GLBT Travelers - First time in Chicago

:p I will be in Chicago for the first time. Apr 10-Apr 16
I cant find any old threads on the best bars and other GLBT stuff to do in Chicago. Any help would be appreciated.

Also, I will be working in wilmette and debating whether to stay in boyztown or Evanston or the loop. I will be driving a rental car to wilmette in the morning. Any advice would be helpful in terms of best location for having a good time in boyztown and not being stuck in traffic in rush hour in the morning to get to wilmette.

Udaan :p

Best bars are in the 3200-3600 Blocks of Halsted. Sidetrack is ground zero, so you should definitely stop there. Then? Roscoes, Spin, Charlies (late), or whatever suits your taste on Halsted. Not too many hotel options in Boystown...Hawthorne Terrrace on Broadway (a Best Western property) is nice an convenient. Hotel in the loop could work (Take the L up to Belmont...and $12 cab ride back late).

Dude, there a few nice hotels in Evanston, but I'd just stay downtown on the northside. There is a new gay sports bar called Crew on Lincoln. Sunday night is a fun night to go out in Chicago. Go to "Ahh-Men" at the Sound Bar. I think they call it something else, however. Pick up one of the numerous gay publications. Oh, the "L" subway line goes all the way to Wilmette. The stop is Linden if you didn't want to get a car. If you do, forego Edens expressway and just take Lake Shore Drive. Have fun...it is a great town. If you stay in Evanston, you can also hop on the Metra train to Wilmette.

Best bars are in the 3200-3600 Blocks of Halsted. Sidetrack is ground zero, so you should definitely stop there. Then? Roscoes, Spin, Charlies (late), or whatever suits your taste on Halsted. Not too many hotel options in Boystown...Hawthorne Terrrace on Broadway (a Best Western property) is nice an convenient. Hotel in the loop could work (Take the L up to Belmont...and $12 cab ride back late).


Yup, I'd strongly suggest the Hawthorne Terrace, it's a PERFECT location, a block away from all the action on Halsted. It's a great neighborhood with lots of shops, eateries, etc. and plenty of public transport handy if you need that. Oh and TONS of cute guys :-) Plus which Lake Michigan is a long block east, the weather forecast looks good for next week so you can enjoy that if you so desire. Here is the hotel's website:

http://www.hawthorneterrace.com/

There is IIRC parking just adjacent in a garage, so easy in 'n out if you are driving [Currently there is some street construction on the east side of B'way by the hotel but it shouldn't be a problem, the street is open].

BTW a coupla doors south of the Hawthorne Terrace (NW corner of Broadway and Roscoe) is a neat little bar, Jacqueline's - it's very gay - friendly with a mixed crowd, cheap strong drinks and a great jukebox. Gay guys will hit this place for a quick drink before (or after) walking the block over to the Halsted Street strip. My good lesbian friend Lee is a bartender there, she knows everything and everybody in Boy's Town, so stop by and chat with her (tell her Greg M. sent you!) for advice. Her hours are Monday 1PM - 7:30PM, Thursday & Friday 1PM - 7:30Pm, Saturday noon - 6:30PM (the straight male bartenders Greg and Roger who work Tuesday through Sunday nights really like gay folks too). The crowd is very friendly and it can get pretty rollicking...it's a fun mix - up of gay folk, yuppies, cops, frat boys, trannies, sports fans, whatever :-)

--
Best
Greg

:p I will be in Chicago for the first time. Apr 10-Apr 16
I cant find any old threads on the best bars and other GLBT stuff to do in Chicago. Any help would be appreciated.

Also, I will be working in wilmette and debating whether to stay in boyztown or Evanston or the loop. I will be driving a rental car to wilmette in the morning. Any advice would be helpful in terms of best location for having a good time in boyztown and not being stuck in traffic in rush hour in the morning to get to wilmette.

Udaan :p

I'll be visiting too actually april 15-17. Going to be on "Business" Where you Staying?
W City Center here...

BTW, is Chicago another one of those cities where if you're not 21 you're SOL? (Atlanta soo was, but I didn't have a bad time...)

-Vincent

What's SOL?

SOL = "Shucks, Out of Luck." (Or something like that) :)

Almost all the bars are 21 and up. Agree with the others who say that you should stay in Boystown. I used to live at 3443 N Halsted, so I can attest that all the action is 3200-3600 N Halsted. :D

Just get out and bar crawl and you'll have a blast.

Ok.. my $.02.

First... where to stay. Depends on a lot of things. When will you be driving to and from Wilmette? Which part of Wilmette... closer to I-94 or closer to Sheridan Road? Will you be going out in Boystown every night?

Second... where to play:
Sidetrack (Sun - Fri nights close at 2 am, Sat night closes at 3) is the biggest venue in Boystown. The glass atrium part is now no-smoking, so that may be a draw depending on your smoking preference. It's a huge video bar with no dance floor. Some say is a Stand&Model place. Normal clientele is in their late 20s and up, with the average to be in the 30s. Sundays and Mondays are Showtunes nights. I believe Thursdays are Comedy nights. Some begin their night there, some stay there all night, and some hop back and forth between there and other places. There is no cover. Web site is Sidetrack (http://www.sidetrackchicago.com/home.htm).

Hydrate (Sun - Fri nights close at 4am, Sat night closes at 5) is the newest bar/club to open in Boystown. They have a different theme for every night of the week. For example, Wednesdays are 1/2-off martini nights ($4.50 after discount) with a drag review. They usually bring in guest DJs Fri - Sun nights. Certain nights charge cover after 12 am. On weekends, you'll find the shirtless boys here. Web site is Hydrate (http://www.hydratechicago.com).

Roscoe's Tavern (Sun - Fri nights close at 2am, Sat night closes at 3) is where you'll find most of the 20s crowd on any given night. It's sure to be packed on the weekends. There's a wet boxer contest on the last Thursday of each month. Web site is Roscoe's (http://www.roscoes.com).

Spin (Sun-Fri nights close at 2am, Sat night closes at 3) usually attracts the young ones. Wednesdays attract everyone since after a $5 cover, it's $1 drink night (beer and well liquor). There is a shower contest every friday night around or after midnight.

Circuit (not sure about hours) just re-opened after being closed for renovations. The new space is actually pretty cool, but I don't believe the crowds have not flocked back to there just quite yet. I haven't been there in over a month, so things may have changed. Before Circuit closed down and Hydrate opened, the place to be after hours on weekends were Circuit and Charlie's. Web site is Circuit (http://www.circuitclub.com).

Charlie's is a country/western bar that turns into a regular dance bar after hours on weekends. Web site is Charlie's (http://www.charliesonline.com/Default.htm).

Berlin attracts people of all ages and all kinds. Very eclectic. Don't really know how else to explain it. Some love it and some hate it. I've always had fun there when I go. Web site is Berlin (http://www.berlinchicago.com/).

Crew, as mentioned before is a fun, sports bar with food. Though not in Boystown... it's a short cab ride/drive north. Web site is Crew (http://www.worldsgreatestbar.com/).

Green Dolphin Street (not in Boystown) has Boom Boom Room on Monday nights (picks up around midnight). Fantastic house music/mix. Packed to the gills. Straight, gay... doesn't matter. You'll see people in suits, people in t-shirts, people shirtless... and everything in between. Everybody gets along and everybody is there to have a good night out. One of my favs. Normally, Green Dolphin Street is a jazz club/restaurant.

Crobar used to have a regular gay night on Sundays, but that's no more. Soundbar did too, but that's no more as well. "Ahhhh... men" is now at Y bar (right next to Soundbar) in downtown Chicago. It's a great upscale lounge (no dance floor) venue. Closes at 2 am. Web site is Soundbar (http://www.sound-bar.com/), click under events --> sundays.

Cellblock is a leather bar. I have never been so I'll let others speak to it.

Of course, there are other venues in Boystown (ie Cocktail, Kit Kat Club, Gentry's, The North End, Steamworks) and Andersonville (ie Big Chick's, Atmosphere, Madrigal's) that are/can be fun as well. You can find more info on all the Chicago happenings here:
Boi (http://www.boimagazine.com/)
Boystown Chicago (http://boystownchicago.com)
Chicago Pride (http://chicagopride.com)
Chicago Free Press (http://www.chicagofreepress.com)

When you get into town, pick up paper copies of Chicago Free Press (weekly gay newspaper), Gay Chicago, boi magazine, and others for weekly happenings.

Berlin attracts people of all ages and all kinds. Very eclectic. Don't really know how else to explain it. Some love it and some hate it. I've always had fun there when I go. Web site is Berlin (http://www.berlinchicago.com/).


Amazing to see that Berlin is still around. I first went there while I was in college a few years ago. It was whacky back then also.

The address is

3232 Lake Avenue,
Edens Plaza
Wilmette, IL 60091

And need to there everyday at 8 AM and will be leaving around 5 PM

Thanks so much fellas!

Near the corner of Skokie Blvd and Lake (there's a good sushi place called Akai Hana right there and an outdoor mall called Old Orchard a couple of minutes south on Skokie and Old Orchard). Hmm... prime traffic hour. If you stay in Boystown, you can get to work and back in about 30 minutes by taking the local streets. Edens Expressway (I-94) can take anywhere between 20 - 45 minutes, depending on how congested it is (northbound from montrose all the way up to Old Orchard exits, southbound from Touhy all the way down to the I-94/I-90 merge). If I were you, I'd just stick to the local streets (north on Lake Shore Drive/Sheridan Road until you hit Lake, then make a left... much calmer and nicer.

If you stay in Evanston, you'll cut your commute time down to 10 - 15 minutes, if even that. But, that'll put you about 20 minutes out of boystown. You can take the 'el from Evanston (purple line to red line, change at Howard stop), but the purple line stops running about midnight, I believe... so you'll have to take a taxi coming back up either from Boystown or from the Howard 'el' stop.



The address is

3232 Lake Avenue,
Edens Plaza
Wilmette, IL 60091

And need to there everyday at 8 AM and will be leaving around 5 PM

Thanks so much fellas!

If i drive from evanston to boyztown every evening, will i find parking easily?

If i drive from evanston to boyztown every evening, will i find parking easily?
Depends if there is a Cubs game or not. If there is... you're SOL (see previous message).

I love Berlin. Smallish dance floor. Nice mixed crowd and great music. But, if you are into top 40 and shirtless men, then Berlin isn't the place for you.

BTW, does Red Dog still do their gay night?

If i drive from evanston to boyztown every evening, will i find parking easily?

Yikes, I don't think it is worth going to Boystown every night while you are in Chicago, maybe just one night or two. Although Sidetracks and Roscoe's might be busy most of the week, the others slow down. Depending on your scene, there's lots of other places out there that are interesting as well, many in Andersonville or Uptown, for example. In Uptown, Big Chicks (near Argyle Red Line) on Sheridan and Crew (near Lawrence Red Line) on Broadway is fun.

Parking in Boystown is tight, regardless of whether there is a Cubs game or not. Also, many of the side streets are zoned for residents, making it even more difficult. If you don't mind the drive in the mornings, and you plan to go out every night, I would just stay in Boystown and avoid dealing with parking, driving back each night, etc. If you only plan on going out a night or two, I would stay up near Evanston or Wilmette, and plan to pay for parking in a lot, if you aren't lucky in finding a space.

BTW, does Red Dog still do their gay night?

Boom Boom Room @ Red Dog has moved to Green Dolphin Street.

If you're <21, the only gay scene in Chicago is at the Belmont rocks. ;)
You don't have to be in a club or bar to have a good time. There's plenty of fun to be had elsewhere.

My goodness, Foady, are you applying for a job with the Northalsted Area Merchants Association? When do you have time to work? Oh, that's right, you don't! :D

If you're <21, the only gay scene in Chicago is at the Belmont rocks. ;)
You don't have to be in a club or bar to have a good time. There's plenty of fun to be had elsewhere.

Probably you haven't been here recently, the city had already completed the project about reconstructing the Belmont rocks, there is no longer Belmont rocks, it is Belmont stone. All the rocks had been removed and replaced with 4 levels of white concrete, so that you can see everything from here to the end of the path. That had attracted many straight couples or families even at the night time. If you want to expose your behavior to straight guys or gals, move elsewhere.

Probably you haven't been here recently, the city had already completed the project about reconstructing the Belmont rocks, there is no longer Belmont rocks, it is Belmont stone. All the rocks had been removed and replaced with 4 levels of white concrete, so that you can see everything from here to the end of the path. That had attracted many straight couples or families even at the night time. If you want to expose your behavior to straight guys or gals, move elsewhere.
I expose my "behavior" to straight people every day. Who doesn't? :rolleyes: