![]() Michigan Avenue, Scheduled to open in late March 2023. ![]() The Blue Room at the Chicago Firehouse Restaurant, 1401 S. Knock twice and explore the results in the photographs below. While true speakeasies (also called “blind pigs”) may be largely a thing of the past, the Blue Room aims to tap into the energy and sound of the infamous establishments. A petite stage will provide room for live performances from solo artists and small combos. The setup also features speakers originally owned by the late country music legend Cowboy Jack Clement, a Nashville record producer who used them to record artists such as Dolly Parton, John Prine, and Townes Van Zandt. Much like Chicago’s Prohibition-era speakeasies, jazz kissa tend to opt for a moody aesthetic with dim lights and antique furniture to match their classic sound.Īt the Blue Room, this manifests in the form of a record player (armed with a two-channel stereo system) and a sizable vinyl record collection flanking an eight-seat bar made of dark wood. This confluence spawned the proliferation of cafes that played records on phonographs, and - as the decades passed and technology advanced - high-end analog sound systems. Interest in Western music and culture surged among the Japanese populace in the 1920s and ’30s, but restrictions on live music performances at the time made it difficult to access. The Blue Room team also drew inspiration from jazz kissa, a genre of Japanese cafes dedicated to playing recorded jazz music, a rep says. ![]() Drinks take top billing, but the bar will also serve some food, including a sweet bourbon baba, a yeasted cake soaked in bourbon, honey, orange, and cardamom syrup.Ĭhicagoans never seem to tire of speakeasy-style bars. Luxurious leather booths and armchairs contrast cleverly with exposed brick walls and a low, pipe-laden concrete ceiling, aglow from the light of Art Deco-style fixtures and playful wall sconces - iron monkeys gripping umbrella-shaped lamps.Ī cocktail menu isn’t yet finalized, but operators promise plenty of whiskey-heavy options such as the Chicago Firehouse Old Fashioned (Michter’s bourbon, creme de cacao, maple demerara syrup) and the applewood-smoked Burning Landmark (Kikori Japanese whisky, Woodford Reserve, Benedictine). The city landmark reopened in early 2017.Īppropriately located in the basement of the historic structure, the Blue Room is a study in juxtaposition. A massive fire in 2014 forced a years-long closure and major renovation. Founded 23 years ago inside the former home of the Chicago Fire Department’s Engine Company 104, the restaurant is known for its building’s original 1905 Romanesque Revival architecture and classic steakhouse menu. Wanting to play off of the history of this 1929 Spartan Radio Cabinet: I deciced to turn it into a prohibition era Hidden Bar. Steeped in local history, the Chicago Firehouse Restaurant seems a natural fit for an intimate vintage bar. Industrial and Art Deco aesthetics go head-to-head at the Blue Room.
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