Not to crush your dreams right off the bat, but brand-spanking-new drinking establishment "ping-pong social club" Spin (344 N. State St., River North, 773-635-9999) won't let you convert their table tennis set-up into a beer pong court. It's far too classy of a joint for that, the kind of place where you sip bottled craft cocktails between rounds of ping-pong tournaments with friends.

The Susan Sarandon-backed bar (with locations in four other cities in the U.S. and Canada) has ping-pong balls flying all through the evening (peak crowds over the weekend seemed to come a little before 9 and close to midnight, so plan accordingly). They're hoping to eventually attract legitimate table-tennis competitions, but for now, it's mostly crowded with hobbyists content to watch the action between gulps of their Backspin cocktail (a mix of Bulleit rye, bitters, and hickory smoke). 

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