His nephew Sam Sianis opened this Lower Michigan Avenue location in 1964, in the Apollo Savings and Loan building, and it's the one that actually became famous: Mike Royko's newspaper columns turned it into a Chicago institution, the supposed Cubs curse gave it a permanent hook, and Saturday Night Live's 'Olympia Cafe' sketch ('Cheezborger, cheezborger, cheezborger — no fries, chips!') made Sam's real shouted order a piece of American TV history. Six decades later the space is barely changed, walls still covered in memorabilia.
Anthony Bourdain made a point of visiting and tweeting about the bartenders here during The Layover's 2012 Chicago shoot, grouping it with Old Town Ale House and The Hideout as the city's best.
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