The 100 Bar Project

We've Moved!

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 23:16:00 +0000

After a brief (OK, long) hiatus, we've returned. We've moved the blog, however, to tumblr. Look for us there.

Leaders & Legends

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 09:32:00 +0000

If you're a Big Ten alumni, fan or friend, come out Saturday for the Chicago Ten Alumni Challenge. The second annual event will take place at bars located in the River North area and the proceeds go to a good cause. You know, us, we like to drink, but we especially like to drink for a good cause.

The goal this year is to raise $50,000 for the Alumni for Public Schools (APS), a not-for-profit organization that promotes and supports volunteer partnerships between Chicago chapters of university alumni associations and individual Chicago public schools. Since 2001 APS has enhanced student learning and increased student awareness of and readiness for post-secondary options. You can learn more about this organization at www.APS-Chicago.org .

Here's how it works: Each Big Ten school will call a River North bar home for the day and fans will square off in rivalry contests, compete for prizes from national brands, and enjoy drink deals at River North leaders and legends - including Rockit, Theory, Public House, Bull & Bear, English, LaSalle Power Co, Moe's Cantina, Howl at the Moon, Fado, Blue Frog's Local 22 and District.

We had a blast last year and once again, T & L will be representing Michigan State (although L might don a Northwestern T-shirt when we're at the Wildcats' home bar). According to the Chicago Big Ten facebook page, Spartan Nation came through with the most tickets purchased. Go Green!

As somewhat older alumni, well at least relative to the typical pub crawler anyway, we fully expect to hear things like "Hey, who brought mom and dad...When you went to college, was it the Big Six...It's 4, do you need to take a nap?" Well, we're prepared with some snappy comebacks, like "dudes, our livers haven't functioned properly since before you were born," and if that doesn't get'em, how about "hey, do you even know what a road map is, let alone know how to fold one?" Yeah, we're ready!

Advance tickets sales are just about over, but "day of" can be had from the participating bars from 11 to noon. Advance tickets are $15 while waiting until Saturday will cost you another $5.

Home Bars

Illinois - Moe's Cantina

Indiana - LaSalle Power Co

Ohio State - Public House

Penn State - Fado

Purdue - Bull & Bear

Wisconsin - Blue Frog Local 22

Iowa - Theory

Michigan - Rockit

Michigan State - English

Minnesota - Fado

Nebraska - Howl at the Moon

Northwestern - District

So come on out Saturday and join alumni, fans and friends of the Big Ten schools for a fun event and a great cause. Look for us via foursquare or Twitter and say hello.

The 100 Bar Project by The 100 Bar Project is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.

"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da"

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 14:36:00 +0000

Despite the blogging break, the Project ventured into Wrigleyville earlier this week to catch Sir Paul McCartney in concert at Wrigley Field. No new bars to report on, but the concert was fantastic. We saw McCartney back in 1993 at the Pontiac Silver Dome in Michigan. He was good then, but we thought this week's show was much better. In fact, we'd go as far as saying Monday's show was one of the best concerts we've ever seen.

Perhaps it was the venue. Outdoors at the Friendly Confines as opposed to inside the hulking Silver Dome. Maybe it was the whole Wrigleyville experience, when compared to shooting into Pontiac and getting the hell out as soon as possible. Or maybe we don't really have a clear memory of 1993 and that concert was just as good as this week's show. Who knows?

This was our first concert at Wrigley, and we must say the backdrop provided for a great venue. Of course, you have the whole Wrigleyville experience before and after the show, and we think a ball-park, especially one like Wrigley offers up a unique experience. We saw the Rolling Stones at U.S. Cellular some years back and that was pretty good. Concerts outdoors are just more enjoyable, except of course when it rains (James Taylor, we're looking at you).

The set list was fantastic, plenty of songs from both McCartney's time with the Beatles and with Wings. He sang And I Love Her which was the song we had played at our wedding reception during our first dance as husband and wife. L is a huge Beatles fan, while T likes his McCartney served with a side of Wings. T would have been happy to dance to Hi Hi Hi, but since this was our first decision as a married couple, T thought it better to allow L to prevail. That one decision set the tone for a happy marriage. Guys, always let the bride pick that song.

Guys, another suggestion. Don't venture into "age issues" with any woman. Here's an actual conversation between L and a guy sitting next to her in the beer garden at the Uberstein before the show.

Guy to L: Have you seen McCartney before?
L: Yes
Guy: Oh cool, did you see him when he was with the Beatles playing Chicago in 1964?

Silence, but L was tempted to "accidently" spill her beer in this jag-bag's lap, but that would be a waste of perfectly good beer.

L: 1964? I wasn't even bor... um, well I was too young to see a concert in 1964 (said in a disdainful tone).
L to T: Time to go
T to L: Yes dear
T to Guy: Asshole

Oh well, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, life goes on.

The Project is back and we're headed to Grant Park this weekend for Lollapalooza. See you there, and guys don't be asking L if she saw any of the acts in 1964. Oh wait, none of the Lolla acts were born in 1964, or 1974 for that matter. Enjoy the music people!

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Taking a Break

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 12:36:00 +0000

If you haven't noticed, our entries have been too few the past couple of months. Blame it on the lack of creative juices caused by excessive summer heat, or perhaps you can chalk it up to our general laziness. We'd rather blame it on our darn day jobs that prevent us from fully enjoying the accolades and perks that come from being famous booze bloggers. Consequently, we're taking a break, not from exploring the great city of Chicago, but writing about it.

You can still follow our escapades at several other locations

Twitter

Limiting our updates to 140 characters or less doesn't tax the Project's gray matter, or what's left of it. You can also follow L on Twitter, for a uniquely feminine perspective on getting sloshed

Facebook

Join over 3,000 followers as we share cocktail recipes, interesting booze related news stories and Chicago entertainment news. Interact with other followers, share your own recipes or post a picture of you in your favorite bar.

foursquare

Stalk us as we check in at one of our favorite Chicago bars or perhaps a new place. Find us via foursquare, introduce yourself and we'll buy you a drink. We'd like to buy you a beer or a cocktail, unless of course, you're a psychotic serial killer or a registered sex offender. You two have to buy your own drinks.

Yelp

We just started yelping (reviewing bars and restaurants) so if you'd like more of a location critique, with our unique take on things, follow us on Yelp.

YouTube

Every now and then we post a video of something we find entertaining or fun. Check out The 100 Bar "channel" Our last post was L leading the gang at Trader Todd's in a karaoke version of Piano Man. Good stuff.

And for the record, we're only at Bar #26 this year. We'll say it again, "Damn you day jobs!" So stay with us as we continue our assault on Chicago and our journey to 100 bars. By the way, if anyone knows how we can do this full-time and make a living at it, let us know.

The Matchbox

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 14:18:00 +0000

We stumbled (literally) into this place Friday night. Wow, what a great bar. Sure its about 3 feet wide, but that really lends itself to meeting new people, especially when they have to squeeze past you to get to the can.

"Excuse me, I really have to go"
"Hey, be my friend?"
"Sure, just let me get by so I can take a leak!"
"Call me"

The service was great. The bartenders friendly. The crowd was very eclectic. Their margaritas were rimmed with powder sugar. L didn't like it, but T couldn't get enough. Great late night ambiance. We loved it. Bar #26 on the year.

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Time to Eat

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 22:55:00 +0000

One of our favorite places to eat and drink in Boystown is D.S. Tequila on Halsted.

A great patio for a little warm weather dining, sit out there if you can. But if you can't L suggests a seat at the bar so you can ogle the bartenders.(you're not changing them L).

D.S. Tequila has a great beer selection along with their own tequila. (editor's note: not yet but it's coming). We usually opt for the tacos, which are of the small variety. The tacos here are considered light fare. For an extra buck add an avocado slice.

And because it's Boystown you can down your tacos and tequila with a healthy dose if dance music.

Pride!

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 21:32:00 +0000

We're in Boystown for the annual Pride Fest. Avoid the street vendors because they're all selling Bud (ech!).

Duck into the Kit Kat Lounge for one of their many signature drinks like the Sake-It-To-Me or the Lava Lamp martini.

L went with the Cucumber Martini while T went with the Samoan Girl Scout Cookie (pictured). The Samoan has vodka, Cruzan coconut rum, cream de coca, butter shots liqueur, and a dash of coconut cream. Add a little dance music, some rainbow swag and you've got yourself a good time.

Happy Pride!

Blogging On The Run

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 19:37:00 +0000

After a year and a half the creative juices are darn near running dry. In an effort to keep our dream alive we're going to experiment with Blogger Mobile or Mobile Blogger or whatever it's called.
What does that mean for you the reader? Not much except we're hoping more entries and in real time. Our efforts will definitely be shorter because typing and reading on an iPhone is taxing on the eyes and fingers. We can't even imagine doing this after a beer or three.
Look for the mobile entries this weekend, assuming this test post actually works.

We're Now Yelping

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 13:40:00 +0000

So we just discovered this thing called Yelp. So its been around since 2004, we get it, we can be a bit slow sometimes. We tend to lag behind on new technology. A friend even had the audacity recently to suggest that our Tandy was outdated. And this wireless internet thingy that everyone is talking about, we'll wait and see about that.

Image via CrunchBase

Yelp is an online review site that allows people to opine on bars, restaurants, shoe repair joints and any other type of business. Create an account on Yelp and you receive your very own URL, which is kind of cool.

Keeping in mind that we're not "foodies" we're nevertheless going to forge ahead and begin doing more traditional reviews of bars, restaurants and shoe repair joints. Despite our lack of sophistication when it comes to food, we do eat and we believe that qualifies us to write about it. So like our bar reviews, which are always short on detail, long on story, look for the same thing on Yelp. We'll also run our reviews here. So now, either jump over to Yelp or continue reading our latest review here:

Made our way to GT Fish and Oyster last weekend. The place is hot right now so we'd suggest reservations well in advance. We made them late in the week for Saturday and had to settle for a 10:30 slot.

Dieing from starvation at nine, well dieing may be an overstatement, we stopped in to see if they could squeeze us in. They couldn't, but we hung out at the bar and acted like vultures over the shoulders of 2 guys sitting there checking their smart-phones. Using telepathic messaging, or maybe it was our dirty looks, we managed to get the guys to leave and took their seats.

The food here is primarily of the "small plate" variety with the menu split into cold and hot items. They also have a nice selection of raw oysters, hence the name. We went with a dozen Peacock Cove oysters. These East Coast buggers were small but very tasty.

We also ordered the shrimp bruschetta because when we checked in on foursquare a tip popped up suggesting we order it. We're not ones to reject tips from total strangers so brushetta it was. From the hot menu we also ordered the lobster roll because we heard a lot about that item before we went, and we also ordered the mahi mahi tacos. It was all very good, but the tacos were the best, hand's down. The tacos came with a chipotle aioli and a sprinkling of chicharrons (which we found out later is some kind of pork) and served in a corn tortilla. Get the tacos!

The service was excellent, the ambiance was hip and happening. The crowd, especially that late on a Saturday night leaned toward youngish. We'll be going back to try other menu items, but we'll definitely be ordering the tacos again.

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There's No Wine With Oysters

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 18:49:00 +0000

When we're headed to Steppenwolf Theatre, or after the production, we like to stop at the King Crab Tavern and Grill, located at 1816 N. Halsted. Fans of the blog know we enjoy raw oysters, and King Crab does them all right. Nothing better than grabbing a stool at the bar, getting a dozen, quaffing a cold beer and enjoying the experience.At King Crab, they shuck the oysters right in front of you, and that's half the enjoyment.Spoon on the horseradish and cocktail sauce and you've got yourself a good thing.

On our last visit, we sat by a guy who was clearly waiting for someone. He had a backpack sitting on the stool next to him, and as anyone got within three feet of him, "it's taken" came out of his mouth before the person could inquire about the stool's availability. This went on for a good 30 minutes, "it's taken...sorry taken...occupied... yeah its taken." Finally the guy got a phone call, "Yeah, I haven't ordered yet, I've been waiting for you. Yeah, I'm saving you a stool. Where are you? I'll go ahead and order." Soon after that, the guy's wife, girlfriend or sister met him at the bar. Probably not his sister, who saves a seat for their sister? The stool-saver could finally let his guard down, the stool was now officially TAKEN. We have mixed feelings about stool-saving. Certainly if you're meeting someone soon, its fine, but how about 30 minutes? Heck, someone could have sat there, downed a beer and been gone well within 30 minutes. Heck two people could have come and gone. Maybe that debate is left for another blog entry.

Gimme a cold beer with those oysters!

So we're sitting there enjoying our oysters. We prefer the East Coast variety, sorta like a preference for Biggie over 2-Pac, if oysters were rappers. Anyway, we were drinking cold Anchor Steams, which pairs well with oysters. Stool-Saver was drinking an unknown type of beer, but his lady sat down and ordered a white wine. Wait a minute, a wine with oysters? Time-out, we're tossing the 100 Bar Project penalty flag onto the bar. You don't drink wine with oysters. You drink a beer, preferably a hearty stout, maybe even a porter, but never wine.

Beer

In fact, beer with oysters is such a tradition that "oyster stout" is a readily understood description of a beer that pairs well with oysters. Have you ever heard of an "oyster Pinot?" We think not!

The custom of washing down those little bivalve mullusks with a dark, hearty ale dates to 19th-century Britain, where so many oysters were dredged from the Thames that pubs served them as a free snack, much as modern bars do with pretzels and peanuts. In fact, some breweries have developed oyster beer. Harpoon's Island Creek Oyster Stout comes to mind.

The outrage and indignation we felt could only be overcome by ordering another dozen along with a couple more cold ones. This time we were really going to enjoy the beer and oysters, you know, verbally enjoy them so the woman got the message, "oh look" she'll say, "that couple are really enjoying their beer and oysters, I must try that combination." But we all know how that story ends, "Can I have another glass of wine please?"

When you go to King Crab, a couple "do's" Do sit at the bar or a table out front. Do not let them seat you in the back. The back looks like mom's kitchen, and who wants to suck down oysters and beer in mom's kitchen? Do be sure to get a bowl of their pita snacks. We don't know the exact recipe but we've nosed around enough to engage in a little reverse manufacturing when it comes to these delicious little snacks, which also pair well with oysters and beer.

PITA SNACKS

Take a few slices of pita bread, cutting them up into pieces (finger food size)
Brush on olive oil over the pieces
Sprinkle Greek Seasoning (available at most grocery stores in the spice aisle) and Parmesan cheese
Broil until lightly browned
Leave the fixings out because you will be making more

So our first penalty flag in over a year; we'd never make it as a referee in the NFL, but our 25th bar is in the books. By the way, did you like the film "T Getting Ready to Eat an Oyster." It was done in a classic French noir style. Notice the attitude and sexuality oozing from the scene as heightened by the music and the symbolism of a solitary man and his oysters. It would have been even sexier had the music lasted as long as the video. Well, we're drinkers, not Spielbergs. What are you drinking with your oysters this weekend? Let us know.

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May The Fest Be With You

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Fri, 27 May 2011 00:05:00 +0000

Summer in the city

Festival season kicked off last weekend with Mayfest in Lakeview. Not one of our favorite festivals, it nevertheless signaled the beginning of summer fun in Chicago. We love the festivals since they give us a good excuse to get out and explore new bars and neighborhoods.

We prefer the events that are "street festivals" so we have options to the festival beer vendors. We're all for corporate sponsorship (hint, hint) but the folks at Anheuser-Busch InBev have a strangle hold on the festival beer vendors and we're not Budweiser drinkers. Did you know that Bud is made from rice? We don't want rice in our beer. As a bed for our General Tso's Chicken, it's great, but keep it out of our beer. Besides, T has a theory that Bud hangovers are the worse, due in large part because of the rice and not because T tends too indulge a bit too much. We can't prove T's theory, but T's resume suggests he's an expert on hangovers so we tend to listen.

But it gets worse. All the festivals push that abomination that is Bud Light Lime. In addition to not being Bud drinkers, we're not Light beer drinkers (get a glass of water and twirl a brown crayon in it already) and although we love limes, we love fresh limes, preferably as garnish for our gin gimlet, not the chemically prepared "Lime" that flavors the Bud Light.

So the street festivals give as an opportunity to escape Budville and dash into a tavern for a real beer, or perhaps a cocktail or two. One of our favorite street festivals is this coming weekend, the Belmont-Sheffield Music Festival. Sheffield will be blocked off between Belmont and School Streets so that means access to Sheffield's and Trader Todd's. Besides those two establishments, there will be plenty of musical entertainment along with the usual vendors. All of these acts are fun. We especially enjoy 7th Heaven and their 30 songs in 30 minutes. You'll love them!

It's Festival Season!

Saturday
Noon - Velvet Jimis
(rock/funk/blues)
2:00pm - Red Glare Rockets
(rock)
4:00pm - Libido Funk Circus
(dance/pop)
6:30pm - Rock Candy
(pop/rock)
8:30pm - Too White Crew
(hip hop tribute)

Sunday
Noon - Sorry for Partying
(rock tribute)
1:30pm - He Said, She Said
(rock/pop tribute)
3:30pm - 7th Heaven
(pop/rock)
6:30pm - Hairbangers Ball

(heavy metal tribute)
8:30pm - Wedding Banned
(pop/rock)

And if you want to know where we'll be the rest of the summer, check out the Chicago Festival Schedule. You can follow us on foursquare, meet up with us and the first beer is on us.

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Rapture on Ashland

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 22 May 2011 14:27:00 +0000

Ashland Street, circa 1935

The Project kicked off Summer yesterday with a visit to the city's first street festival and then a stroll down Ashland St. For the unfamiliar, Ashland is a north-south thoroughfare that runs a LONG way. We started at its intersection with Belmont and Lincoln (one of those funky 6 way intersections) and went south to Altgeld, a distance of about a mile. Along the way, we enjoyed 5 new bars and managed to stop in for a drink or two at each. If the rapture was going to occur, Ashland seemed as good a place as any to meet our maker.

Cody's Public House

Leaving the festival (Ashland and Barry), we shot west on Barry to experience Cody's Public House. This is a classic corner bar, that pulls mainly from the neighborhood. Also we suspect, that imbibers like us, who want to take a step back in time, belly up to a bar, and just enjoy a cold one. The beer was reasonably priced, the service friendly and the juke box was playing good music. Old Style beer just seemed like a natural here. Cody's has a large and inviting beer garden, which, when we were there, was hosting a private party. This is not a "destination" bar, but if you're in the neighborhood, stop in. Cody's was definitely Rapture-worthy.

Back to Ashland, we headed south, past the shirtless guys playing beer pong on the sidewalk. By the way, isn't there an ordinance against beer pong on a city sidewalk? We're not suggesting there be one, but our beer pong experience has always been in the backyard, maybe in the family room now and then, but never on the sidewalk out front. But hey, who are we to judge. I,t wasn't our Rapture. The boys were prepared to ascend with Solo cups and ping-pong balls in hand.

From: http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/chicago-magazine-the-chaser/

Next stop was The Temple Bar. Billing itself as "Man U's Windy City Home," this is a soccer bar, but also an official Blackhawks bar and a University of Wisconsin bar. Son #1, a Man U soccer fan, frequents The Temple Bar and raves about the food and beer selection. And if there's anything Son #1 knows, it's beer. Living a couple hours from the city, Junior drives to Chicago to catch a Man U game at The Temple because he says the atmosphere is great on game day. Since we're not soccer fans, we'll take his word for it.

Next up was the Four Shadows Tavern & Grill. Although the bar flys a University of Iowa flag outside, we were greeted by an amiable bartender sporting a Michigan State Spartan hat. Ok, this bar gets our 4 thumbs up just for that. The kid told us he was from East Lansing and moved to Chicago after graduating from MSU in search of employment. Besides the Iowa connection, they appear to be a Marquette bar (hey Jesuits need a place to hang out and drink beer), and an Indianapolis Colts and a Chicago Bears bar (this place must have been confusing during the 2007 Super Bowl).

Bring Your Own Crock Pot at The Purple Otter

Further on down Ashland, we stumbled (quite literally at this point) into The Purple Otter. We were lured in by the crock pots in the window. The place was packed and quite honestly reminded us of our basement. You know, the dropped ceiling tiles that don't quite line up, the "clever" bar signs hung on the walls that say things like Men: No Shirts No Service, Women: No Shirts Free Beer. We had several questions for Dave behind the bar. He was busting ass waiting on everyone so the "Why Purple Otter?" question would have to wait. We did manage to ask him about the crock pots and Dave told us to help ourselves, something about pork and free. Another patron told us that they were actually having a party for a friend so they brought the food. From that discussion we surmised that The Purple Otter is a BYOCP bar.

Did we mention the smoking hot women?

Still no apocalypse so let's get back onto Ashland. Our next stop was The Players Club The first thing we were struck by was the motorcycle behind the bar. A real motorcycle. In doing research for the article (yes we do some research), we found out that the owner is a former racer and current race sponsor. There were other "racing" paraphernalia in the bar. The billboard out front also gives prospective patrons an idea of what to expect...a racing theme, among other things. We also learned that the owners are from Poland. The bartender, waitress and the only other patrons were all speaking, what we thought was Russian, but it could have been Polish. It was definitely Eastern European. Did we mention that the bartender and waitress were smoking hot? If we didn't, let us mention that now. The bartender and waitress were smoking hot. T was happy to camp out there the rest of the day. Very good looking women speaking Russian, Polish or some other Eastern European language. Think Barbara Bach as Anya Amasova in the James Bond movie, The Spy Who Loved Me. Now you understand why T didn't want to leave.

It was time to call it a day. We squeezed in five new bars (#s 20, 21, 22, 23 & 24) before the Rapture could occur. And since we're writing this the day after, it looks like we've got the balance of 2011 to get 76 more bars in.

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Chicago Craft Beer Week is Here

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Fri, 20 May 2011 19:33:00 +0000

The annual homage to craft beer is upon us. Chicago's Craft Beer Week kicked off last night and concludes Thursday, May 27th.

Now had we'd been thinking, we would have taken the week off from our darn day jobs so we could enjoy all the events. But never ones to be particularly committed to thinking ahead, we'll have to opt for only a weekend of craft beer goodness

Check out their web site for a complete list of events and activities but some that have peaked our interest for the weekend include:

Tonight's Goose Island Summertime South Loop Pub Crawl starting at Reggie's
Saturday's Great Lakes Brewery tapping at Rocking Horse
Michigan beer day at the Haymarket Pub on Sunday

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Heaven or Hell?

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 15 May 2011 16:05:00 +0000

The Project made its way to Rosemont last night to see Bob Seger. Seger was performing at the Allstate Arena. It was our first time at this venue and it will be our last. More on that later.

Seger, who turned 66 last week, sounded great. From his opening number (Roll Me Away, which is T's favorite Seger tune) we were transported to 1978 back in Michigan. For kids growing up in the Midwest in the 70's Seger was "The Man." He was our Bruce Springsteen. Seger, along with his Silver Bullet Band, toured every year. Heaven was seeing Seger at Cobo Hall in Detroit. Seeing him on the football field at Bay City Central High School every year was like being in the Kingdom of Heaven, you know, in the general vicinity of heaven, but not quite there. But it was still great. Is that analogy too much?

Seger tore through hit after hit and the crowd was on its feet for every song. Most songs elicited a massive sing-a-long among the faithful. The set list contained all the classics, including L's favorite, Turn the Page.

A Project observation: We've noticed that concerts featuring acts from our youth, e.g., Seger, the Eagles, seem to lack the same pungent aroma as they did during the 70's and 80's. We're referring of course to the lack of reefer smell. Back in the day, concert venues smelled like Cheech and Chong before the opening act. All we could smell last night were nachos and pizza. What happened to our generation? Did we give up pot in favor of faux-cheese covered chips and pepperoni? It seems that way and maybe that's a good thing. But before we eulogize Mary Jane's death among concert-goers of our generation, a Project shout-out to whomever sparked a doob during the encores...ah, it smelled like college.

So if the concert was Heaven, then the Allstate Arena is Hell. Built in the late 70's as the Rosemont Horizon, the place has been home to some big name concerts over the years. Although the United Center has siphoned off some of the bigger names the last several years, the Allstate Arena still hosts a number of top names, most recently George Strait, Sugarland, and Usher. In the late 90's Allstate dumped a ton of money into renovations and were rewarded with the naming rights. The place holds 18,500 for concerts and is only about 5,000 attendees smaller than the United Center. Of course, a concert at the United Center means we can walk there, stopping at a few of our favorite pubs along the way.

Really, our asses are supposed to fit into that?

Allstate tells us we're in good hands, but now we know why they don't say anything about our asses. And it just wasn't T complaining, but everyone around us. You're packed into this place like sardines. Maybe as a society we're too big (see nacho reference above), but c'mon, give us some room folks. Its bad enough we have to travel to the burbs, can't you give us a little comfort? For the six foot three T, there was no leg room on top of the lack of butt space. Thank goodness we were standing most of the night.

To get to Rosemont, we jumped on the Blue Line, which is the CTA line closest to Project HQ. We grabbed a taxi at the CTA stop in Rosemont and we were at the Arena in no time. We got there early (overestimated the time we'd need to get out there) and had to "pre-game" at the Target Store grill next door. Once inside the arena, we discovered that the official beers at the Arena are Bud and Bud Light, which means T won't be drinking. Bud...ech! $8 a beer and lines that are LONG. A couple concession stands have good beer at $11 a glass, but those lines were even LONGER.

Seger rocks the Allstate Arena

After the concert, we looked for a taxi back to the CTA station. The Rosemont police had assembled a taxi line and quite honestly, had the whole operation screwed up. Let us say, we love police officers and have the utmost respect for them, but last night the Rosemont cops had created a cluster-f#@k of major proportions. Instead of letting the taxis just move up and take the next people in line, the police officers were playing transportation directors and trying to match up riders with destinations and so on. It was raining, it was cold, and people started running down the line to "steal" waiting cabs. The cops then started hauling people out of cabs. Did we mention it was a cluster-eff? Luckily we noticed a shuttle bus going to the station and hopped that. Yes, it was SRO, and yes, the driver was a tool, but we were out of the rain and headed to the station. Get us on the Blue Line and back into the city please.

We exited at the Damen stop in Wicker Park. Piece Brewery and Pizzeria closes up its kitchen at 12:30 and we were pushing it. Getting there at 12:17 we ordered our pizza (black olives, green olives, artichokes, mushroom and pepperoni), had a couple good beers and topped the night off with the city's best thin crust pie. As a bonus, Saturday nights feature live band karaoke.

So to summarize the night Heaven (Seger) Hell (Allstate Arena) and then back to Heaven (Piece) and we'll take 2 Heavens to 1 Hell any time.

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Rossi's Liquors

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sat, 14 May 2011 21:22:00 +0000

Photo from http://gozamos.com/

Based on a recommendation from friends of friends, we ventured into River North last night and made our way to Rossi's at 412 N. State St. We started the night with a good dinner at Keefer's at Kinzie and Dearborn. The steaks were excellent. But back to the bar.

What the hell is going on here?

Rossi's has a reputation for being a great hang-out bar.We guess it qualifies as a dive. It certainly looks like a dive, except it was packed. Google the joint. Site after site sings its praises, and we weren't disappointed. The vibe was great, the juke box was rocking and the crowd was buzzing. There's a lot going on in this place with Christmas lights, flags, the drunken blonde sitting next to us having issues staying on her bar stool...everyone can find something about this place to love.

Rossi's is a "beer and shot" place. Don't be asking for the cocktail menu. It appears the house drink is PBR and since neither of us ever warmed up to Pabst, L went with a a Miller Lite and T a Bell's Oberon.

After the blonde left, or maybe she was just laying on the floor, a couple from Michigan took her stool. They were a friendly pair and when they found out we were were originally from Michigan, we became quick friends. They visit Chicago once a year, on hubby's birthday. This should tell you what a great place Rossi's is. Two days a year in Chicago and they're spending part of that time here.

They were obviously fans of the tattoo. The Mrs. was quick to show us some pretty nice artwork that ran the length of her thigh showing a scantily clad teacher writing on a blackboard, a la Bart Simpson, "I am not a tease." Seriously. And that was just the beginning. She also had her nipples pierced. Thinking back on this encounter, we're left wondering about how the hell did her pierced nipples even made their way into the conversation. Anyway, when L cringed upon hearing pierced and nipples in the same sentence, Mrs. Michigan offered to show us. And with that, down came the top of her shirt. The soft glow of the neon shimmered off the surgical stainless steel. L checked her out, T opted out of the pierced nipple exhibition preferring his nipples unencumbered by sharp objects. T's wimpy palm tree tat, his Irish flag shoulder tattoo and L's discretely placed martini tattoo paled in comparison to the art show sitting next to us. And for the record, our nipples are void of hardware.

Beer and neon go together like, well like beer and neon

Yes indeed Rossi's has it all, cold beer, a great juke box, an excellent vibe and women willing to show off their boobs. Just be sure you're near the neon so you can see. Do yourself a favor and get to Rossi's. And look for us; we'll be back. That's Bar #19.

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It's a Dash, Not a Pour

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 08 May 2011 13:53:00 +0000

Delusional behavior, psychotherapy, electric shock...just another night with The Project? Well yes, but they're also themes running through Next to Normal, the Pulitzer Prize winning musical playing at the Bank of America theater (closing May 8th). We checked it out this weekend and can only say WOW! A musical about mental health that left the guy behind us crying and another guy a few rows over overcome by emotion, or maybe it was his Mexican dinner repeating on him. If you have an opportunity to see this production, starring Tony Award winner Alice Ripley, do so.

Any night at the theater is always preceded by a stop at the Bar Novo for us. Great cocktails always. Last night our man Jeff whipped up a perfect Manhattan. T prefers his Manhattan made with Rye Whiskey. L opted for a glass of wine. The group of Russian businessmen sitting next to us were making friends with Jim Beam. They may not have been businessmen. They may not have been Russian. But they were indeed making friends with Jim Beam.

Recognizing we're in dire need of new bars to write about, we followed the emotional trip to normal, or more accurately, next to normal, with a walk down Dearborn to Brando's Speakeasy. Cool web site, cool name, this is going to be good. Not so fast...this a bar in desperate need of a focus. Is it a late night cocktail lounge? Is it a spot to chill? Is it the home to bad karaoke? Now the answers, no, only when some Tony Bennett want-to-be isn't singing, and yes.

Let's explore these questions in greater depth.

Question #1
T: "I'll have a rye Manhattan, straight up."
Bartendress to bartender: "Do we have Rye?"
Bartender to bartendress: "No."
T: Okay, make it a Makers Manhattan."
Bartendress to T: "Not sure I made that drink right. I just poured the bitters in. You better taste it."
T: (mumbling to himself) "God help me."
T: (further mumbling) "Where's my cherry?"
T: (still more mumbling) "Straight up means no ice."

L: "Tanqueray Martini please."
Bartendress: "We don't have Tanqueray (well, at least she didn't have to ask anyone).

Question #2
An eclectic crowd (complete with hookers looking for change) and a DJ spinning good tunes would suggest a great place to chill on a Saturday night. The place is a cozy little outpost in the Loop. Its dark, with a small bar area, comfy looking couches and friendly waitstaff (the bartendress's inability to make a Manhattan aside). All this is lost because of the karaoke.

Question #3
Yes. Karaoke has its place, but usually in a raucous joint like Trader Todd's. In a dark and seemingly hip "cocktail" lounge, karaoke is an abomination. Okay, maybe on Tuesday night it's okay, but not Saturday.

For the record, here's our recipe for a Manhattan:

2 ounces of whiskey (T recommends Rye but bourbon works well too)
1 ounce of Italian sweet vermouth
2 dashes of Angostura Bitters (dashes, not pours)
Pour ingredients over ice into mixing glass and stir. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a cherry

So we've got new bar #18 in for the year.

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Check it out!

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Fri, 06 May 2011 09:37:00 +0000

Image by UNC - CFC - USFK via FlickrLook for the Project at Joes on Weed Street this evening. Gary Sinise and the Lt. Dan Band return to Joe's for the annual United States Veterans Arts Program Benefit Concert. USVAP provides Artistic Tools® (instruments, cameras, art supplies etc..) to wounded military service members and to Veterans care facilities.

We went last year and had a great time. Joe's is a fun venue to see live music. It sorta reminds us of Bob's Country Bunker from the Blues Brothers, without the chicken wire and drunks throwing bottles. L has been excited all week at the prospect of seeing Gary Sinise up close and personal again. A big Sinise fan, he shook L's hand last year and we're not sure she's washed it since.

The Lt. Dan Band rocks the house with a great cover mix from the 70s up to the present. They go from Purple Haze, to Tuxedo Junction, to Surgarland and back to Stevie Wonder. There's also a silent auction that includes:first class airfare tickets courtesy of American Airlines, a Gary Sinise signed Cort guitar, and other items. This auction help support the initiatives and programs of USVAP (usvap.org).

So check it out, a good time, a good cause, a good place...I guess tonight is going to be a good night, to quote Will I Am. Must be 21+ to attend!

Check it out on TicketWeb - Gary Sinise and the Lt. Dan Band at Joe's on Weed Street on 05/06/11

The Rockfords

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 18:14:00 +0000

While sitting at the bar before a recent White Sox game we met a husband and wife. An amiable looking couple, they appeared to have about ten years on us. As is usually the case, anyone sitting next to L quickly becomes her new best friend. Such was the case this particular day as L launched into a critique of the bar's Bloody Mary (good if you don't mind your drink in a plastic cup). The friendly couple nodded in agreement.

They introduced themselves, but don't ask us their names because we tend to forget names. Instead we assign nicknames to people we meet. This actually helps us remember them. The nicknames could derive from their employment, like " IT Consultant Joe" or " Cement Mixer Edna" or a particular body trait or feature, like "Beehive Hairdo Lady" or "Too Tight Pants Guy." Sometimes we'll use their home, such as "Northside Dude" or "Southside Chick" or in the case of this couple, Mr. and Mrs. Rockford.

Like us, Mr. and Mrs. Rockford are Sox season ticket holders. Like us, their kids are grown and on their own, and like us, Mr. and Mrs. Rockford enjoy a good drink at nine in the morning. It became evident after about 15 minutes of chatting we were looking into the future. This was us, ten years from now...only we'll be better looking.

T & L with sons

A lot of our friends still have young children, or youngish children such that their free time is taken up with summer baseball, youth hockey or PTA meetings. We've been unencumbered for about 4 years now, and we rather enjoy it. We think we were good parents. We loved our boys, we fed them daily, we took them to Disney World and we protected them from the evil that lurked underneath their beds at night.

We've sent them into the world with the basic life skills one must have to survive and become productive members of society. They say please and thank you and the oldest makes a good Manhattan. The youngest not so good, but he does hold doors open for women. All our "good parent" boxes are checked. But now we spend our hard earned cash on drink, eat, and other diversions. And yes, there have been times when we've questioned our lifestyle. Are we merely selfish middled aged adults refusing to grow old "gracefully?" .

Well if there was any doubt about our lifestyle, the Rockfords validated us. Like a parrot sitting on a pirate's shoulder, we heard repeated back to us exactly what we've been saying for the past four years. "This is our time...we're blowing our kid's inheritance...we're divesting ourselves of material goods, except for a few really good bottles of wine." This wasn't our future==it was our present!

We're not abnormal. We're not bad parents because we don't have any plans to leave our kids a dime. THIS IS INDEED OUR TIME BABY! And there are others like us, Mr. and Mrs. Rockford proved that. And if they're out there, then there's probably more folks like us. Maybe Mr. and Mrs. Evanston, maybe Scar Over the Eye Guy, or Brightly Colored Sun Dress Gal. There is no shame in spending too much money on a great dinner or a cocktail., or attending Lollapalooza for that matter. We are not foolish. Well okay, maybe a little, but who cares? And we refuse to believe we have to save our money for the kids.

L loves to tell this story. It's well into the future, T's been dead for years (heart attack dancing at Roscoe's) and L is now on her death-bed. The perfect martini rests on her night-stand (Tanqueray, 3 olives, straight-up and oh so very very dry). In one hand she has a Cohiba, and in the other her last $100 (she clearly had fun with T's life insurance benefits). With Ben Franklin gazing upon L, she ignites the bill and proceeds to light her cigar with the c-note. With a sip of the martini and a drag on her stogie, L drifts off to that great happy hour in the sky, where T has saved her a stool. Our kids are left mumbling, "our parents made all kinds of money and all we're left with is this freaking blog."

Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Rockford. We refuse to feel guilty or second guess our life-style. So if you see a middle aged couple pub-crawling through Wrigleyville ordering martinis instead of drinking Miller Lite, that'll be us. Stop by and say hello.

The 100 Bar Project by The 100 Bar Project is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.

Play Ball!

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 12:45:00 +0000

Image by The West End via FlickrThe Boys of Summer are in full swing on both sides of town. And as typical Chicago baseball fans we're either on the ledge all ready or waiting until next season.

Since we're Sox fans, and season ticket holders, we were excited about the new addition at U.S. Cellular, a/k/a The Cell. This year the Sox announced that a full bar and restaurant would be opened on the 35th St. side of the park. Sponsored by Barcardi, the bar is called Bacardi at the Park. As one can imagine, the place is a sports bar (70 televisions) and, for now, only open on game days. According to one of the bartenders, they hope to expand those hours to include away games and during other "Chicago Sporting Events." We did not eat there but the food looked and smelled pretty good. The place is operated by the Gibsons Restaurant Group, so think good meat.

Image via WikipediaThe place is pretty nice with an upper and lower level. It opens up from the beer garden area near Gate 5, but you can enter from 35th Street. You do not need a ticket to the game to get in. As you can imagine, the place is pretty packed before a game. For those of you unfamiliar with the Sox park surroundings, think express-way on one side, parking lots on several other sides, tracks on yet another side and homes beyond that. Except for the Cork and Kerry a few blocks away, there is a dirth of drinking establishments near The Cell. This is not Wrigleyville where bar upon bar line up next to the stadium. Suffice it to say, for us Sox fans, Bacardi at the Park is a welcome addition to our baseball experience. The crowd thins out during the game, so if you're looking for some baseball ambiance, and just want to be able to say, "hey, I'm headed to the ballpark" without having a ticket, get over to Bacardi at the Park.

Jim Belushi

On the north side of town, their Bacardi equivalent is the Captain Morgan Club, which, if their web page provides you any information, is inhabited by pirates, wenches, and Jim Belushi. And speaking of the north side, look for T & L today as we enjoy our first Wrigley roof-top experience. What better way to spend Easter Sunday than at the ball-park, or at least on a roof across the street. Come back later this week for our take on the rooftop experience.

Bacardi at the Park is bar #17. We've got 83 to go. Sox fans, have you been to the ballpark this season? Have you checked out Bacardi at the Park? Are there other local drinking holes we're missing? Let us know your thoughts.

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The Sazerac

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 00:49:00 +0000

Image by Infrogmation via Flickr"Hurricanes are for tourists. Sazeracs are for natives." ~ Chuck Taggert

In our last outing we visited the Gilt Bar and enjoyed what we like to call a "classic cocktail." Many pros define the classics as those cocktails which appeared after the publication of Jerry Thomas' 1887 Bar-Tender's Guide but before the end of U.S. Prohibition in 1934.

Image via WikipediaThese drinks, which have been around for years, are enjoying a comeback of late. Thanks to mixology classes like BarSmarts from Pernod Ricard and bars like the Gilt, these drinks are being discovered by new drinkers and rediscovered by seasoned drinkers like us. The television show Mad Men can certainly take some credit for the movement, but we tend to think more credit belongs to the many mixologists out there who enjoy showing off their skills and to more sophisticated drinkers who want something more than bubble gum flavored vodka.

One such drink is the Sazerac, which we enjoyed at the Gilt. The drink was invented by Antoine Amadie Peychaud (think Peychaud's bitters), a Creole apothecary who moved to New Orleans from the West Indies and set up shop in the French Quarter in the early part of the 19th Century.

Before long, the demand for this drink led to its being served in bars (sometimes called "coffeehouses") throughout the city. One of these, a large bar on Exchange Alley owned by a gentleman named Sewell Taylor, was named the Merchants Exchange Coffeehouse. Not long after, Mr. Taylor started a new business as a liquor importer, with one of his most popular products being a particular brand of Cognac called Sazerac-du-Forge et fils. Taylor sold the bar and the new owner changed its name to the Sazerac Coffee House, and history was made. The establishment was big enough to accommodate 12 bartenders, all mixing "Sazeracs" for their patrons, and people began to refer to the drink with the name of the coffeehouse where it was most popular.

Around 1870, Thomas Handy took over as proprietor of the Sazerac House, and the primary ingredient was changed from cognac to rye whiskey due to popular American tastes as well as to the difficulty of obtaining cognac at the time (something about an grape-killing epidemic in France). Somewhere along the line a dash of absinthe was added, usually used to coat the glass with the excess discarded. Absinthe was later banned and was replaced by the locally-produced pastis (anise-flavored liqueur) called Herbsaint, which is still used in many New Orleans bars.

The bar moved to the Roosevelt Hotel in 1949, where the Sazerac Bar and Restaurant still stands. The Roosevelt became the Fairmont, and as of summer 2009 it'll be renovated and reopened as the Roosevelt once again, featuring a spectacularly redone Sazerac Bar that will recapture the bar's glory days.

In 2008, the Sazerac became New Orleans' official drink.

Without further ado, the Sazerac:

2 ounces of straight rye whiskey. The usual brand used in New Orleans is Old Overholt, but give it a try with Chicago's own Koval rye whiskey.
2 dashes Peychaud's Bitters. A gentian-based bitters, comparable to Angostura bitters, but with a lighter body, sweeter taste and more floral aroma.
Splash of absinthe. We use Pernod 68 absinthe
1/2 ounce of simple syrup
Twist of lemon peel

Sazerac at Gilt Bar

Take 2 small Old-Fashioned glasses and chill one with ice while preparing the drink in the other by combining the rye, syrup, and the bitters and stirring with ice to chill. Empty the first glass of its chilling ice, splash a little absinthe into it, swirling it around to coat the glass, then pour it out. Strain the contents of the second glass into it and twist the lemon peel over the top.

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We Love the Classics

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 13:46:00 +0000

Image via WikipediaDespite our differences in what defines a classic piece of literary work, (L likes Steinbeck, O'Neil, and Tennesee Williams, while T prefers Vonnegut, Kerouac and Hunter S. Thompson) we can both agree on classic cocktails. Those delightful concoctions that typically don't contain bubble-gum flavored vodka or any vodka for that matter and were ordered up by the likes of Humphrey Bogart and Cary Grant in any one of a countless number of classic movies.

Sazerac at Gilt Bar

We finally got to the Gilt Bar this weekend. Yeah, its been over a year since its opening, but we don't hold ourselves out as trendy, just boozy. We couldn't get in for dinner (make your reservations well in advance) but did manage to find a seat at the bar. By the way, it smelled good in there and we're so going back to eat. The cocktail menu contains items like the Sazerac, Martinez and Pimm's Cup. They also have a great selection of beer and wine. T opted for the Sazerac, which contains rye whiskey, sugar, peychaud's bitters and absinthe. L actually went with a Gilt concoction, "Bee's Knees," a Broker's Gin drink with honey and lemon. The bartenders are pros and know their craft.

By the time we finished our cocktail and recapped the week's events, the Curio Lounge opened up. The Curio is a subterranean affair located below the Gilt. It has a speak-easy feel--dark, moody and you almost expect Eliot Ness to bust through the back door to arrest you. Lit sparingly by candles and very dim lights, take a seat on one of the many comfortable couches that line the Curio's walls. This is a cash-only operation so be prepared (there is an ATM located outside the entrance). There isn't any food served either, making this a great after dinner destination. Like its sister above, the Curio has a great cocktail menu that contains several of the classics and some of their own concoctions. T, already in a classic mood, ordered the Blood and Sand, a scotch based drink with sweet vermouth, cherry brandy and orange juice. The drink, named after a 1922 movie starring Rudolph Valentino and Rita Hayworth screams classic. L went with another home-made drink, The Last Word, which included Plymouth Gin, chartreuse and lime. Chartreuse is a liquor made with 130 different herbal extracts and when added to the gin resulted in a complex mixture that was excellent.

Gilt Bar and Curio are located at the corner of Kinzie and Franklin, in the River North area. Great drinks, great vibe and we highly recommend both.

We topped off the dinner with a late night visit to Havana, located on Clark St. Billing itself as a Cuban restaurant, we were disappointed in the menu. It's really more Mexican or at least an American version of Mexican with a few Cuban dishes tossed in. The place had a lot of energy going for it, and the mojitos were excellent. Next time we'll skip dinner and focus on the mojitos.

Bars 15 and 16 are in the books, 84 to go, and with the year a third over, we need to get drinking.

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New Ways to Look at the Project

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 12:03:00 +0000

So Blogger must be feeling the heat from Tumblr. Signing on to our blog this morning we were greeted with a note about new "Dynamic Views" for your blog. I'm not sure dynamic is the proper adjective, but the new views do put a fresh face on the material. So if you're looking to change things up, check us out at:

Check them out and let us know what you think.

Would You Get Out & Drink All Ready

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 11:12:00 +0000

We haven't been hitting the bars much lately as the Project is preparing to put our home on the market (damn, this is a lot of work), but we did discover tag clouds. Okay, we understand these things have been floating around since the 90's but we're a tad slow on the technology. For God's sake, we're still using Blogger. Here's the 100 Bar Project presented as a word cloud.

ale along although annual arm around articles attribution avenue bacon bar bar-hopping bartender beer belief best better bit blog blogthis blue boystown brewers brewery bring burlesque bus business buzz cab chatting check cheer chicago chicken city clark clearly club cocktail cold com comfort comments commons cool couple craft crawl creative crowd curves dancers dancing different downtown drink driving dublin dye early eat email enjoy entertained evening event everyone exercise experience facebook fact fado favorite feeling fest fire folks follow food found foursquare free friend fun gal game gave gay getting ginger glass going goodness google grab green greenhouse grill guinness guy happy head heard help history hit holding home hoping hopping house illinois image includes information instead interview irish jameson johnny join juice keep labels laid leave legislator license likely lincoln line links lion live livers located lot lounge love map married martini matisse meet minutes morning mostly moves music name nearby needs neighborhood news night north nothing onto organize overt oz paddy page parade park party pass patrick people performed phil phone pickle pickle-back pint plan plenty popular post prepared pretty project pub public recipe red related restaurants river rose save seats seemed service several sexuality share shot shot-ski site sitting smart-ass soccer something son soup start states step stop stories street stripping subscribe suggest table taverns televisions theater thought tickets times tip tonight took tradition transportation triangle twitter united unless via viagra vibe view wait walked wanderers water week weekend whatever whiskey wikipedia wild windy winter women work

created at TagCrowd.com

T & L Bump N' Grind

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 00:52:00 +0000

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, "burlesque" is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects. And we thought it was merely stripping and bawdy humor.

Having heard many stories from our grandfathers about vaudeville and burlesque, (we know most grandfathers are more gentile and tell stories about pie eating and morals, but consider the family tree here) we had to check out the 2nd Annual Windy City Burlesque Fest. The shows were held for two days at the Greenhouse Theater on Lincoln Avenue. The 8 p.m. show on Saturday was sold out, and we suspect the others were too. Who knew burlesque was so popular?

Dance stage at Greenhouse Theater

It was with much anticipation that we took our seats and waited for dancers like Anna Fur Laxis, Jacqueline Hyde, and Kitten DeVille to take the stage. So what is burlesque you ask? Is it old-timey stripping? There seems to be a big difference between burlesque dancing and the stripping we've become so used to (well, that we've heard about anyway). With burlesque, it's more about the dance, the erotic nature of the dance, and a belief that costumes, feathers, sparkles and pasties are sexier than a crouch shoved in your face in hopes you'll stick a dollar bill in the dancer's...um...somewhere. The dancers seemed very happy to be performing and gave it there all. It was not a "going through the motions" kind of thing.

Our favorite performer was Titi Touche (seen below from her 2010 Burlesque Fest performance), a gal with a smile that was infectious. She looked like she was having a great time entertaining the audience, and we had a great time being entertained by Ms. Touche.

One notices a difference in the performers as well. All were beautiful women, and clearly very comfortable in their skin. These are real women, with real curves, and some have more curves than others. One such dancer was Cruel Valentine, who teaches burlesque and clearly loves her craft. She had the audience cheering for more by proving that sexy comes in very different packages.

For the women, there are male burlesque dancers. Grandpa never told us about them. L enjoyed the stylings of Jett Adore (below), who performed his Puppetry of the Peacock, which was incredible. Gals, L guarantees, you'd like Jett...a lot.

The evening's requisite blue humor was provided by Saucy Jack, the emcee. Jack entertained between dancers with bad jokes, puns, sexual innuendo and the appropriate amount of bawdiness. Who doesn't love a night of innuendo and bawdiness?

The event was billed as the 2nd Annual, which hopefully means there will be a 3rd Annual in 2012. Look for it, and get your tickets. You will be entertained.

Have we peaked your interest in the fine art of burlesque? If so, then check out two local troupes, both of whom helped bring the Burlesque Fest to the Windy City, Belmont Burlesque and Vaudezilla Productions. There's even burlesque classes, taught by dancers Red Hot Annie and Jeez Loueez. The Project may sign up, just to get cool burlesque names, how about L Ova Woman and T Party (T's going to have to work on that name).

Before and after we hit a couple new bars, both on Lincoln Avenue, near the theater. The Lion Head Pub and Kelsey's. Both are sport-themed establishments. And since it's March Madness, both were full, with mostly young men, watching basketball. The testosterone was high that evening my friends.

The Lion Head is a Northwestern University Bar (someone has to be) and since L got her MBA there (Northwestern, not the Lion Head), she gave the place a "2 martini glass" rating. While T couldn't care less about NU, he ordered the nachos and felt they were not particularly tasty. Too dry. The Lion Head also pushes those giant honking beer servers. They call theirs the Table Tapper and for $20 domestic and $25 imported, you get about 139 gallons of beer. Folks, this is no way to purchase your beer. It gets warm, unless you have 278 people drinking with you. So along with green beer from St. Paddy's day, the Table Tapper should never be used. Who's with us?

Kelsey's hold themselves out as a old style neighborhood saloon, and they seem to pull it off. It's a good place to grab a night-cap or cold one after seeing something at the Greenhouse. Good vibe.

Bars 13 and 14 are done, 86 to go.

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Next Fire Game, Take The Bus

noreply@blogger.com (The 100 Bar Project) — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 22:06:00 +0000

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeThe Project headed to Bridgeview Saturday to catch its first professional soccer game. The Chicago Fire took on Sporting Kansas City in the Fire's 2011 Major League Soccer season home opener. If you've ever been out to Toyota Park for an event, you know public transportation is not good. We usually take the Orange Line to Midway Airport then a shuttle bus to Toyota Park. That experience is neither convenient nor efficient (and you don't get free beer).

However, there is a way to have a pint, grab a bite to eat, get on a bus that's stocked with free beer (today's phrase that pays) and ride in comfort to and from the game. Check out the Windy City Wanderers, a Chicago adult soccer organization. The Wanderers sponsor several buses that take fans to each home game. The tickets cost us about $50 a piece, which included a ticket to the game and a seat on the bus. We actually got our tickets through the Fire site, but you can get them from the Wanderers.

The bus leaves from 4 different locations. We jumped on at Fado Irish Pub, one of our favorite places. We got there in plenty of time to grab a pint and a bite to eat, which for us means "soup." Fado has good food, but their soup is always great. Saturday it was chicken-vegetable.

On the bus there is free beer (get there early for the Heineken) for the trip to Bridgeview. On the way back we were treated to an Eddie Murphy movie (bring back the free beer!) The Wanderers organize several buses, but the tickets do sell out, so check their calendar now.

And as for the Fire, they won the game 3-2. Our seats were in the Miller Lite Party Deck, which is located behind one of the goals. The ticket came with reserved seats, access to the Party Deck and two free beers. And these seats were so close to the goal, you cold easily heckle the Kansas City goal-keeper Jimmy Nielson, or admire his atheletic rear-end if that's what you're into. Either way the seats offered up a pretty cool vantage point. Without the bus these tickets are $30 plus fees.

We had a blast. We'll definitely be headed back for more soccer and we'll definitely be taking the bus.

The 100 Bar Project by The 100 Bar Project is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.

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