The Forge — Restaurant in Joliet

We came to The Forge to see Rockstar Rodeo and Dixie Crush (both country) which is not the typical genre the Forge hosts but they are expanding. I have never been here before it was The Forge but read the owners made some major interior improvements, like moving the staircase away from the side of the stage. I can totally see how this would have been a distraction during a concert. Upon arrival all 4 of us were carded, so don't get mad if you're older, they card everybody as it's their policy.

I like the main floor bar as it was dark but then lit up more in the back, to give not take away from the concert. Several large TVs are hung to have on a game, but one TV was dedicated as a menu board.

We arrived super early so we chose seats upfront. Small round pub tables and stools are your choices. There are not a ton of them, so if you're looking for a table and they are expecting a large turnout, plan on getting there early. Most people stand at concerts and in this case of a country concert, there was a large open area in front of the stage for dancing.

Service was good as there were several servers available, all checking up on us. I can see if this place is packed how service might get a bit tricky.

We ordered drinks first and I tried to order a mule, but seeing they have only been open for 3 weeks, they didnt have ginger beer yet. Not a deal breaker, as I ordered something else. I heard they plan on also bringing in craft beers on tap.

For food, their menu is very simple - a few sandwiches, apps, and salads. Here's what the 4 of us ordered: The Forge (a sub), Fire Fries, the burger, and the chicken sandwich. If you like subs, the Forge was great on a perfect bun, not too soggy, not too dry. The other sub option was the Anvil, (will try next time). The burger was cooked as ordered and was seasoned perfectly. The Fire fries, with Parmesan and chili oil were tasty, although the heat wasn't so extreme where you couldnt enjoy them. The chicken sandwich was seasoned as well. Fries needed some salt, but not a deal breaker. They are open for lunch during the day, so if you just need a place to grab a quick bite, defintiely give it a try.

We were given a tour of the 2nd floor upon request, and there is another bar to accommodate the balcony viewers. For certain larger concerts, you will be able to purchase an actual seat upstairs, overlooking the stage, with a little counter for drinks (good to know). We were then shown the Sapphire room on the 2nd floor, that was boooked for a private party that night. The room has a full bar, stage and seating to host all sorts of private parties when smaller concerts are playing at the Forge. For larger concerts, the Sapphire room will be the band's dressing room. There is a separate private entrance off the street, so you never have to go through the Forge at all.

Overall, I loved this venue. Small and quaint with great entertainment options and close to my house. I'm looking forward to The Forge bringing quality entertainment to the area again and helping revitalize the downtown...

Pros: close to home, smaller venue (can see bands super close), not have to pay extra cook county taxes, not having to pay ticketmaster taxes, free parking nearby.

Cons: super slippery floor when drinks get spilled. POOR MANAGEMENT!!! Nicci Allen will screw you out of money, lie to you, will change their story after you provide them with screenshot proof that they lied, will instantly block you on Facebook for even reaching out about refunds/crediting a different show, and will ignore your multiple emails AFTER offering you a spot on a guest list for a upcoming show of your choosing. Worst customer service I've ever had to deal with.

Backstory: a headliner canceled their tour due to medical reasons and could not perform but the remaining bands were still going to play. Multiple venues were offering refunds. The Forge did NOT post anything about refunds. They did however write one comment on a post saying refunds would be available but did not post any details about it. Many people reached out to the forge asking how to get refunded. The Forge denied these people including myself saying that "an email was sent out by ticketweb for refunds". Yes, an email was sent out but did NOT offer any refunds or credit for a future show. When I reached out to ticketweb they first said that no refunds, all sales final. I reached out to the forge and they said there was a 2 WEEK WINDOW and that i should have gotten the email. I reached back out to ticketweb and they CHANGED THEIR STORY to the 2 week deadline. NOBODY got information on this 2 week window for refunds. NOBODY got an email with refund information.

The forge then offered to put my name on a guest list for a future show of my choosing. I emailed back stating which show I would like and asked if it was going to be one or two spots seeing as I did originally buy two tickets for the canceled tour. A month goes by, no response. I emailed again. Another month goes by and still no response. I emailed a third time, and no response to this day, it's been another month. So three months total since the email sent to me offering a spot on the guest list.

So if you are looking for terrible customer service. Nicci from the Forge is your...

I don’t know who is running the Sunday local artist shows, but they are losing the venue money. They continually make artists perform before their scheduled time slot and cut acts short. I bought tickets to see “Michael the Author” on schedule to go at 8:30 for a 30 minute set. They had him perform at 6:55 because that’s what the manager said, and then they cut his act in half saying the next group had to go. Fans were still on their way and several missed the show. The person running the Sunday show is lying to everyone and just collecting ticket sales and missing out on bar sales and repeat, happy customers. If you are a new artist, perform somewhere else, you will not have a good experience here. The backstage was not accessible, no sound checks aloud or mic checks, no practice run available to artists. The artists are treated the worst and the fans aren't given a second thought. There are no breaks between songs, they play them one after another and even cut the instrumentals out to shorten the time. They made the artist sing over their own track. They would not budge on the music or the times despite having fans on the way. They wanted to close early and get out of there, might as well as not schedule a show. This venue could be so good with great shows and good turnout on what would typically be a slow day, and instead due to mismanagement they are losing money. If they only wanted 2 songs played they should've informed the performers from the start and told them accurate start times. The security guards and the bartenders were very helpful and efficient at their jobs, just the manager ruining what should’ve been an awesome night and turning it into a horrible one. I guess they only care about the big name metal bands and couldn’t care less about local artists from what I saw and experienced on Sunday. Local artists might as well as “Forget the Forge” because they...