There Ultra Lounge

It’s never really busy in here, or I’ve never really been in on a busy night. It’s a smoking bar. There are sometimes drag shows, the drinks are decently priced (especially considering it’s downtown). I can’t say too much about it that is negative, but it’s not a mind blowing experience either.

Poor beer selection but the cocktail waiter going around with jello shots was a fun touch. Decent dance floor and DJ. Unfortunately, we just couldn’t get past the awful smoke. I think we are spoiled in New York where smoking is not allowed in bars or restaurants. The cigarettes here definitely ruined our experience.

The door man, Craig is incredibly rude. I observed him not card people who were female. Me, being the completely sober DD, had to put up with the rude comments and unsettling demeanour. It is not often I get to go out, even less with my group of friends (a birthday celebration) to have a bouncer tell us to get the hell out of the bar at exactly 2pm on a Friday. Standing there glaring at us as we finish our final shots, then again at 201 am telling us «I said now». Spending hundreds of dollars at your establishment is worthless being treated like that. Unfortunately we are going to go to have to go to the craphole luckies and know we are going to be at a disgusting dive bar, and to. not be treated like unwanted customers. We use to love this place but now feel unwanted. We will miss this place dearly.

From what I remember, this place used to be pretty seedy. I stepped in for the first time in probably five years, and it’s definitely an improvement. Looks like they’ve cleaned the place up a bit, painted, and stopped playing porn on the TVs. It was a Wednesday, and well drinks were $ 1.50, so I couldn’t complain. Other than that, there was a $ 1 cover for only god knows what reason… There were only ten people there. I didn’t have cash on me, so the door boy just said don’t worry about it.

If you can find the place… Avoid it.
It’s a tiny hole in the wall of a bar; which is acceptable, considering I live in Chicago and tight bars are our specialty. I went with friends to see our friend Lola perform in her drag show of the evening. It was fun enough as money and props flew around the bar’s open floor ‘stage’ area.
Had it not been for the somewhat under attentive bartenders and the overwhelming amount of cigarette smoke I would have had myself a fantastic time.
Not being a smoker and living in a city where smoking is prohibited in bar and within 15 feet of a public building; I must say… It made me appreciate the Chicago law even more so. If I were management; I’d figure out how to give your smokers appropriate areas to enjoy their death sticks, away from those of us who’d rather not die as a result of their desire to do so.
If you’re looking for a good night out, somewhere you can let loose and enjoy yourself… You may want to venture somewhere else.

One word to describe it, Meh.
I’ve only managed to stomach this place a handful of times. I’m not sure if it’s the placement of the bar right inside the door that causes me to dislike it. Or the congestion caused by the location of the bar right inside the door. Further back you go the more spacious it gets, but it never seems to be utilized correctly.
Every time I am there there seems to be something going on which entails that there will always be a cover charge which ranges from $ 1 for amateur stripper night to $ 5 for a drag show upstairs. That’s another thing I cannot comprehend about this place, you have two floors of space but if an event is not taking place you only use one floor causing people to be crammed around the bar by the main entrance (yes, I’m still complaining about that).
Karaōke night here isn’t as bad as other local establishments, people can actually sing. Drinks are reasonable priced. Bartenders are attentive. That is if you can make to the bar for a drink.
One bad drawback about this place is that every once in a while you have a random person roaming around asking if you want to buy drugs off them. Crack is whack.