Middle Brow Makes Everything. That Includes the Butter.
A Logan Square brewery, bakery, and pizzeria built on regional sourcing and fermentation that goes well beyond the beer. The sourdough alone justifies the trip.
Middle Brow makes the beer. They make the wine, the pizza dough, the sourdough, the pastries, the weekend bagels, and the soft serve. When I asked about the butter that came with the bread, the answer was that they hand-churn and culture it themselves, which explained the specific yellow color and the fact that it was the best butter I had eaten in recent memory. We got ours with honey and a tin of sardines on the side.
If you have never had butter, honey, and sardines together, please trust me on this one. The sardines were salty and smoky and the combination is one of those things that sounds like it should not work and then completely does. The sourdough holding all of it together is the same dough that has built Middle Brow's reputation across the city, naturally leavened, made from regional flour sourced primarily from Meadowlark Organics in Wisconsin, and charred and irregular in a way that tells you it was handled rather than processed. The New York Times put Bungalow on its list of the 22 best American pizzerias in 2024 and the bread alone makes that case.
The olives were fine. Briny as expected. They are supposed to come with sour cherries, which sounded interesting enough that we were looking forward to it. We got one cherry between us, which was a little deflating.
Tuesday is Tavern Tuesday and worth planning around specifically. The regular sourdough pizza gives way to an extremely thin, square-cut, Chicago tavern-style pie. Middle Brow adds butter to the sauce to lighten it so it does not overpower on the thinner crust, which is a thoughtful adjustment and one that works. The lace is good. The pizza on a regular night is very good without being the best in the city, and on Tavern Tuesday it becomes a different and worthwhile argument entirely.
The soft serve is made in house and self-serve, which is genuinely fun as a concept. They advertise interesting rotating flavors. Both times we have gone they were out and only had vanilla. The vanilla was good vanilla. It was still a little disappointing. Availability of toppings can be similarly hit or miss, which is a real limitation for a menu built around everything being made from scratch.
For non-drinkers, the NA IPA they brew in house is the best answer to that question I have found at a brewery in Chicago. Hoppy, full-flavored, and not asking you to compromise. The house sodas and other NA options are interesting and worth trying. This is a genuinely good place for both drinkers and non-drinkers at the same table.
The patio is expansive, flanked by grass and flowers, and makes Bungalow one of the better summertime destinations in Logan Square. A covered section handles shoulder season. Inside, the brewing equipment, kitchen, and tables share one long, bright, airy space that handles large groups and families better than most restaurants in the category. Come with people. Order widely. Get the bread first.
Stay up-to-date
