It’s Tuesday night in Chicago, why not head to where the cool kids are? Or at least where bars are busy and people still drink until last call on a Tuesday? Just a short jaunt from Logan Square you will find Humboldt Park and more locals.
California Clipper
1002 N. California Ave.
This is a neighborhood landmark, complete with vintage neon sign out front and retro glam interior. This bar offers a unique combination of dive bar affordability and art deco class—nowhere else in the city can you feel quite as Bogart-and-Bacall while kicking back cheap PBRs or sipping craft cocktails. The French 75s are mighty good and if you are feeling hot and bothered, try the shaved ice cocktail – it’s like a childhood dream with booze. Make sure you bring extra quarters for the jukebox. californiaclipper.com
Hours: SU-F 8-1:30 | SA 8-2
Sportsman
948 N. Western Ave.
This is a revamp of an old Polish dive, featuring craft beers and “spirit-forward” cocktails from barmen Wade McElroy (Trenchermen, Barrelhouse Flat) and Jeff Donahue (Barrelhouse Flat, the Aviary). This feels like a hipster hunting lodge – sporting dead animal heads, a daily rotating cocktail list and a package goods license allowing for takeout (my newly acquired bar friend had Chinese take out and shared fortune cookies). If you want to feel like a local, try out the amaro machine – it’s a chilled shot machine (like the old Jäger machines), and the exact mix always changes. On my last visit, the shot included Cynar, Fernet-Branca, Averna and Cocchi Rosa. Expect to make friends with friendly locals – if not maybe you’re just not friendly. Just make sure you bring cash – this is a cash only establishment. drinkingandgathering.com
This is a revamp of an old Polish dive, featuring craft beers and “spirit-forward” cocktails from barmen Wade McElroy (Trenchermen, Barrelhouse Flat) and Jeff Donahue (Barrelhouse Flat, the Aviary). This feels like a hipster hunting lodge – sporting dead animal heads, a daily rotating cocktail list and a package goods license allowing for takeout (my newly acquired bar friend had Chinese take out and shared fortune cookies). If you want to feel like a local, try out the amaro machine – it’s a chilled shot machine (like the old Jäger machines), and the exact mix always changes. On my last visit, the shot included Cynar, Fernet-Branca, Averna and Cocchi Rosa. Expect to make friends with friendly locals – if not maybe you’re just not friendly. Just make sure you bring cash – this is a cash only establishment. drinkingandgathering.com
Hours: M-SU 5-2
Contintenal
2801 W. Chicago Ave.
This is the 4 AM bar of choice for fashionable Chicago scenesters since it first launched in 2006; a lonely outpost of hipsterdom on a vacant stretch of Chicago Ave. This is good and bad news – it is one of the only bars in the neighborhood open past the typical last call – and the only reason to go is if you want to drink after 2am. The service is mediocre but the crowd is usually fun and inebriated. In the summer there is a great patio.
This is the 4 AM bar of choice for fashionable Chicago scenesters since it first launched in 2006; a lonely outpost of hipsterdom on a vacant stretch of Chicago Ave. This is good and bad news – it is one of the only bars in the neighborhood open past the typical last call – and the only reason to go is if you want to drink after 2am. The service is mediocre but the crowd is usually fun and inebriated. In the summer there is a great patio.
Hours: SU-M 9-4 | T-F 5-4 | SA 5-5