Bars in Andersonville / Edgewater, Chicago, IL

Allergic to chains, as cute as pie, and home to some of the most colorful characters in town, Andersonville and neighboring Edgewater are two new nightlife hotspots. Wine bars and gastropubs fill the precious, precious streets of this once Swedish neighborhood, and the area’s large LGBT population mingles with NPR yuppies on tree-canopied bar patios.

Probably the best-known of Andersonvile/Edgewater bars, Hopleaf Bar has been a destination for beer snobs since before beer snobbery became the norm. The 20-year-old Belgian tavern has a staggering beer list and a perverse amount of drafts on tap (most paired with glassware unique to the brand). The always-packed Hopleaf anchors a scene filled with old-school pubs (Simon’s Tavern), trendy pubs (Acre), wine bars (Joie de Vine, Mary’s Wine Bar), dives (Edgewater Lounge), and LGBT spots (Hamburger Mary’s). Though each kind of watering hole has its loyal clientele, bars in Andersonville/Edgewater are as inclusive as the rest of the neighborhood. Drag queens can hang out at the wine bar while girlfriends out for cocktails are drawn to gay bars. Even hillbillies straight from the south have a down-and-dirty country western bar in Carol’s. That’s just how this friendly neighborhood rolls. Come to think of it, only one crowd would stick out in this bar scene: roving packs of bros.