Game Day, Elevated: Inside Roaring Table Brewery, Where Craft Beer and Pizza Rule the Weekend

From award-winning lagers to Detroit-style pan pies, the Lake Zurich brewery turning football Sundays into a neighborhood ritual

Who’s ready for some football? As the lakefront lights up for a big weekend game, there’s a familiar hunger that follows kickoff. Not just for points on the board, but for pizza hot from the oven and beer poured with purpose. In Lake Zurich, that ritual leads to Roaring Table Brewery, a locally owned, community-rooted craft brewery that has quietly become one of the Chicago suburbs’ most satisfying game-day destinations.

Founded in 2017 by husband-and-wife team Lane and Beth Fearing, Roaring Table feels less like a trend-chasing taproom and more like a place that has always belonged here. It sits thoughtfully in the Village Square along Route 22, near Trader Joe’s and one of Lake Zurich’s busiest corridors. Easy to find, easy to linger.

A Brewery Built on Craft and Curiosity

Lane Fearing’s brewing story begins modestly, with a Christmas gift in 2006: a home-brewing kit. That curiosity eventually led him to Mickey Finn’s Brewery in Libertyville and formal training at the Siebel Institute of Technology, one of the most respected brewing schools in the world. Every pint poured at Roaring Table carries that lineage of precision and patience.

The name itself comes from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, a nod to lively conversation and shared experiences. The taproom lives up to it. A 90-seat space anchored by a live-edge bar, long communal tables, a cozy fireplace lounge, and open sightlines into the brewery invites guests to stay awhile. The lounge can even be reserved for intimate gatherings, reinforcing the brewery’s role as a social hub.

Beer With Range and Intention

Roaring Table’s beer lineup is broad without being unfocused. Expect classic lagers, English cask ales pulled from traditional beer engines, West Coast, hazy, and new-school IPAs, saisons and wild ales fermented in an oak foeder, rich barrel-aged stouts, and the occasional fruit-forward slushy. Seasonal surprises keep regulars curious.

The accolades back it up. A silver medal at the 2023 World Beer Cup for Easy Hour and a bronze medal in 2022 for Beth, a classic saison, place Roaring Table firmly on the national craft beer map.

Pizza Joins the Party

Recently, Roaring Table expanded its identity from brewery to brewery and kitchen, and the move feels natural. The food menu is designed to be hearty, satisfying, and unapologetically beer-friendly.

Pizza is the headline act, with three distinct styles made in-house:

• Chicago Tavern-Style (14”) thin, crispy, and Midwest-classic

• New York-Style (14”) foldable and pint-perfect

• Detroit-Style (10” x 14”) thick, airy, with caramelized cheese edges

Signature pies include Nonna’s Meatballs in Detroit style, a French Onion pie layered with Gruyère and caramelized onions, and The Bear, a buffalo chicken and gorgonzola standout that feels tailor-made for football weekends.

Sandwiches arrive with hand-cut fries and include a Via Chicago Italian Beef, an Italian Deli stacked on focaccia, and a Garden Grill option that keeps vegetarians happily in the game. Snacks and shareables like a giant pretzel, seasoned fries, house snack mix, and gourmet popcorn from Long Grove round out the menu.

More Than a Taproom

Roaring Table thrives on rhythm. Vinyl Tuesdays. Detroit Club Thursdays, where five pan pies earn a free one. Sunday and Wednesday specials that reward locals. Events, collaborations, and festivals like February’s Flavor Festival keep the calendar moving and the taproom buzzing.

On game day, it all comes together. Pizza, beer, conversation, and community. Roaring Table Brewery doesn’t chase the moment. It builds one, pint by pint, slice by slice.

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