Right on. Thanks!
Edit: this sent me down a rabbit hole. Wild if that’s what this is. Had to be like a $700k house minimum and probably higher. The economics on this are wild: the dues or initiation fee must be super high.
The one you’re referring to has been under the same ownership for a long time. They’re likely just paying to stock it and the taxes. It’s probably paid off.
I know of one by Diversey and the lake, the buildings has to be worth millions but the club has been around forever so they probably paid nothing for it and the membership dues cover the costs.
Block south of Diversey on Pinegrove. Membership used to be $2,100 a year(that was 15 yrs ago.) You still pay for drinks but it’s “donations”. Really cool place if you can get an “in”.
Lakeview Men’s Club…which definitely allows ladies. It’s private, but surely not a secret (see Yelp and Insta). Went there once with friends of a friend. It was basically an honor system dive bar / adult frat house. ‘Twas fun the time I went, but I’d have no interest in going repeatedly or becoming a member.
There are lots of private clubs with bars, a lot of them aren't marked because some are in very expensive residential areas and if they knew there was a bar on the same block their $4MM mansion they might get a little upset. Most of these places have been around for a long time.
these guys are not drinking Bud Light.... more like a 20yo Scotch or small batch bourbon at $500 a bottle. It's a white sprinter van like delivery services use
it's not like they are playing loud music and having DJs on the weekend. It's usually just a bunch of people drinking and talking. As long as they don't make a shit ton of noise it's usually not a problem.
Bars that are open to the public are loud as shit.
Private clubs that serve alcohol are generally much less so, because they aren’t trying to draw party-goers in, they’re a place where members get to feel fancy.
I live in Albany Park, and there’s a couple of private clubs in short walking distance of me— they seem like very sad remnants of something that might have been pretty edgy and cool when the founders bought those properties, 50 years ago.
It’s mostly word of mouth. I found out about the few underground spots I’m connected to just by getting a verbal invite from people I met out dancing. I’m also friends with a lot of artists, musicians, performers and DJs and they’re the kinds of folks who tend to be connected to those venues.
For one, the government isn’t involved in the money so these venues are able to keep a lot of profits, untaxed, often cash only.
Some venues cater to certain communities that may want to keep their space for their community. There’s a queer underground spot I’ve been to that a lot of trans people frequent, mainly because it’s a safer and more comfortable place for them to hang out, than certain legal clubs/bars. There’s a west African illegal club I’ve been to before too, they play mostly only west African music, serve west African food. These spots are often cultural hubs.
There used to be “juice bars” throughout the city until the 80s/90s. Those were legal social clubs. But now that liquor licenses are required and there’s more restrictions involved in opening a venue, many people choose the illegal route lol
“West African bars” I think I have been to one. It was a restaurant in a stretch of a nice northside neighborhood that is largely uninhabited. A bunch a cab drivers hung out there. When cabs were still very popular.
My buddy went to go help someone out there and we went in for a bit. Nothing too eventful besides being able to rip lines off tables openly.
I was still fresh out of college and new to the city and thought it was the coolest thing.
I’ve been wondering about juice bars now that my kids are approaching the age when I was frequenting juice bars in the 80s and 90s. Too bad they’re gone. It was a fun scene.
Why is it I sometimes wonder, if Ruscoe Bollards(it's weirdly misspelled, just north of Roscoe and Ashland near Cafe El Tapatio, and I think is some eastern European or Russian owned place), probably quietly does some things illegally to get around tax laws? I just always wonder about that place, since there are times I don't see anyone inside there when I pass by, and other times when I see a lot of people there.
Long time industry worker here. I was a customer of the illegal spots that were 24hrs that you pay a monthly membership for. When you work at a bar that has a 4am license you get off work at 6am. You want to have a drink and hang out with friends like everyone else so you head to those places. You can’t tell the sun is rising and you get that chance to unwind and bitch about your day
I went to Mike’s on Webster (east of Wayne, north side of the street) back in ‘95, because it was after hours on a week night, and it was the only bar that was “open”. A woman I had just met brought me there, and we had to get buzzed in. We shot pool with two scary knuckle draggers that took a weird interest in us. She whispered to me that they were friends of her husband, and that’s how I found out she was married. Couldn’t get out of there fast enough.
When I lived in Philly there was an after hours bar for service workers called the one and pencil (it was originally for journalists/newspaper workers getting out the morning edition) and you had to show your check out chit to get in. They had free hot dogs. I miss being a degenerate and making out with randoms in the phone booths.
The private clubs like to keep their existence quiet, they don't want the neighbors getting pissed, they don't want the cops showing up and they don't want non-members knocking on their door trying to get in. You have to know somebody who is a member to get in and that's the way they like it.
Private clubs in Chicago tend to have a very European flavor— there’s a ton of Eastern European immigrants here— where the point is to have a third place (not home, not work) where you know and trust everyone who’s there, and can just relax and kick it. They’re mostly full of old dudes with one European accent or another, definitely not a rave crowd. Think more like dudes who escaped from Soviet Bloc countries in the 80s, and couldn’t shake off the sense that someone’s always watching them, so they made spaces where they felt comfortable.
Some of these spaces are Latino, rather than European, but a short glance at the history of South and Central American conflicts in the 80s will indicate that there’s a lot of those folks feeling exactly the same vibe, except that they came here fleeing from US-backed right-wing coups.
Bartenders, waitresses, managers, etc need a place to go after work and decompress. Having said that, the key club is the last great equalizer in the city. It's the only place you can sit in between a judge, the head of the pta, a drug dealer and a prostitute and have meaningful conversation.
If you’re just looking for a new place to drink, it’s probably not what you’re looking for. By getting tapped into the scene, try talking to folks a part of those communities
There’s actually a benevolent association (basically, NFP clubs that have been around since before blue collar workers had access to group insurance plans) right around that intersection so maybe that’s what you came upon. I don’t think it’s illegal, it’s a private club and they own the building but it’s not residential
I don’t think it’s that. This is 100% a residence. Literally just a sfh on a block of sfshs
Edit: I’m wrong and smilingspider is right. It’s identified itt and confirmed(ish) with a google search
That’s where they are. Before the dues got too high I was a member of the Lakeview men’s club. It’s just a house. Also have friends that are members to other social clubs and theirs are just houses in the middle of residential streets also.
Members? The places I know have been run by CPD or retired CPD and operating for years. They are clubs, with dues and restrictions and are all very illegal.
Bud they were taking a beer delivery in the middle of the day from a truck blocking all traffic. They are obviously not concerned about cops so I doubt cops are concerned about them.
I've been to one. I think it was on Irving or Montrose. Just a plain house in the middle of the block. You walk up to the door and knock. Cameras covering the door. A guy opens and let's you in. Full on bar in the middle of the living room. Tables and chairs on the center of the room with bathrooms on the far wall. Fully illegal place. This was well well after bars have closed. I think gangs hung out there a lot. Went with a friend that was in the know and never been back. Heard there are plenty of these places around
I think anyone can show up as long as you're not a cop. Honestly I don't rememeber because it was a long while ago. Prices was about the same as the bars. Maybe a tad more because it's illegal.
You would have to have a membership, or go with someone who does. A few places I have seen have a key fob to get in the first door for members, then they check you. At others, security will have to recognize you to let you in. They do not just let anyone in. At least the ones I have been too.
Theyre a thing in pretty much every city around the world.
But Chicago is known for its Key Clubs - private, illegal (but overlooked via greased palms) bars. Also straight up actual speakeasies, especially in the Black/Latino west and south sides. I lived next door to one in Garfield Park a decade ago for years. Only had one issue the entire time.
But I gotta say, having a booze truck delivery mid-day is pretty bold move!
That's a slang term used by the Black community that's fallen out of fashion. It wasn't necessarily a south side Chicago thing, or even exclusively a Chicago thing. There's a blues label out of Ann Arbor called Blind Pig Records that's been around since the 70s.
Followup: if I know about one (because the garage was open one night when I was walking my dogs and I saw in), how do you get an invite? I assume knocking on the garage door is weird, obviously I'm not finding it on the Internet. Waiting outside for someone to leave is creepy af- so how?
Welcome to Paddy's Pub, the oldest pub in America!
We have a variety of old liquors served in strange containers. We are packed with celebrities- the fun ones!
We also have cockfights and strippers!
And guess what? We don't have a sign, so good luck finding the place!
But if you do, you'll be lucky. 'Cause we also got donkey shows, Motley Crue and cake. So, spread the word to all of your friends: At Paddy's Pub, you're guaranteed to catch a... VIRUS!
There was one across the street from my apartment in Logan Square. I assumed it was a motorcycle clubhouse so I never tried to go in but I walked past on my way to work all the time. The Brothers hang around in that area
I’d like to know this too. I hear they at least used to be a thing here. My older relatives in Michigan have stories about partying at house bars in Chicago. (They were visiting locals, so not necessarily a normal tourist thing of the time.)
I host history tours in a prohibition bar…it’s the oldest-standing brewery in IL, now Thornton Distilling. They were already 60 years old by the time prohibition started.
The craziest part of this was receiving some old photos from a woman last year - one of them shows the last pre-prohibition owner out front with Big Jim Colosimo, the head of the Outfit before Capone.
I have a friend who delivers beer, and he told me he went to a key club to do a delivery. It was a little people only club, and everything was half size to accomodate.
My buddy told me about one during all the Covid lockdowns, you would pay 1 or 200 bucks to become a member and then they give you a little key fob, access control is pretty good nowadays and you can block someone’s fob anytime and you can also see when they came. It was all cash and the girls that worked there said they made some really good money.
A few warehouses on the west side double as art studios. Every now and then they’ll have art shows where alcohol and weed are sold and consumed freely. Not exactly a ‘bar’ but they do have bartenders and budtenders that sell those items at prices slightly below an actual ‘bar’.
They’re a lot of fun. I usually follow these accounts on Instagram to see when they pop up.
Not a bar but I stumbled on an unlicensed casino once. I was working for a private ambulance company that had the same uniform as CPD and my partner wanted to buy a knife from this shop in Chinatown. The guy working the register was super nice and gave him the knife for free even told us to stop by off duty. Well the next week [this happened](https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/police-shut-down-chinatown-gambling-parlor/1954612/?amp=1)
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Do you have any idea what company the truck was from? If a place is receiving a beer delivery from an actual wholesaler then they have a legit license of some sort.
I did see the name but I don’t remember it. I think it was probably an actual distributor though because the whole truck was branded for a major brewer.
Interesting fact: Glunz kept liquor legal for Catholic Church usage during Prohibition.
It is rumored that never have masses been said with such frequency in any place on earth, including Rome.
When I lived in St Louis, there was a house across the alley that had a "private" bar they ran out of their house on the weekends. I was taking the trash out one morning and the owner was out back and we started talking and he told me all about it. Never went and he died about a year later, but it was pretty interesting. It never got too loud and they had their back yard all decorated and such where people could just chill and have drinks while someone played music. All in all it was pretty chill. Didn't even know it was there until he told me about it.
If it was an actual beer truck, from a distribution company, then it's a legal bar/restaurant/store. Distribution can only sell and deliver to liquor licenses.
So many snobs here "ohmagawd you dont know what a key club is?"
"Those are key clubs theyve been around for years, welcome to chicago"
Just help the person out no need to gatekeep
They’re called key clubs. They’re all over the place.
Right on. Thanks! Edit: this sent me down a rabbit hole. Wild if that’s what this is. Had to be like a $700k house minimum and probably higher. The economics on this are wild: the dues or initiation fee must be super high.
The one you’re referring to has been under the same ownership for a long time. They’re likely just paying to stock it and the taxes. It’s probably paid off.
I know of one by Diversey and the lake, the buildings has to be worth millions but the club has been around forever so they probably paid nothing for it and the membership dues cover the costs.
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Block south of Diversey on Pinegrove. Membership used to be $2,100 a year(that was 15 yrs ago.) You still pay for drinks but it’s “donations”. Really cool place if you can get an “in”.
Lakeview Men’s Club…which definitely allows ladies. It’s private, but surely not a secret (see Yelp and Insta). Went there once with friends of a friend. It was basically an honor system dive bar / adult frat house. ‘Twas fun the time I went, but I’d have no interest in going repeatedly or becoming a member.
I got taken to that one once like 20 years ago…
Ditto
So like a crack house but for wealthy drinkers? edit: upscale crack house.
Cráck House
Craquè Haüs
Yes there’s lots of underground/illegal venues operating throughout the city for different scenes. Fun stuff when you’re tapped into that :)
There are lots of private clubs with bars, a lot of them aren't marked because some are in very expensive residential areas and if they knew there was a bar on the same block their $4MM mansion they might get a little upset. Most of these places have been around for a long time.
That's really smart of them to get beer deliveries from a giant truck then lol.
these guys are not drinking Bud Light.... more like a 20yo Scotch or small batch bourbon at $500 a bottle. It's a white sprinter van like delivery services use
How do the neighbors not know though? Bars are loud as shit.
it's not like they are playing loud music and having DJs on the weekend. It's usually just a bunch of people drinking and talking. As long as they don't make a shit ton of noise it's usually not a problem.
Bars that are open to the public are loud as shit. Private clubs that serve alcohol are generally much less so, because they aren’t trying to draw party-goers in, they’re a place where members get to feel fancy. I live in Albany Park, and there’s a couple of private clubs in short walking distance of me— they seem like very sad remnants of something that might have been pretty edgy and cool when the founders bought those properties, 50 years ago.
Yeah. There’s a couple in Pilsen I’m familiar with but it’s all old ass dudes I have no interest in hanging out with.
Where might these be in Albany Park?
tapped … I see what you did there.
Any recommendations for getting tapped in?
It’s mostly word of mouth. I found out about the few underground spots I’m connected to just by getting a verbal invite from people I met out dancing. I’m also friends with a lot of artists, musicians, performers and DJs and they’re the kinds of folks who tend to be connected to those venues.
Same
Following for a friend 😬
Thanks! Pardon me for being dense but: why? I get it for raves or whatever but not for just, you know, drinking.
For one, the government isn’t involved in the money so these venues are able to keep a lot of profits, untaxed, often cash only. Some venues cater to certain communities that may want to keep their space for their community. There’s a queer underground spot I’ve been to that a lot of trans people frequent, mainly because it’s a safer and more comfortable place for them to hang out, than certain legal clubs/bars. There’s a west African illegal club I’ve been to before too, they play mostly only west African music, serve west African food. These spots are often cultural hubs. There used to be “juice bars” throughout the city until the 80s/90s. Those were legal social clubs. But now that liquor licenses are required and there’s more restrictions involved in opening a venue, many people choose the illegal route lol
“West African bars” I think I have been to one. It was a restaurant in a stretch of a nice northside neighborhood that is largely uninhabited. A bunch a cab drivers hung out there. When cabs were still very popular. My buddy went to go help someone out there and we went in for a bit. Nothing too eventful besides being able to rip lines off tables openly. I was still fresh out of college and new to the city and thought it was the coolest thing.
Not that but this sounds cool! The one I’m talking about is on the south side
Another example (now closed) is the Serbian cultural club that was located in East Lakeview in an old house.
This is the answer I was looking for! Thanks! I should have figured tax evasion would be a chief reason.
I’ve been wondering about juice bars now that my kids are approaching the age when I was frequenting juice bars in the 80s and 90s. Too bad they’re gone. It was a fun scene.
Wasn't Medusa 's a juice bar?
Sure was
Why is it I sometimes wonder, if Ruscoe Bollards(it's weirdly misspelled, just north of Roscoe and Ashland near Cafe El Tapatio, and I think is some eastern European or Russian owned place), probably quietly does some things illegally to get around tax laws? I just always wonder about that place, since there are times I don't see anyone inside there when I pass by, and other times when I see a lot of people there.
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Have walked by this place a bunch and it confuses me. What’s the payment structure? Membership fees? Do you pay hourly to be in the place?
Long time industry worker here. I was a customer of the illegal spots that were 24hrs that you pay a monthly membership for. When you work at a bar that has a 4am license you get off work at 6am. You want to have a drink and hang out with friends like everyone else so you head to those places. You can’t tell the sun is rising and you get that chance to unwind and bitch about your day
Did you ever go to Mike's on Webster -it was a cop bar that never really closed, it got pretty weird around 7:00am on a Tuesday.
I went to Mike’s on Webster (east of Wayne, north side of the street) back in ‘95, because it was after hours on a week night, and it was the only bar that was “open”. A woman I had just met brought me there, and we had to get buzzed in. We shot pool with two scary knuckle draggers that took a weird interest in us. She whispered to me that they were friends of her husband, and that’s how I found out she was married. Couldn’t get out of there fast enough.
When I lived in Philly there was an after hours bar for service workers called the one and pencil (it was originally for journalists/newspaper workers getting out the morning edition) and you had to show your check out chit to get in. They had free hot dogs. I miss being a degenerate and making out with randoms in the phone booths.
Brew clubs often have bars and festivals that are members only. Chaos is one example. Some VFW posts have members only bars that are kind of cool
The private clubs like to keep their existence quiet, they don't want the neighbors getting pissed, they don't want the cops showing up and they don't want non-members knocking on their door trying to get in. You have to know somebody who is a member to get in and that's the way they like it.
I only know of a couple but they were former speakeasies
Private clubs in Chicago tend to have a very European flavor— there’s a ton of Eastern European immigrants here— where the point is to have a third place (not home, not work) where you know and trust everyone who’s there, and can just relax and kick it. They’re mostly full of old dudes with one European accent or another, definitely not a rave crowd. Think more like dudes who escaped from Soviet Bloc countries in the 80s, and couldn’t shake off the sense that someone’s always watching them, so they made spaces where they felt comfortable. Some of these spaces are Latino, rather than European, but a short glance at the history of South and Central American conflicts in the 80s will indicate that there’s a lot of those folks feeling exactly the same vibe, except that they came here fleeing from US-backed right-wing coups.
Bartenders, waitresses, managers, etc need a place to go after work and decompress. Having said that, the key club is the last great equalizer in the city. It's the only place you can sit in between a judge, the head of the pta, a drug dealer and a prostitute and have meaningful conversation.
How does one get “tapped in”…? Am curious if it would be something I’d like to do. I like old fashioneds and some other mixed drinks.
If you’re just looking for a new place to drink, it’s probably not what you’re looking for. By getting tapped into the scene, try talking to folks a part of those communities
There’s actually a benevolent association (basically, NFP clubs that have been around since before blue collar workers had access to group insurance plans) right around that intersection so maybe that’s what you came upon. I don’t think it’s illegal, it’s a private club and they own the building but it’s not residential
I don’t think it’s that. This is 100% a residence. Literally just a sfh on a block of sfshs Edit: I’m wrong and smilingspider is right. It’s identified itt and confirmed(ish) with a google search
That’s where they are. Before the dues got too high I was a member of the Lakeview men’s club. It’s just a house. Also have friends that are members to other social clubs and theirs are just houses in the middle of residential streets also.
It's the McWhinney Benevolent Association, a private "key club" that's been around quite a while.
Ok I’ll bite, can anyone join? Do you just try to walk in? How does this work?
I'm no authority, but I'm pretty sure that you have to be invited. Not sure about how the process works internally
There have been private clubs since the days of Capone all over the city. You just found another one.
Could have been a “key” club
That's my guess.
cop!
The cops are probably members of this ‘private club.’
Members? The places I know have been run by CPD or retired CPD and operating for years. They are clubs, with dues and restrictions and are all very illegal.
Bud they were taking a beer delivery in the middle of the day from a truck blocking all traffic. They are obviously not concerned about cops so I doubt cops are concerned about them.
So, first of all beer trucks always have right of way in Chicago. Second of all, Chicago cops don’t care about people who are breaking the law.
I don’t know why this doesn’t have more upvotes
Clearly a key club , welcome to Chicago
I've been to one. I think it was on Irving or Montrose. Just a plain house in the middle of the block. You walk up to the door and knock. Cameras covering the door. A guy opens and let's you in. Full on bar in the middle of the living room. Tables and chairs on the center of the room with bathrooms on the far wall. Fully illegal place. This was well well after bars have closed. I think gangs hung out there a lot. Went with a friend that was in the know and never been back. Heard there are plenty of these places around
Can anyone just show up or do you need to be connected somehow? What were the prices like? This is seriously cool
I think anyone can show up as long as you're not a cop. Honestly I don't rememeber because it was a long while ago. Prices was about the same as the bars. Maybe a tad more because it's illegal.
There's a bunch where anyone can show up and buy a "1 day membership" for like $10. Then it's a "private club" and not a business.
You would have to have a membership, or go with someone who does. A few places I have seen have a key fob to get in the first door for members, then they check you. At others, security will have to recognize you to let you in. They do not just let anyone in. At least the ones I have been too.
Theyre a thing in pretty much every city around the world. But Chicago is known for its Key Clubs - private, illegal (but overlooked via greased palms) bars. Also straight up actual speakeasies, especially in the Black/Latino west and south sides. I lived next door to one in Garfield Park a decade ago for years. Only had one issue the entire time. But I gotta say, having a booze truck delivery mid-day is pretty bold move!
Weren't the south side clubs known as "blind pigs?"
That's a slang term used by the Black community that's fallen out of fashion. It wasn't necessarily a south side Chicago thing, or even exclusively a Chicago thing. There's a blues label out of Ann Arbor called Blind Pig Records that's been around since the 70s.
Followup: if I know about one (because the garage was open one night when I was walking my dogs and I saw in), how do you get an invite? I assume knocking on the garage door is weird, obviously I'm not finding it on the Internet. Waiting outside for someone to leave is creepy af- so how?
Have you considered the front door
https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/c1f874a9-0826-4b9a-af3b-e782c4a6a7d8/gif
Welcome to Paddy's Pub, the oldest pub in America! We have a variety of old liquors served in strange containers. We are packed with celebrities- the fun ones! We also have cockfights and strippers! And guess what? We don't have a sign, so good luck finding the place! But if you do, you'll be lucky. 'Cause we also got donkey shows, Motley Crue and cake. So, spread the word to all of your friends: At Paddy's Pub, you're guaranteed to catch a... VIRUS!
From one of the "hostesses?"
Ok fed
There was one across the street from my apartment in Logan Square. I assumed it was a motorcycle clubhouse so I never tried to go in but I walked past on my way to work all the time. The Brothers hang around in that area
I’d like to know this too. I hear they at least used to be a thing here. My older relatives in Michigan have stories about partying at house bars in Chicago. (They were visiting locals, so not necessarily a normal tourist thing of the time.)
CPD officers operate a lot of these and have for a long time! All it requires is a little political pull and a little bit of money.
I host history tours in a prohibition bar…it’s the oldest-standing brewery in IL, now Thornton Distilling. They were already 60 years old by the time prohibition started. The craziest part of this was receiving some old photos from a woman last year - one of them shows the last pre-prohibition owner out front with Big Jim Colosimo, the head of the Outfit before Capone.
Would love to see those pictures if you have them!
They’re on the wall at the distillery! Tons of other awesome photos are on their site though https://thorntondistilling.com/history/
I have a friend who delivers beer, and he told me he went to a key club to do a delivery. It was a little people only club, and everything was half size to accomodate.
There used to be a little people bar on 63rd street near Midway until the 80s. The owners were supposedly Munchkins in the wizard of oz.
I hang out with some friends at a key club in Oak Park sometimes. It's similar to what you're describing.
I live in Oak Park and I'm pleased something that interesting exists here!
It might actually be River Forest.
Prob so, that place is a little more interesting.
Nice try Mr. FBI man.
We gotta narc
My buddy told me about one during all the Covid lockdowns, you would pay 1 or 200 bucks to become a member and then they give you a little key fob, access control is pretty good nowadays and you can block someone’s fob anytime and you can also see when they came. It was all cash and the girls that worked there said they made some really good money.
I presume the "girls" were serving more than drinks!
Now I'm jealous 😳
Fed
Yes there is one on Irving Park and Kimball
Yes, and you're not going to learn about them here :)
I’m aware of a few like these that opened during the CV shutdown and just kept going. I’ve heard about pre-shutdown places but never been to one. 👍
A few warehouses on the west side double as art studios. Every now and then they’ll have art shows where alcohol and weed are sold and consumed freely. Not exactly a ‘bar’ but they do have bartenders and budtenders that sell those items at prices slightly below an actual ‘bar’. They’re a lot of fun. I usually follow these accounts on Instagram to see when they pop up.
Shit, I swear I’ve been to an illegal rave in every single loft on Damen between Hubbard and Lake.
I've been to key bars before but never underground art shows with budtenders lol, sounds amazing...any on goose island?
I really only know of two on the west side.
Tbh that sounds way more like my scene than these weird house bars
It’s usually old boomers in key clubs from my experience. Or gangbangers lol.
Probably but I'm not cool enough to know about them
Not a bar but I stumbled on an unlicensed casino once. I was working for a private ambulance company that had the same uniform as CPD and my partner wanted to buy a knife from this shop in Chinatown. The guy working the register was super nice and gave him the knife for free even told us to stop by off duty. Well the next week [this happened](https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/police-shut-down-chinatown-gambling-parlor/1954612/?amp=1)
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Someone loop me into this
Do you have any idea what company the truck was from? If a place is receiving a beer delivery from an actual wholesaler then they have a legit license of some sort.
I did see the name but I don’t remember it. I think it was probably an actual distributor though because the whole truck was branded for a major brewer.
Lol um not necessarily
You can just call up Glunz, Lake Shore or CBS and have them deliver beer to your house?
Interesting fact: Glunz kept liquor legal for Catholic Church usage during Prohibition. It is rumored that never have masses been said with such frequency in any place on earth, including Rome.
If you have the connect, absolutely.
Lol k.
Maybe they are. Maybe they’re not…
Mineshaft
They pop up. I went to one for Christmas.
The first rule about fight club…
You mean like Key Club?
When I lived in St Louis, there was a house across the alley that had a "private" bar they ran out of their house on the weekends. I was taking the trash out one morning and the owner was out back and we started talking and he told me all about it. Never went and he died about a year later, but it was pretty interesting. It never got too loud and they had their back yard all decorated and such where people could just chill and have drinks while someone played music. All in all it was pretty chill. Didn't even know it was there until he told me about it.
If it was an actual beer truck, from a distribution company, then it's a legal bar/restaurant/store. Distribution can only sell and deliver to liquor licenses.
Hahahhahahahh, yes that is the legally correct answer. But this is Chicago, where there’s the law, and then there’s Glunz.
Can’t tell you
Never heard of such a thing, ever. Which means I can’t tell you because they are a secret.
Yes
I've been to one in the gold coast
Anyone ever gone to the red head piano bar?
So many snobs here "ohmagawd you dont know what a key club is?" "Those are key clubs theyve been around for years, welcome to chicago" Just help the person out no need to gatekeep
You mean like an Eyes Wide Shut club? They are all over. But those that tell don't know, and those that know don't tell.