A 1971 fire gutted the original space, and regulars reportedly helped carry the bar itself across North Avenue to a new home that was only ever supposed to be temporary -- it's been there since. What makes it a destination now isn't the drink list, it's the walls: Chicago artist Bruce Elliott has spent decades covering the room in painted portraits of regulars, politicians and public figures, a collection Bon Appetit called "not just a dive bar, it's a museum." A 2008 nude portrait of Sarah Palin, painted in response to how she was covered at that year's Republican convention, went viral, made national news, and spawned the wall of political satire that's still above the bar today.
The bar sits around the corner from Second City, which has made it a longtime late-night stop for Chicago comedians -- Stephen Colbert has talked about meeting Conan O'Brien there -- and Roger Ebert called it "the best bar he knew existed." Anthony Bourdain agreed enough to make it the actual centerpiece of Parts Unknown's 2016 Chicago episode, after already featuring it on The Layover in 2012. It's cash only, there's an ATM on site, and it stays open deep into the night: 3pm-4am most nights, 3pm-5am on Saturdays.
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