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Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Replay Retro Arcade Bar Opens in Boystown (PHOTOS)

The new beercade Replay held its pre-opening party Wednesday night. Check out photos of the new bar on North Halsted.

Boystown’s new beer arcade Replay Beer & Bourbon held a special pre-opening party Wednesday night, previewing the space before it’s grand opening Friday evening. Games like Ms. Pac-Man and Space Invaders filled the new space, and 25 craft beers lined the bar on tap. Owner Mark Liberson—who also owns area bars Halsted’s, Hydrate and Elixir—announced his plans for the former Bucks Saloon at 3439 N. Halsted St. in April. Follow Us on Facebook!

Ricketts Buys Another Wrigleyville Property on Clark

The current office space sits across the street from Wrigley Field, and was snatched up by the Cubs’ owners for $2.3 million.

The owners of the Chicago Cubs have purchased another building in Wrigleyville, adding to their collection of properties surrounding Wrigley Field. The Ricketts family purchased the almost 29,000-square-foot building at 3721 N. Clark St. for $2.3 million, Chicago Real Estate Daily reports. They purchased it from a Tribune Co. venture that offered a lease-to-buy deal when the Ricketts purchased the team in 2009. The Cubs also occupy the building as office space, but representatives with the team have long told the community during neighborhood meetings the space has become cramped. Designs for the Ricketts’ $500 million redevelopment of Wrigley Field and the surrounding area include new offices on the north end of the proposed Triangle …

Hearing Set for Controversial Broadway Bar, State Rep. Steps In

Ald. Cappleman and neighbors are saying “No” to the tavern license, but the potentially divisive owner seeking the permit continues to push forward. Now a hearing is set, and even the state representative is getting involved.

Cries from neighbors, Ald. James Cappleman (46th) and now State Rep. Greg Harris (13th-Chicago) are seemingly not enough to convince one problematic developer from attempting to open a bar on North Broadway. Sitting on the Lake View’s northern border at North Broadway and Irving Park Road, the Broadway Tavern's owner Burim “Brian Menetti” Mehmeti applied for a tavern license only to have the alderman and the community strongly resist its approval. Cappleman wrote a letter in late December to the city’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, citing major issues with Mehmeti’s other businesses like the Lawrence House and the Green Dolphin Street, causing the department to deny the new license. But now, Uptown Update reports …

Endgrain Opening in June, Donuts Available for Early Risers

The long-awaited Enoch’s Doughnuts can be bought on the way to the Addison Brown Line Station with a full menu coming the first week of June.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Emerald City Theatre Guts, Rebuilds Storefront to Call Home (PHOTOS)

The non-profit theater formerly hopped between Lake View stages like Theater Wit and Sage 773, but starting May 29, they’ll have a space all their own.

They’ve hopped between local staples like Lincoln Park's Apollo Theater The Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place, but now organizers behind the Emerald City Theatre Company are unveiling a newly transformed space to call their own. Marketing and Events Manager Aileen McGraddy said owners completely gutted and transformed the storefront at 2933 N. Southport Ave. across the street form the Athenaeum to create their Little Theatre. Following their ribbon cutting on May 29, the Emerald City Little Theatre is ready to provide professional lighting and sound systems for young children age 0-to 4-years-old. The organization's other students will also utilize the new space.  “It is a natural extension of our current work,” said Executive …

New Southport Starbucks to Feature Pricy Clover Brewing System

The unique way to brew the premium coffee beans is only available at select stores. It uses a special $11,000 Clover machine to brew one cup at a time, sometimes costing $7 a cup.

Lake View’s new Starbucks may not be offering the café’s premium evening menu with wine and small plates, but it is adding a different exclusive feature—the Clover Brewing System. The new space at 3400 N. Southport Ave. is still undergoing construction, combining three existing storefronts into a large new Starbucks. When completed, it’ll be similar in size to the location also near the Brown Line at 1000 W. Diversey Ave., one of the few Starbucks in America to offer the Evenings menu. The Clover Brewing System, on the other hand, is a different premium feature that allows Starbucks employees to brew specialty—and pricy—coffee. When the company launched its Costa Rica Finca Palmilera roast late last year, a Grande size was $7, and a half-…

gerald spencer

5:34 pm on Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Hmmm, 11 grand, one should get a roasting, grinding and brewing machine for that price. Can we spell "shallow?"   more ›

Monday, May 20, 2013

The Bentley to Open at Former Brothel, Murder Scene

A new bistro concept is headed to Southport Avenue, taking up residency in a building with a very colorful history. Owners also plan for just as many outdoor seats as indoor.

French bistro-style restaurant The Bentley is gearing up for a June opening in Lake View, and the storefront owner Brian Dohmen chose for his new venture certainly has some history. While the space at 2834 N. Southport Ave. was most recently Palette Bistro, but before that it was Lucca’s, an Italian restaurant where a man was murdered. The then-restaurant manager Randall Hilderband suffocated when he was tied up with electrical cords and had tape placed over his mouth and nose during a 2008 robbery, CBS Chicago reports. David Sidener was sentenced to 60 years in prison for the murder. While in business, Lucca’s menu detailed the odd history the storefront went through, including a funeral parlor in the 1800s and a grocery store in 1917, …

gerald spencer

8:58 am on Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Another, shallow, wading pool.   more ›

Arcade Frenzy: Boystown's Replay, Expanded Headquarters Open This Week

The two Lake View “beercades” are hosting grand opening celebrations to kick off the new spaces. Headquarters added 20 pinball machines, and Replay is sporting Ms. Pac-Man on Halsted.

Start collecting your quarters, because two new spaces to get your game on are opening in Lake View this week with a focus on pinball, arcade games and craft beer. Headquarters Beercade is kicking off the unveiling process Thursday at 7 p.m. with their new 7,000-square-foot expansion at 950 W. Wolfram St. Formerly Uncle Fatty’s Rum Resort, the new space is now home to 20 pinball machines by Chicago-area designer Stern Pinball. Representatives with Headquarters say the festivities will continue all weekend where they’ll be on the streets handing out special passes for the first two weekends. Following Headquarters’ big reveal, Boystown’s new retro arcade bar Replay Beer & Bourbon is slated to open its space on Friday with more than 20 games…

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Lakeview Lady

1:00 pm on Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Woah, wait a minute, construction makes noise? Didn't realize this was news. But just in case you missed the memo, construction noise typically stops when remodeling does, which usually follows the opening... which is this week. FYI.   more ›

Food & Wine Ranks Lake View Bar as Best Beer Garden in America

The Lake View hot spot snags the attention of the dining magazine for its strong selection of beer and the beautiful cottonwood trees shading the garden.

According to Food & Wine Magazine, Lake View is home to the hottest spot to snag a few brews in the great outdoors. Sheffield’s Chicago, sitting at 3528 N. Sheffield St., is ranked first on the list of the dining magazine’s breakdown of best beer gardens in the nation. The Lake View staple is noted for its hefty selection of tasty beverages and the feel of its outdoor space. “This popular Lakeview garden concentrates on the beer, offering a strong selection of American craft brews and a number of spectacular bottles from Belgium, like Brouwerij Verhaeghe’s Duchesse de Bourgogne, a complex fruity-and-sour blend of oak-aged ales,” Food & Wine writes. “Cottonwood trees shade the picnic tables on its comfy patio.”  Also making the list are …

Sara Brown

3:42 pm on Tuesday, May 21, 2013

The address is 3258, not 3528.   more ›

Wholesale Retailer Re.Stock Pops Up in Boystown

The revolving pop-up store moves to North Halsted Street with hot buys in the heart of Boystown.

Those looking to snag new clothes from designers like Tom Ford, Ralph Lauren and Jil Stuart can make a beeline to Boystown, because pop-up shop Re.Stock has landed on Halsted. Owner Julie Labarge moves the business to different storefronts around Chicago every few months, and even set up shop in 2009 at the current Five Guys location on North Broadway. This time she’s open at 3519 N. Halsted St. for three months to sell her designer digs to the boys in Boystown. “I just have so much men’s stuff,” Labarge said. “I was going to open the shop in Wicker Park on Milwaukee, but this just made more sense.” Re.Stock will be selling everything from hats and ties to jeans and jackets through the end of August before potentially moving again. It’ll …

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