- Photos:
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- Address:
- 1415 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL, 60622
- Phone:
- 773-252-6410
- Overall User Rating:
-
(12 ratings)
- Hours:
- 6 p.m.-2 a.m. Monday through Friday; 6 p.m.-3 a.m. Saturday
This location recently has been home to a couple of short-lived endeavors: Italian restaurant Romeo, Romeo, and neighborhood bar and grill Sweet Alice. The new owners are trying a laid-back lounge approach.
Since the end of 2007, Par Lounge has had soft openings with limited hours—mostly private events and small parties. By now, we expected to find the spot settled in. But menus still weren’t ready—our server had the night’s extremely limited selection (skewers, hummus and ribs) committed to memory. Our chicken skewers and hummus were fine, but nothing we’d seek out again. With no cocktail menu, we had to settle for an unremarkable glass of house wine ($7).
The interior, though sexed up with local art, candles and low-slung seating arrangements, looks like the result of "Trading Spaces: The Bar Edition." We felt like we were sitting on a DIY project, the foam-topped wooden benches and ottomans handily covered in dark, jewel-toned fabrics.
One thing did catch our attention: the music. DJs played an upbeat mix of funk, hip-hop and jazzy beats that got a few bargoers grooving. It was deafening for such a slow night, but infectious. We might have joined in, but the small crowd seemed to be friends with either the turntable talent or the bar staff, so we almost felt like party crashers.
Opening quirks and kinks are par for the course—but the plan for Par Lounge seems unusually vague.
[ Karen Budell is the Metromix nightlife producer. ]
kmbudell@tribune.com
