Gay clubs in chicago downtown
LGBTQ+ nightlife in Chicago: queer and lesbian bars, clubs, and more
Chicago’s nightlife is a lot like the city itself — inclusive, diverse, and welcoming to all. It’s also a whole lot of pleasurable. Our gay and woman-loving woman bars have a minuscule bit of something for everyone, with late-night lounges, dance clubs,burlesque and kingly shows, and long-standing neighborhood watering holes in almost every corner of the city. And each comes with their own one-of-a-kind history and vibe.
Check out some of the top gay bars and clubs to experience Chicago’s gay nightlife scene.
Jeffery Pub
One of the city’s oldest male lover bars, Jeffery Pub is a neighborhood institution. The South Shore staple is also one of Chicago’s first black-owned gay bars, making it all the more meaningful for the spot’s many regulars. Don’t miss the live fun, like karaoke nights, Silky Soul Sundays, and a lively dance floor featuring everything from pop to house music.
Big Chicks
This lively and colorful spot is part LGBTQ hangout, part art gallery. The walls are plastered with the owner’s personal collection of paintings and photos, including big names like Diane Arbus. But don’t believe for a second that makes the pla
Leather bars seem to be slowly receding into the past, but the Cell Block in Boystown is bringing it back, or trying to at least on its ever well-liked “Furr Night” when bellying up to the block takes on new meaning… On every other evening, it’s cheap drinks, darts and pool that draws a predominantly non-leather neighborhood gay crowd.
Not to be confused with the very straight Lockdown on Western, Cell Block lurks ominously behind darkened windows on Halsted, just north of Waveland and adjacent to Kit Kat Lounge & Supper Club. If you blink as you step by, you might never even notice it.
I must admit that I was a little apprehensive about going to Cell Block. I’ve often heard it described as a hook-up bar for older male lover men and the label itself is a petty intimidating, not to speak of the somewhat unwelcoming façade. However, after visiting the bar on several occasions, I discovered that the place is a petite misunderstood. Although there are some creepy men lurking in the shadows, Cell Block isn’t the hardcore leather bar like everyone thinks. It’s mainly groups of men and women just having a great time.
The bar itself could use a décor up
Downtown: Everything’s waiting for you
For the first hour of a recent Saturday night at Downtown—a new bar in the space once occupied by Gentry and, ever so briefly, The Lucky Lady—I was the only lady in the room. Among the lounges that dot River North, Downtown stands as the sole lgbtq+ bar save for the stalwart dive Second Story in nearby Streeterville. As a veteran of many a Boystown bar hop, I had decided to visit both spots and evaluate the possibility of a new gay district on Chicago’s nightlife horizon.
With three male companions in tow, I headed to Downtown first, since I’d heard happy hour is bus-tling (my next see will be for Talentless Tuesdays karaoke in the basement). Relieved to discover the drink list unencumbered by craft cocktails or hundreds of beers to sift through, I ordered my old faithful, Maker’s and Diet ($8), and huddled with my team under the dramatic barrel ceiling. “Oh, yeah. There’s a lot of Grindr action going on here,” my friend Tim muttered, peeking at the so-named smartphone app that lets like-minded seekers of, ahem, certain favors zero in on one another, wherever they may be. Y
The 34 best LGBTQ+ bars in Chicago
Photograph: Courtesy Sidetrack
Northalsted, aka "Boystown," is the historical center of Chicago’s LGBTQ+ scene, but wonderful gay bars are all over the city.
Chicago has always been a trailblazing city when it comes to spaces for the LGBTQ community. One of the first American LGBT rights organizations, the Community for Human Rights, was founded in Chicago in 1924, more than 40 years before Stonewall. And Northalsted, the gay nightlife hub also known as "Boystown," became the first officially-designated gay village in a major city in 1997.
These days, while a night out on Northalsted is still a joyful blur of boozy slushies and death drops, queer nightlife in Chicago is expansive, creative and thriving all over the city. From Rogers Park to South Shore, from James Beard-nominated cocktail bars to beloved, homey dives, there's a queer bar to fit your vibe. Oh, and don't forget about flamboyant brunch. You'll need it after a night out on the town.
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