This is the classiest bar I have ever been to with the best cocktails I’ve ever had in my life. Bam! That was a whole lotta superlative.
There are very few institutions that are good enough at their craft to be able to force people to jump through ridiculous hoops. The Violet Hour is one of those places. The entrance to the bar is a rough door in the side of a non-descript building, re-calling speakeasies of the prohibition era. There is no sign.
A line had already formed around 6pm when we arrived. We had a party of 5, so we wanted to get there early and avoid the huge lines that develop later in the evening. The thing is, The Violet Hour doesn’t take reservations. They only let in as many people as seats in the bar. Your party must be complete, and no late arrivals or combinations. It is so worth it.
Once you get inside, the interior is lit by crystal chandeliers and decorated in a monotone color scheme of dove grey/robin’s egg blue. The chairs are super high-backed and arranged in couples.
We sat by the fireplace and ordered the most fabulous cocktails ever. I had a glass of the winter sangria, then the el cholero, which was a brandy based drink that tasted like a margarita with cinnamon foam on top. This is a picture (via timeout chicago) of the Iron Cross, which was served similarly to my el cholero:
The bar has a freaking ice program for god’s sake. Eric’s first drink had a piece of ice in a half cylindar shape that took up half of his highball glass. His glass of bourbon had a single snowball-sized cube in it.
There are rules posted in the bathroom:
(via flickr)
If you live in Chicago, I definitely recommend checking it out, but be aware of their strict rules, and that the cocktails are ~$12 each. My suggestion, go early and start your night here with pre-dinner drinks.
(it was dark inside, so i used interior photos from: michael robinson photography)
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