Town Liquor has been owned and operated by the Joyce family since 1978. Over those 32 years the family – and its surnames: Joyce, Gibbons, Donnellan and Kujawa – have expanded, but the level of community commitment and quality service and excellent selection of merchandise has remained unchanged.

 

Not only has the store been an important employer over the years, it is also a generous supporter of area schools through the Manna program, and organizations as a sponsor. As a member of the Armanetti buying group for the past ten years, Town has been able to get better deals on merchandise and pass those savings along to customers.

 

Although Town is a full service beverage store, offering an extensive selection of beer, wine and spirits, the store sells more wine than any other beverage, according to Tom Gibbons. “We carry about 2,000 different wines,” Gibbons said. And along with the selection, they offer expert advice and periodic tastings to help customers decide what wines to purchase and how to serve them.

 

“We try to keep up with the trends,’ Gibbons said. “We’re always stocking new products.” Big sellers in March are the Irish beers and spirits. Customers looking for micro brews and craft beers will find am excellent selection.  

 

Whether you’re planning a big party or just ready to relax after a busy day at work, Town has everything you’ll need in beverages, including a variety of mixers, bar ware, snacks, and even bleu cheese stuffed olives for martini aficionados. “We do have everything,” Gibbons said.   

 

 Loyal customers appreciate this neighborhood store’s friendly assistance and community spirit and Town appreciates its many loyal customers.  

 

Shop at Town 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mon. through Fri., 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sat., and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sun.

 

There’s nothing like a freshly brewed cup of coffee on a chilly winter morning. At Beverly Coffee Shop, owner Dan Donahue goes out of his way to provide great coffee in a warm and friendly atmosphere. Donahue has owned this cozy coffee spot for just over a year, offering a delectable menu of coffees, teas, smoothies and soft drinks, as well as light breakfast and lunch fare.

 

“We buy our coffees from around the world and roast them on the South Side,” Donahue said. The top quality coffee beans are ground fresh for each pot of coffee – Donahue serves two coffees of the day, a strong and a mild – as well as for each specialty coffee beverage. “Grinding the coffee on the spot makes a real difference,” he said.

 

Donahue knows many of his customers and enjoys the true neighborhood feel he experiences serving the people who have become his friends, it’s kind of like the “Cheers” of coffee shops, he said.

 

Breakfast choices include freshly baked muffins as well as bagels, toast, yogurt, donuts, and, for the kids, cinnamon-sugar toast and cereal with milk. The lunch menu features a variety of freshly made sandwiches and pizza bagels. For a snack, try homemade cookies, brownies or ice cream treats.

 

Hours are 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays, and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekends. Drive through service available.

 

Don’t be fooled when you walk into the small storefront that houses Bev-Art Brewer & Winemaker Supply. Even though it’s just one store, this successful business reaches all the way downtown, out to the suburbs and even down state. 

 

Greg Fischer’s brewing and bottling enterprise is a great place for neighborhood beer and wine lovers to go to learn to make their own brews and vintages. Everything you need -- from hops to bottletops -- is available right here on Western Avenue. Also available is Fischer’s many years of experience making beer and wine. He was just six when he started helping his grandfather make wine, and those early lessons have served him well. Fischer studied agri-business and soil science in college (where he also brewed beer as a hobby), then went to New York City where he worked at a wine school and was then hired at Seagrams. Seagrams transfered him to Chicago. When the company was sold, Fischer decided to go into the beer making supply business  “because this is a beer town,” he said. That was 1989.

 

Bev-Art is now one of the biggest beer and wine making supply stores in Chicago. Professionals and home brewers come from all over the city and some other cities to purchase supplies. Many also come to learn to make beer and wine. $99 + the cost of supplies will allow you to make 6 gallons of beer or wine -- that’s two cases of each once it’s bottled. Beer takes about 4 weeks and wine 6 to 10 weeks to be ready to drink.

 

Fischer also makes award-winning wines and meads (honey based wines) that are sold locally at Town Liquor and County Fair Foods, as well as at Binny’s Fischer travels to California to select the grapes that he uses in his wines -- and yours! There’s a lot more to his story! Stop by Bev-Art 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mon. through Sat. Learn more at bev-art.com.