Like evilOlive is our favorite bar palindrome, Marge’s Still is our favorite double entendre. A “still” is used to make whiskey, and is also a reference to the continuing legacy of Marge Lednick, the previous owner who ran Marge’s Pub since 1955. The building itself dates back to 1885 and operated as a speakeasy during Prohibition, supplied with gin made in the bathtub upstairs. Marge passed away in 2001 and the place was bought two years later by Pam & Andreas Antoniou, who also run nearby Old Town Pub, Pepper Canister and Garret Ripley’s. After fighting the city for four years, the new owners obtained their elusive “incidental liquor license.” The tavern was reopened in July 2007 and renamed “Marge’s Still” to honor its former proprietor, and perhaps as a tongue-in-cheek jab at the city itself… As such, a Chicago landmark has been preserved and revitalized rather than becoming yet another condo building, as was the fate of now-defunct originals, Artful Dodger and Thurston’s. The beautiful wooden bar, “bar bistro” fare and sunny windows overlooking Sedgwick makes Marge’s Still a far cry from its predecessor that featured walls of yellowed stucco, pinball machines, an upright piano once played by the blind Al Gray, and cockroach races on the battered wooden bar. Fortunately for us all, Marge’s Still remains an unpretentious corner tavern that Marge herself would surely be proud of, still. For more information, check out the Marge’s Still website.
Full review coming soon…
