The Green Door Tavern is reputedly

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

's oldest surviving

drinking establishment A drinking establishment is a business whose primary function is the serving of alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises. Some establishments may also serve food, or have entertainment, but their main purpose is to serve alcoholic bev ...

. It opened in 1921, but the building dates from 1872.

History

The building, at 678 N. Orleans St. (700N, 300W), Chicago,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, United States, was erected in 1872 by James McCole, just one year after the

Great Chicago Fire The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 10 ...

. It has a wooden frame, a building technique outlawed in the Central Business District by an ordinance passed by Chicago City Council shortly afterwards. The original tenant was Lawrence P. Elk, who used the ground floor as a grocery store and lived upstairs. It was converted to a dining establishment, the Huron-Orleans Restaurant, run by Vito Giacomoni, in 1921. His sons Jack and Nello ran it as a

speakeasy A speakeasy, also called a blind pig or blind tiger, is an illicit establishment that sells alcoholic beverages, or a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. Speakeasy bars came into prominence in the United States ...

during the

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol ...

. In the 1930s, the bar acquired the nickname "The Green Door", and this was eventually adopted formally. George Parenti purchased the bar from the Giacomoni brothers in August 1985. The structure developed a lean from plumb in its early years, due to the construction techniques used at the time, and this is still noticeable. In January 2015, a small, speakeasy-like space opened in the basement known as "The Drifter." A rotating cocktail list is featured on tarot cards.

References

External links

* {{Restaurants in Chicago Restaurants in Chicago Buildings and structures in Chicago Landmarks in Chicago Drinking establishments in Chicago Buildings and structures completed in 1872 1921 establishments in Illinois Timber framed buildings in the United States