Eagle Leather Bar
3.0
from - Neighborhood: Andersonville
- 5015 N. Clark St.
- Chicago, IL 60640
- 773-728-0050
In 1958, when Chuck Renslow founded the Gold Coast, the city's first leather bar, he says had to pay off the cops to stay open. Now, Renslow is a respected businessman. He has been photographed with all of Chicago's important mayors since Richard J. Daley and advised Jane Byrne on the city's first gay rights ordinance. But Renslow has not exactly gone straight. His leather bar, which moved to Uptown several years ago and is now called the Eagle Leather Bar, is still enough to shock the pinstriped masses. The sign for the men's bathroom is a neon ejaculating penis. The TV screens show soft-core male videos. The walls are covered with murals of men endowed like bulls. "If you come in a suit, you'd feel awfully silly," Renslow said. "If you want to go in the pit"--the lower-floor bar which has a museumlike diorama of chained mannequins in cages--"you have to wear a major piece of leather or a uniform." To complete the rough-trade motif, the alley is always full of motorcycles. It's not just a man's world here, though. Among the leather clubs that meet here on Friday is Sluts, an all-women's group.
Getting There
- Cross Streets:
- Clark and Foster.
- Parking:
- Free Lot
- Public Transportation:
- Accessible by nearby city bus and elevated train.
- Wheelchair Access:
- Yes. Top floor only.
The Basics
- Hours:
- 8 p.m.-4 a.m. Sunday through Thursday; 8 p.m.-5 a.m. Saturday.
- Bar Style:
- Mature Audience and Gay and Lesbian
- Recreation and Sports Activities:
- Pinball
Features
- Games:
- Pool Tables
- Features:
- Free Admission and On-site Merchandise. T-shirts with bar's name can be purchased at leather shop next door. Can be rented for parties. No food.
- Specialties:
- Tuesdays are Leather/Levi's night--must wear a pair of rugged-looking jeans to enter.
- Payment Methods:
- Cash
- Seating :
- For 200.
