Bar Casablanca

This place is very welcoming, laid back and casual. I love coming here with a group and hanging out or celebrating birthdays or special occasions. The bartender is very accommodating

I love this little place. When I lived across the street I was there almost every day/​night and it’s definitely in the category of ‘neighborhood bar’ but with benefits. Sylvia serves up a mean pozole on Saturdays, not to be missed! There’s a pool table and a juke box and an old fashioned bar. The regulars are friendly and if you just want to hang out (or hide out) this is a great place.

This place has been in the neighborhood since 1984. First as a private club, then with a great Mexican kitchen, and now just a bar. The never ending joke is that «Blanca,» from the kitchen, was returning in two weeks. Three years later and I’m still waiting two weeks.
With a new face lift, it feels like you’re walking in to the Grand & Ogden version of Cheers. Everyone knows your name and if they don’t, either the customers or the bartender are sure to ask questions.
It’s a great after dinner drink place. But I especially like the space for private parties. On occasion, there is a DJ on Fridays. Definitely will be back to have a margarita. Crossing my fingers that I get to order those sweet enchiladas or steak burrito soon!

This place is weird.
First of all, the boyfriend and I have lived about a block away from it for over 2 years, and we always thought it was either closed, or some kind of private Mexican club or something. Turns out it’s neither.
We went there last night for a friend’s birthday. She discovered it a while ago and really loves it. It’s kind of like a dive bar that happens to be in someone’s basement. The décor is totally strange– a combination of huge paintings of wine bottles, crappy pizza parlor-​type tables and chairs, and faux fall foliage. There’s a pool table and one tv, which was showing baseball. There is a jukebox, which the boyfriend confirmed had a collection which would be described as ‘eclectic’ at best: Mexican music, one Clash album, and other random selections.
As for the actual bar.. . our friend and her friends were having margaritas, but we just stuck with beer. I honestly can’t remember if I even saw a tap, but the selection of bottles was pretty limited, even for a dive. The bf requested something Mexican, so I came back with Dos Equis. Which were $ 4.50 a piece. Now, I would expect to pay that in a restaurant, but when I’m in a dive bar I really don’t like to pay more than $ 3 for a beer. Maybe it’s my fault for ordering a fancy import in the first place, but the other options seemed to be limited to Modelo or Bud Light.
We might go back, if we have friends in town who are staying with us or something, since I can’t really envision any of our city friends making the trip from Logan Square or something just to go here. It’s interesting, that’s for sure.