Chicago’s oldest bar has quite an interesting story; it wasn’t always the oldest. Initially, that distinction belonged to Schaller’s Pump, a Bridgeport tavern that opened in 1881. However, when it closed in 2017, the title of the oldest bar in Chicago passed to Marge’s Still in Old Town.
Marge’s Still opened in 1885 as Victor Caruso’s Soft Drinks. It was more than just a bar; it was a combination barber shop and corner saloon that gained notoriety during the prohibition era as a speakeasy.
Patrons entered through the staircase attached to the side of the building, which can still be seen outside today, along with the original wooden bar. In 1957, Marge Landeck, the first woman in Chicago to obtain a liquor license, purchased the bar. After Landeck died in 2001, Pam and Andreas Antoniou bought the bar and gave it its current name, paying homage to its gin mill past and honoring its former owner.
What’s on Marge’s Still menu?
Marge’s Still is still serving prohibition-themed cocktails, but since the upscaling of Old Town, it has also introduced a menu of elevated pub food. Among the offerings, you’ll find “Old Favorites” priced at $5, which include Miller Lite, Bud Light, Budweiser, Coors Light, Old Style Tall Boys, and a $5 Malort Shot—because what’s the oldest bar in Chicago without a Malort shot?