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The Old Ale Town House was established in 1958 by entrepreneur E.J. Vangelder’s idea for the pub came from his visits to San Francisco, where he often visited the Vesuvios saloon on North Beach. Vangelder was good at building bars and hiring bartenders but wasn’t one for customer relations - due to which he sold the pub to Joe Diaz. Diaz’s ownership immediately ran the bar into the ground, and he sold it in 1970 to Art Klug and his group of Rush Street eccentrics. Once you’ve made it inside, you’re basically in a Peaky Blinders episode.
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It obviously doesn’t matter, because Armitage Alehouse needs no promotion. Once again, Sodikoff has created a space where people crave to be. I was only able to visit by showing up before 5 p.m. And sitting at the bar, where the seats are first come, first served.
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The beer list includes a few imports, like Fullers ESB Champion Ale ($8), Harp Lager ($7) and Guinness ($7.50). Like every Hogsalt property, the cocktails are precisely prepared and beautifully presented. That’s true if you go for the sleek Vesper ($14) or the fruitier Aviation ($14). The best might be the simply gorgeous East India G&T ($14), which combines Jin Jiji Darjeeling gin with saffron, flower petals and juniper. While the pies are easily the best thing on the pricy menu, they clock in at twice the cost of the phenomenal English pies served at Pleasant House Pub (2119 S. Halsted St.).
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In the background through a window you can see a beautiful lake and then mountains. I put the painting up as a joke for the regulars but in less than twenty four hours it had gone viral on the internet and then Drudge posted our address as the first item on his Report and we started receiving death threats. The next day all of the major TV networks came in and I was interviewed by over a hundred radio stations. Thus was born the political porn paintings which adorn the wall above the bar. We have a bare assed Governor Blago called “Cavity Search”, naked Michelle Bachman holding a tea bag called “Tea Bag Me”, Romney in his Magic Mormon Underwear, Newt banging Collista with his other wives watching, and many many more. The Old Town Ale House was established in 1958 by a penurious entrepreneur named E.J.
Sticking to the traditional English dishes provides firmer footing, even though I wish the crust on the pike fish and chips ($27) wasn’t so heavy. The bar is nothing compared with the dining room, where elegantly framed portraits line the walls. Dim lamps and ornate chandeliers cast a golden glow around the room like you’ve slipped into a Hollywood period drama.
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He painted Trump in 2011 after the real estate mogul said he was a bigger businessman than Mitt Romney. Illma Gore, the Australian artist who painted the controversial nude painting of Trump in 2016, contacted Bruce to say that he had inspired her. The first thing you notice when you walk into the Old Town Ale House are the paintings. Filling just about every possible spot on the walls, they’re the work of part-owner and famed blogger Bruce Cameron Elliott.
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Bruce said the bar keeps the crowd at bay by playing an eclectic mix on the jukebox—e.g. No pop—which he claimed is one of the best-managed in the city. The website says Armitage Alehouse serves “hearty pub fare and dishes with their roots in India.” Anyone who has lived in London knows that’s a common combo.
But first, you have to get in, and this place is always booked. Chug that morning coffee to prepare for the daily 9am drop of new openings (always 14 days out) and be alert—the minute you look away, the reservations are gone. A $2.50 per person reservation fee will be added to all reservations made online. We do not charge a reservation fee for walk-in guests. We accept reservations up to 14 days in advance with each new day becoming available at 9 AM CST on Resy. We recommend creating your Resy profile before reservations are released for your preferred date.
Spend the weekend enjoying a plethora of art.
The mural contains the portraits of fifty or sixty old time customers. Tobin said I should paint the current regulars and hang the pictures wherever space allowed. Soon every nook and cranny had a picture of a present or former regular. We are known for our large portions, great prices, warm service, and shareable appetizers, including our famous buttermilk-drenched, hand-breaded boneless chicken Zingers® and Zingers Mountain Melt®. We serve a wide variety of entrees, burgers, salads and sandwiches, plus daily lunch and dinner specials, in a lively atmosphere that includes 60+ TVs, large open-air patios, beckoning bars and spacious booths and tables.
A warm, soft glow from pineapple lamps and a flickering fireplace provide just enough lighting to accentuate ornate paintings that look like the result of a very successful estate sale shopping spree. Like its River North and West Loop siblings, upscale vintage dinner energy (or UVDE) is a part of Armitage Alehouse’s DNA. Some of the paintings have sad stories behind them. Bruce depicted painter, poet, and pianist Ed Balchowsky injecting drugs into the stump of his right arm while seated at a piano.
Walk through the front door, and you’re no longer on a sleepy corner of Lincoln Park, but a bustling London corridor. The decor looks like it’s been around for nearly a hundred years, but meticulously maintained. Polished antiques sit in every nook and cranny, including a towering metal coffee maker that bounces light across the room. Though packed with guests and servers rushing around, the room maintains an intimate, hushed vibe, with the music just loud enough to hear, yet never overbearing. But this is no bawdy tavern full of pint-chugging lads. Instead, it feels like where gentlemen from the House of Lords might retire after a long day of doing … whatever they do in the House of Lords.
We also have a celebrity wall where I did portraits of all the famous and not so famous Second City stars that used to come in. There is no question that the Old Town Ale House is the premiere dive bar in the world. Since becoming one of the Tribune’s food critics last year, I’ve been trying to center reviews around the food, with everything else (atmosphere, service) orbiting around.
The Old Town Ale House boasts an array of beers, ranging from craft brews by breweries like Revolution Brewing and Half Acre Brewing Company, to our favorite cult brands like Guinness, Stella Artois, Corona, PBR Tallboys, and more. The pub is also known for bartender Tim’s cocktails, including the classic Michelada. If you’re looking for something off-the-menu, then feel free to ask Tim for one of his ‘signature secret creations’.
There is also a celebrity wall, where Elliot has painted portraits of the famous and not-so-famous stars that used to come in, including Stephen Colbert, Bill Murray, John Belushi, and Dan Aykroyd to name a few. But we don’t mind that this Lincoln Park spot is almost indistinguishable from its siblings (even though it’s an English pub). The formula still works, and Armitage Alehouse is a great restaurant. Open since 1958, the Ale House has had plenty of time to develop into the best dive bar in Chicago. Open daily for lunch and dinner, we also offer over 35 beers on tap and a large selection of signature cocktails and all day every day drink specials.
He got the idea for the bar from a San Francisco saloon called Vesuvios which was located in North Beach. Vangelder was good at building bars and hiring bartenders. He was bad at customer relations and eventually sold the bar to a poor slob name Joe Diaz.
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