Southland Tour de Beer Gardens

Do you like booze?

Well Southland, you're in luck. Many decry the lack of deep, probing journalism in the modern world but we're about to turn that all around. Your lovable Patch editors are embarking on the daunting and difficult journey of visiting beer gardens in Tinley, Oak Forest and Orland to tell you how they rate.

That's right. We're making the ultimate sacrifice for YOU.

We'll be stopping by one garden a week in each of our respective Patches to enjoy an outdoor beverage. We've spent the last week gathering your suggestions — via Facebook and Twitter, mostly — of where your favorite hotspots are.

We've listened. Included on our dockets are:

, , and in Tinley.

Osteria Ottimo, , and Harrison's Restaurant and Brewery in Orland.

Marcotte's Bar & Grill, Blarney Stone Pub and Oak Forest Bowl in Oak Forest.

Before we start, we want to fill you in on the criteria we'll be using to rate each beer garden. Feel free to post a comment below should you disagree with any of them of feel strongly that we are neglecting a key beer garden quality. Here goes …

1. Adult atmosphere. Who wants a screaming baby around when they're trying to enjoy a Blue Moon?

2. Beer selection. An array of cold (emphasis on cold) on-tap and bottled brews is ideal.

3. Courteous wait staff. We don't want to sit for 20 minutes with an empty glass.

4. Daily specials. Whether it's half-off appetizers during happy hour or a beer of the month, we want them to be choice.

5. Plenty of seating. No one wants to be knocking elbows with a stranger next door.

6. Both shady and sunny options. If you're fighting a sun burn, you may not want to be forced to park yourself in the scorching sun. And if you need relief from the heat, it's still nice to sit outside.