"Botanic beer" sounds like the kind of thing concocted as a straight-up marketing ploy to entice food-obsessed millennials, a grab bag of trending terms. But in fact, the nuanced offerings at the new Forbidden Root Brewpub (1746 W. Chicago Ave., West Town, 312-929-2202) are some of the more intriguing taps in town, and the space is perfect for sampling them.

The bar itself is massive, and thanks to a dual-sided hanging tap system, multiple bartenders can be pouring glasses of, say, the Shady Character porter at once. You'll be able to chat easily with friends over the soundtrack of indie standbys (Arcade Fire, the National, etc.) and won't have to deal with the distraction of TVs–while the bar has a couple of screens, they're hidden on most nights and are only turned on for Chicago playoff games. 

Here's what else we saw when we stopped in.