The Chaser’s First Impressions of Tzar Ultra Lounge

My guard was up last night from the moment I drove onto a particular block of River North, where the nightclubs Crescendo, Y, Sound-Bar, and now Tzar Ultra Lounge are all clustered. Parking my car around the corner on Franklin Street, I spotted a trio of teetering, sequined young women who had just alighted from an early model Rav4 bearing a suburban dealership logo and who nervously clutched pink Victoria’s Secret shopping bags as they read the instructions on the meter box…

BYOB While You Can: The Red Lion Lincoln Square

The Red Lion, an English pub that poured pints in Lincoln Park for 27 years, has been open in its new Lincoln Square location since January, but due to a paperwork snafu, owners Joe and Susan Heinen have been waiting on their liquor license for what feels like a bloody long time…

Chicago Craft Beer Week Photos: Beer Fistival at Revolution Brewing

And on the ninth day, the brewers rested. Beer makers and drinkers alike gathered at Revolution Brewing on Friday, the final day of Chicago Craft Beer Week 2011, for a sold-out bash fittingly dubbed the Beer Fistival, featuring guest pours from area breweries, music from the Four Star Brass Band, and a new beer from Revolution dubbed Red Scare…

Dish Flash: Ian Schrager’s Plans for the Ambassador East and the Pump Room—Public and Jean-Georges Vongerichten

No one knew exactly what to expect when Ian Schrager bought the Ambassador East hotel (1301 N. State Pkwy.), home of The Pump Room, the most famous restaurant in the city for decades. Dish got a look at the official release on the project. The hotel will be called Public, and it will emphasize service over extravagance. The restaurant will still be called The Pump Room, and, confirming the unconfirmed rumors Dish had been hearing…