JL's Pizza and Sports Bar — Restaurant in Palatine Township

Christina the bartender is awful. She is not friendly and I have witnessed her belittle customers and also the waitresses on a few occasions. It takes forever to get service at tables so customers often need to go to the bar to get a drink but then Christina asks the customer if they are sitting at a table already, if the customer says yes, Christina advises the customer that the server will help them. Welllll the server hasn't been to our table in 10-15 mins so is the customer not allowed to get a new drink??? I understand drink orders should be placed with the server and not the bartender but it takes too long nearly every time I have been there. I've sat at the tables and at the bar and customers getting up from their table and going to bar to place orders happens allllll night long. Sooo, now between Christina's unfriendly attitude and the slow table service my friends and I for sure won't be going back. They need to either have an additional server on the floor or an additional bartender that only focuses on filling drink orders for the table customers to increase the efficiency of receiving drinks. There are too many alternatives in Palatine that have better table service and friendly bartenders. On a brighter note, the food is good and...

Racist Incident at JL's

Despite being regulars at JL's, our recent experience was profoundly disappointing and deeply disturbing due to a racially tinged incident. We opted to sit at the bar. After sitting there for 10 minutes without any issue, and only after I speaking Spanish with a fellow patron, the bartender started screaming at us and rudely claimed that the seats were occupied by two guests who had stepped out. Her aggressive behavior appeared to stem from racist assumptions.

Shockingly, these seats remained unoccupied for the rest of the evening, and the supposed guests did not even sit there upon returning, indicating that the bartender's claim was dishonest and a clear instance of targeted harassment. This encounter left us feeling uncomfortable and unwelcome, in stark contrast to the friendly and inclusive atmosphere we had previously associated with JL's.

We urge JL's management to address this issue seriously. Their staff needs to be trained in diversity and inclusivity, ensuring that every patron is treated with respect and dignity, regardless of ethnicity or language.

Until then, I have to changemy original review. Original below. Great food and great prices, staff is always very friendly, but I hope that they can get some...

JL’s is the best. Great pizza, great service, low-key environment. Even if you’re not super into sports, it’s an awesome place to enjoy a beer. All of the servers there are super nice, and the best part is, they don’t bother you every 5 minutes like at some 'fancy’ places, but they still know when to come over to ask if you need another beer.

Also, they have made multiple customized pizzas for me and my boyfriend, all of which have turned out wonderfully! I will post pictures. For my boyfriend’s birthday, they were able to deliver a “Happy Birthday” pizza written in pepperoni. My boyfriend did the same thing for my birthday, and I loved it! And for Valentine’s Day, they made us a heart-shaped pizza, even though they said it’s not something they ever really do. The guys free-handed it, and it turned out great! So great, that I had to leave this review.

Overall, if you’re looking for a low-key place to have a nice beer and pizza and just chill, this is the spot. In addition to the pizza, I recommend the nachos and the chicken tenders. The chicken is of surprisingly good quality and not too much breading—just right.

5...