[Senator Clay Davis]

Gouge away....

How much would you pay to watch the Cubs play the World Series this weekend?

Not at Wrigley Field, where a $150,000 pair of dugout seats is currently available for Sunday night’s game, but at a bar in Wrigleyville where you’ll watch on TV screens? If you said $1,250, then you’re not alone.

A growing number of Wrigleyville bars and restaurants are offering special World Series meal packages for hundreds of dollars, guaranteeing food, drink and your place among fellow fans, but not always a seat -- unless you pay hundreds more. And some are already sold out for the Friday, Saturday and Sunday night home games this weekend.

The most expensive meal package to date can be found at Stretch Bar & Grill. For $300, you’ll get one appetizer, one entree and a nearly open bar (excluding shots) but no seating. You can order from the regular menu, where the most popular item is the wings with Jameson and chipotle barbecue sauce, said a manager, who stated the package service would end at 10 p.m.

If you insist upon a seat, saunter over to HVAC Pub, where a reserved table plus food will cost $1,250. For $250 of that total, you get all-you-can-eat pizza and wings, plus beer, wine and well cocktails 7-11 p.m. The other $1,000 reserves a table, which also includes one bottle each of Grey Goose vodka and Mionetto prosecco, said a manager. While the table seats six, you could have it all to yourself. Since the food and drink package is per person, the table and food will set back a group of six a total of $2,500.

Four-seat tables can be found for $500 at Deuce's and The Diamond Club, Casey Moran's, Old Crow Smokehouse, Moe’s Cantina and John Barleycorn. That cost is on top of meal packages, which range from $200 to $250.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/dining...027-story.html