Club drubbing

By Natalie Y. Moore

Published:  May 10, 2007

They love the nightlife, only with a little less glitz

It's after work on a Thursday evening. Nestled amid touristy River North restaurants and lounges is the Blue Frog, an unassuming bar with free parking.

The decor of Blue Frog, 676 N. La Salle, is 1980s throwback. Board games such as Operation, Scrabble and Chutes and Ladder are stacked in two bookcases. Pabst Blue Ribbon beer is served in cans. Lunch boxes dangle from the ceiling.

Marcy and Steve Davis came to Blue Frog while visiting Chicago from southeastern Iowa. They intentionally sought out a bar like this one.

These bars offer plenty to do, from board games to live music to heated turtle races, at the best cover charge of all: none.

Like many patrons who visit the Blue Frog, Steve and Marcy Davis enjoy a board game. More people are choosing low-key, intimate spots over expensive and trendy clubs.

No Top 40 at the Bungalow Lounge. Instead, DJ Jay Too entertains the crowds with soul and house music.

"It's cozy and down to earth. It looks like a bar we'd go to at home," Marcy Davis said.

That coziness and intimacy are exactly what trendy young adults are looking for, according to a new survey by Zandl Group, a New York-based research firm. People are tired of the red velvet rope scene and gargantuan clubs.

They'd rather hang out at neighborhood spots for an intimate experience. Lounges that offer themes such as game night or a laid-back atmosphere are attracting crowds. Zandl researchers say there is less interest in paying big entrance fees and bigger bottle-service bills at clubs.

Around Chicago, dives and decadent lounges are heeding to this trend with no cover charges. Low-key neighborhood spots like the M Lounge, 1520 S. Wabash, pipe the music low enough so friends can hear each other talk. DJ Jay Too, who spins soul and house music at the Bungalow Lounge, 1622 W. Belmont, isn't concerned with playing Top 40 hits. The new Krem, 1750 N. Clark, plays club music but has the aesthetics of a lounge, while Fulton Lounge, 955 W. Fulton Market, looks like an upscale furniture catalog. Plush hotels like the W, 644 N. Lake Shore, have DJs in their lobbies.

"Young adults have put a premium on insider knowledge. Knowing and being known by the bartenders and being offered 'your drink' upon entry provides a sense of importance," said Anna D'Agrosa of Zandl.

Delilah's, 2771 N. Lincoln, was named in the Zandl survey as a popular choice. A smoky punk bar that sometimes shows themed B-movies, Delilah's is a favorite of beer lover Scott Nilles. On a recent Saturday night, a campy Vincent Price movie bellowed from the televisions and customers sipped whiskey under a picture of Frankenstein.

"The price is right," Nilles, 24, said of the drink specials. "You can always drink for cheap." Plus, the bartender knows Nilles by name.

"Clubs can be tedious. The hipster kids like bars with Scrabble boards, games they played as kids," said Molly Goodson, editor of pop culture Web site popsugar.com. Low key spots don't have "that base level of pretentiousness."

While megaclubs in big cities like Chicago always will draw crowds, Zandl researchers say people are increasingly seeking community and looking to support local businesses -- especially those that have a "living room" vibe.

With the mystique of the famed Studio 54 nightclub, the Underground, near Illinois and Dearborn, requires patrons to be on a guest list for entrance.

Despite the exclusivity of the free Underground, which opened a couple of months ago, it bills itself as the opposite of the hot new club in a youtube. com clip. Owner Billy Dec describes his latest night life venture as a house party with a staff that gives personal attention.

"Customers want a full-rounded experience," Dec said. "We're not a warehouse club."

Meanwhile, the Urban Tea Lounge, 838 W. Montrose, doesn't serve alcohol but has a lounge atmosphere. Thursday nights are game nights. They're also real "players" at Guthrie's Tavern, 1300 W. Addison, a casual bar with ample board games.

Twice a month Nerds at Heart meet at Guthrie's to play cult favorites Trivial Pursuit and Taboo.

"We specifically chose Guthrie's," said Bathsheba Birman, one of the two women who runs the dating service. "It's so close to Wrigleyville, and we had reservations. We thought it would be a drunken Cubs bar. They're not, and it's so relaxed.

"It's a nice fit."

And the bar gets to play matchmaker.

Natalie Moore is a local free-lance writer.