Chicago Restaurants in Chicago with Live Entertainment

Dusek's Board & Beer/Punch House

The team behind The Empty Bottle and Longman & Eagle have restored an old Pilsen opera house to its original state, but with contemporary updates. Originally named Thalia Hall, Dusek's Board & Beer and lower-level Punch House

Petterino's

Boleo

There's a hot Latin party popping off in the bustling Financial District. That's at Boleo, the yearround rooftop South American-inspired cocktail lounge at the Kimpton Gray Hotel.

Andy's Jazz Club

Got a jones for jazz at lunchtime? Just head here for traditional beats, from be-bop to blues.

B.L.U.E.S.

Here's a place where you're likely to spot local blues stars chilling out in the audience as well as on stage. B.L.U.E.S., an intimate, down-home venue with limited seating, gets you right into the action.

Carol's Pub

Honky-tonk bar featuring live country-western music, line dancing & karaoke since 1973.

Kit Kat Lounge & Supper Club

Kit Kat offers a well-crafted menu of American cuisine and more than 70 cocktail choices, but the reason to head to this Boys Town spot is the entertainment.

Gallery 37 Center for the Arts

The city of Chicago-owned Gallery 37 Center for the Arts is home to several innovative arts programs, including After School Matters and the Chicago Public Schools' Advanced Arts Education Program. The Center also hosts World Kitchen cooking classes, the

The Palm Court

The elegant Palm Court is at the heart of the historic Drake Hotel, which is located in the pristine Streeterville neighborhood on Chicago's Near North Side. The highlight of the space is a limestone fountain with a 275-year-old giant bronze urn as its centerpiece. Most locals head here for the daily high tea offering, but there's so much going on at this venue throughout the year.

Music Box Theatre

For 30 years the Music Box Theatre has been one of the premier venues in Chicago for independent and foreign films and festivals. It currently offers the largest cinema space operated full time in the city. It is independently owned and operated by the Southport Music Box Corporation.

Café Ba-Ba-Reeba

Chicago's first tapas bar is still going strong. Drop in for sherry and a pre-theater nibble at happy hour or stay for a wide variety of tapas or larger meals, including paella. A variety of special events, such as flamenco dancing and art talks, feature regularly.

Buddy Guy's Legends

Since its opening in June of ‘89, Buddy Guy’s Legends has built a reputation as the nation’s premier blues club. Mr. Guy’s personal reputation as the crowned king of Chicago’s electric blues scene and his 50+ years in the music business have made Buddy truly a legend himself. As a blues club, Legends is distinguished for its innovative scheduling of local, national, and international blues acts. In the nineteen years that Legends has been open, the stage has been graced by some of the world’s most talented musicians.

O'Donovan's Pub and Restaurant

The family-friendly tavern offers a full menu, and nightly dinner specials are offered every day. On weekends, magicians perform tableside. Once known as Schulien's, this building is one of the oldest operating bars in Chicago.

Durkin's Tavern

There's nothing fancy about Durkin's, but neighborhood types like it for its laid-back energy and comfortable setting.

Prop Thtr

Established in 1981, Prop Thtr Group is the oldest surviving off-Loop, non-Equity troupe in Chicago. The theater focuses on original works and new adaptations from literature.

Offshore

Gallery Cabaret

Live performance shows and obnoxiously cheap drinks make this place a novelty.

M Lounge

Long Room

This Irving Park pub at the corner of Irving Park Road and Ashland Avenue has been around for almost 20 years. During that time, it's maintained a respectable rep for local live entertainment.

Tack Room

Drawing inspiration from the 1890’s, when every local Czech tavern owner had a carriage house, John Dusek had one of his own at Thalia Hall.

Vic Theatre/Brew & View

The acoustics are near perfect, and the balcony has wonderful sight-lines. When there's no live music, hit the Brew & View. Singular to all of northern Illinois, the Brew & View is the Vic's alter ego, transforming the theater from music to movies.

Lincoln Hall

Goose Island Salt Shed Pub

A brewpub with a riverfront patio sounds like a place that will make a lot of Chicagoans happy.

Jimmy Fig's

The Drifter

There are many "secret" cocktail lounges in Chicago that regularly attract curious night-crawlers. There's The Office, the invite-only bar underneath The Aviary in the Warehouse District. You'll also find Booze Box below West Loop hot spot Sushi Dokku. And in River North, there is the titillating The Drifter, a sort of bumbling dive of a basement bar mixing booze and burlesque.

River Roast

Local powerhouses Tony Mantuano (Bar Toma, Spiaggia, Piano Terzo) and John Hogan (Kiki's Bistro, Keefer's Steakhouse) join forces to create this meat-focused waterfront restaurant and bar.

The Albion Manor

The Albion Manor and The Parlour are a new one-two dining and drinking punch that will knock you out with outstanding British pub food and marvelous cocktails.

Bordel

This esoteric speakeasy space above Black Bull takes its cue from NYC's PDT and Canelaria in Paris. While Bordel's a cocktail lounge on the highest level, it also incorporates live entertainment in the mix.

Kuma's Corner West Loop

Kuma’s started in 2005 as a corner bar with solid American bistro fare

The Patio at Café Brauer

Dine and drink waterside at Chicago’s most scenic al fresco restaurant and bar: The Patio at Café Brauer. The Patio is located just south of the main zoo grounds beside Café Brauer (2021 North Stockton), a historic Prairie School-style landmark.

Untitled

This River North attraction is a throwback to yesteryear, particularly during the years when Prohibition was in effect. Untitled features four distinct experiences: the whiskey lounge, champagne salon, Backstage live music room, and library-influenced dining room.

Dorian's

It was great to relive our younger years with Saved By The Max - Saved By The Bell Pop Up Shop Diner & Bar, the kitschy Wicker Park sensation that has since moved on to a permanent space in West Hollywood. But now it’s time to grow up again—especially those of us who watched the show in its prime—as the owners have created a more sophisticated establishment in its space.

HotHouse

HotHouse is an award winning nfp org. founded in 1987- currently developing a new cultural center while presenting a range of multiarts programs

TAO Chicago

Masada

From the folks behind Sultan's Market comes this palatial Middle Eastern restaurant and bar. Masada spans multiple floors and dining rooms to give Logan Square a glamorous taste of Middle Eastern dining and drinking.

Bar Louie -University Village

Bar Louie is a staple neighborhood bar.

Kingston Mines

Hubbard Inn

Executive Chef Eric Babula (Punch Bowl, City Works, Old Town Pour House, Waldorf Astoria, RA Sushi) is behind the menu at the newly renovated Hubbard Inn, which underwent more than $1 million in remodeling.

Cubby Bear - Wrigleyville

From old-school hip-hop bands to up-and-coming local acts, this Wrigleyville venue supports them all. A full menu extends beyond pub grub to items like fish and chips, baby back ribs and fish tacos.

Lazy Bird

One of three concepts at Hoxton Chicago, located in Fulton Market District, Lazy Bird is a subterranean cocktail lounge. Its specialty? It's all laid out in an intricately designed menu that advertises 52 classic cocktails--one for every day of the week.

Wynwood Chicago

Inspired by artsy Miami community Wynwood, Wynwood Chicago pays homage to its creativity as well as its whimsical approach to life. It's also appropriate that such a concept would find a home in the similarly art-focused neighborhood of Wicker Park. A mural along the length of the wall is a nod to both arts communities.

Beat Kitchen

Local bands and comedy shows are the attraction at this neighborhood venue with a full kitchen.

The Promontory

The guys behind Michelin-starred Dusek's and Longman & Eagle bring their magic touch to the South Side. The Promontory is their contribution to the Hyde Park neighborhood, and it's located in the center of the area's action at 53rd Street.

Coq d'Or, The Drake Hotel

The first bar in Chicago granted a liquor license after the repeal of Prohibition always makes a lasting impression with authentic decor that's been restored to its original glory.