Tapas Valencia, Cindy’s). Either way, confirm times before you go.