Lincoln Karaoke

After reading the great yelp reviews on this place I decided I wanted to have my birthday party here. My husband called two weeks before my party to get all the info and prices and asked if the date we wanted was available. We were told that would be a perfect date. My husband called back a week before to make sure the date / time was still cool and with a better idea of the numbers of guests we would have. This time he was told that we had a drink minimum for the room on top of the hourly fee. We were not really happy about this but plans had already been put in motion so he let it go. He gave them our credit card number to hold the room. They were supposed to provide a birthday cake and decorations. SO how horrible was it when we showed up at this place and it dark and closed 10 min before my party is supposed to start! We stand out in the COLD for 45 minutes thinking someone will show up or call us and NOTHING!!! As our friends begin to show we realize this party is not going to happen here so we move the party to a bar and spend the next hour trying to text and call friends to let them know where we are. Not the way I imaged my party going.... Thanks for nothing Lincoln Karaoke. Lesson Learned...Just go to the Hidden Cove down the street if you want Karaoke. It's actually not that far a walk from Lincoln Karaoke....I know because I walked there the night of my birthday party, in the snow, in 3 inch heels because they could not bother to open.

Pros: down the street from other open bars that rock

Cons: can't show up to work like the rest of us/ never waste your $ here

Posted 03/02/09

I must admit when first walking into this place I was like "what in the world" you can hear people having a blast in their own private room. You jam w/ your buddies and have a blast. We missed our reservation and had to wait on a room, however the staff was wonderful. We recieved free beer while we waited and a free shot of some speciality drink afterwards.

Good time had by all and a variety of music selections for all cultures.

However, have a timekeeper b/c they charge by the hour and room size. There are no clocks in the rooms so you can run up a bill pretty fast.

Pros: Thumbs up on Ambience;Thumbs up on song selection

Cons: Thumbs down on Parking; Thumbs down on no clocks in the rooms.

Posted 01/04/09

I certainly enjoy pleasant surprises. After living in Kyoto and in LA for almost nearly 20 years, I've been to many karaoke places-from the standard to the exquisite-so when my friends told me that I had to try this place in the midwest, I told myself that it couldn't be better than those found in Japan or in LA. WOW-was I wrong? This is definitely my new HAPPY place. The owner goes out of his way to make sure that everything is A-OK. They have state of the art LCD screens and a speaker and smplifier system to blast NYC. The beer list is extensive and the food is phenomenal. We had chicken wings and fried dumplings and they were delicious. The owner also gave us a free bottle of champagne and even offered to drive us home becuase we were drunk. Talk about service and then some. It's refreshing to be at a place where they put YOU ahead of $. Thank you Lincoln Karaoke for a wonderful night!!!

Pros: Everything

Cons: I need to think long and hard for this

Posted 03/20/08

I've been to genuine Japanese private room karaoke in Osaka, so when I heard there was a "private room"-style establishment in Chicago, I was EXTREMELY excited. The experience I had in Japan included a nice, contemporary-looking set of hallways with hip lighting and nice wooden floors, leading to a series of doorways the opened onto tiny private booths set up with 2 mics, a television/karaoke unit, a table, and a call button. For the equivalent of $28 a person, you had the room to yourselves for 4 hours, plus ALL alcoholic drinks included (Japan travels on subways, not cars, so it's easier to drink yourself silly without having to designate a sober driver in the group). You summon the wait staff simply by picking up a phone in the booth and ordering round after round of drinks, or from a good selection of food (which cost extra).

This was not the case with Lincoln Karaoke. I attended a birthday party there in one of the rooms, and when my friend and I entered the tiny blink-and-you'll-miss-it storefront building, it looked like we were standing in someone's low-rent college apartment hallway. The "bar" is just the front desk with a folding table full of basic liquors. It really didn't feel like a business, it felt like some shaaady apartment building.

The GOOD thing about this place is the rooms themselves. They could definitely use some decor, but the karaoke equipment is top-notch, including the flat screens mentioned by other reviewers. I go to a lot of different karaoke establishments, and the song selection here is pretty paltry unless you can sing in Korean, but it IS nice to have a private room if you're afraid to sing in public. But the drink line is always long (and drinks cost as much as they would in much nicer places), no one delivers to the room, and the rooms DESPERATELY need some more decor. Non-white walls would be a great start.

I probably would never go here again, but then again, once you've had filet mignon...

Pros: Singing in the privacy of your own room, great equipment...

Cons: The decor, the fake "bar", the poor song selection, bad parking...

Posted 03/05/08

There are 9 rooms of different sizes for big or small groups. You can get drinks at the press of a button! They have the best equipment I've ever seen; flat creen plasmas on the wall for reading the lyrics and 4 speakers. The big rooms have a screen at either end of the room. Management is friendly and attentive, and they have like 30 different kinds of beers. The mixed drink selection is kind of basic but the drinks are made to taste, not just " a shot from the pourer". You have to go there and sing to believe it.

Posted 09/24/07

Seriously the best karaoke place you can go to in chicago... Don't be embarassed about singing don't be embarassed about having the best night of your life. You get a private room and food and drink come to you. Just enjoy yourself... I can't believe what a great night I had here. Come enjoy yourself and relax and have a good time. I know I did and I know I will...

Pros: everything

Cons: nothing

Posted 09/17/07