Cal’s 400 Liquors

Ya closed down 4 sho. There is a sign in the window advertising the bar stools and chairs for $ 5 each with a number to call.

Best (only?) dive in the Loop, perhaps in the city. I’m going to miss Cal’s like crazy when it closes at the end of 2012.

Best diver in the loop.

Total dive! Which is a good thing! Drinks were cheap and poured nicely. Place was full of Chicago business peeps after work. Couple of TV’s and a full bar. Nice enough bar tender. Cheap Drinks and a joint so unconcerned with «ambiance»…win win.

Basically the diviest dive bar that ever… dove?
Uhm, yeah something like that.
Gotta love Cal’s. It’s a dump and it’s proud to be one. My co-​workers and I often come to Cal’s as a starting point to happy hours, unless it’s Halloween, then we’re there the whole night. The usual bartender, Mike (I believe that’s his name) is a peach and awesome. I love that they use Diet Pepsi in their rum and diet.
The clientele, well, it’s an experience, let me tell you.
There was once a brass band up in here the night of our holiday party.
Basically, don’t come here if you’re trying to impress someone fancy. But come here if you’re a fan of the ridiculous.

i so want to love cal’s. and i do… this place has just let me down so many times. cal, when i need you, you’re never there.
so, you know how this profile says that they’re open late on saturdays? last night, the door was locked and the lights were out at 9. i know that the loop is like that and it’s stupid but it was raining and i came all the way from hyde park and was a little late and ran from michigan ave and broke the shoes i just got at the thrift store that only cost a dollar but still, do you know how crappy it is to walk around this city with a shoe that is only properly attached to your ankle? did i mention it was raining?
oh, but it’s cheap and dirty and i love it. and the bartender, what’s his name? michael? mike? he is super-​simpatico in this sort of indifferent, over-​it way that can be so nice to drink beer around. and if you can engage him in a conversation, he lights up a little. ask him about all the video of shows he’s taken over the years. and the set lists on the wall! i want to steal one sometimes as a keepsake but that would be defacing art and i don’t do that.
cal is the guy or lady who you’re crazy about but s/​he likes you but not that much and maybe s/​he is a little depressed or just stuck out in the doldrums of ennui trying to figure out what to do with her/​his life and you want to help but you care more than him/​her and when s/he’s on it’s so much fun but most of the time s/​he is doing something else. like being closed on saturday night. it hurts my heart a little.

I fucking love Cal’s bar.
In the middle of the loop, only one TV, average crowed of workadays and punks, awesome cheeseburgers, decent prices, live music.
In the middle of the loop, I know I said it twice it’s not the voices in my head, but it’s impossible to miss this tome. Come, get drunk, do shots with the bartenders, look up at the absurd shit on the walls, the random fish tank, the dirty but lovely décor, and buy some fucking booze for the way home.
Because it’s Cal’s, and it’s in the middle of, shut up, just come here.

«yeah, I love dive bars! But that place is… too divey». That’s what my (ex)friend said after I took him to Cal’s for a few after-​work pre-​party bebidas. We haven’t spoken since.
Cal’s is dirty, like your uncles house… You know, the one who cleans carpets and drives a tow truck for a living, chain smokes cigs in his recliner while watching Steven Seagal movies in his briefs, and drives an old gray dodge conversion van. The uncle who eats ‘bean n weenies’ out of the can for breakfast? Yeah? Yeah. Cal’s is like that.
Open super late, hosting random musical acts, and serving SUPER cheap drinks and food, this place pretty much has it all. The service is friendly and quick. And to top it all off, it’s right downtown in the loop! If you’re interested in conquering the universe, shedding the stress of work, hearing some live music, mingling, or just grabbing a quick cheeseburger to wash down your morning whiskey, then you should check Cal’s.

When a relationship begins with the exchange, «Chimay?» «Chimay!» you know you have yourselves more than a one off… then consider that Chimay is in Cal’s 400. Yeah, sure, my order was driven out of ordering the opposite of what’d you expect (PBR and a shot of Jameson). But really… it was inspired by the same anachronistic take that Cal has inside The Loop. Surrounded by all things that aren’t Cal, Cal has cut out a niche that I love: a bar in a liquor store. A well-​established bar in the back of a liquor store that has a stack of CDs, a CD player, a tubed tv with jeopardy on, a smattering of posters like, «What Would Neil Young Do?» and ramshackled seats and curiously they figure out a way to hold live concerts in the space.
A haven for bike messengers is a haven for me – a kid raised on the admiration of the Jif-​swabbing Puck — which I’m not ashamed of at all, especially when you consider I’ve never been a bike messenger.
They serve cheeseburgers & double cheeseburgers & fries from the place next door ’til 3pm (or whenever that place closes).
Completely laid back, completely perfect and it’s completely mind boggling that there are only 50 some odd reviews here. Chicagoans! Penetrate the bubble that is The Loop. Out of towners! Take a layover from Union Station. «Okay?» «Okay!»

Cal’s is currently my favorite bar in the loop! I spend basically all my time around this general area, and after trying half a dozen other loop bars, Cal’s takes the cake. It’s CHEAP, which as an underemployed minimum wager earner, means a lot to me.
But it’s also chill and unpretentious. Cal’s is a place to go to hang out and drink. It feels more genuine than any bar in the loop that I’ve been to.
Did I mention that it’s cheap? I was charged less for a PBR & whiskey shot as I was for just the whiskey at Exchequer (which for the record, I also like).
To sum it up, Cal’s is the only bar in the loop I’ve been to where I’ve left excited to go back.

This is the only bar in the South Loop that doesn’t suck ass. Not for douchebags, frat boys, or anyone who ever drinks Yaegermeister or cocktails from one of those date-​rapey slushee machines. You know who you are.

You know, at first I was a bit hesitant because I thought Cal’s was going to close at 8p and we had gotten there at 7p and that is not efficient time to get as drunk as I had planned… But my friend and I decided to take a seat at the bar to strategize where we would go next.
Ordered two shots, two PBRs all for $ 13! DEAL! For downtown that is a steal.
For awhile it was just us and the bartender. He was polite and even talked to us about music and movies (although he didn’t seem to be down with Transformers… neither were we so it worked out) he also let us choose the music which I really liked.
Around the end of our second beer the bartender asked if we would like another round– we asked in a frenzy «WhhhhAT?! Aren’t you closing at 8?» We pondered. «No,» he jested, «I close whenever I want! I’m the owner!» The three of us laughed, but we went on our merry way because I was a tad hungry.
All and all, I loved Cal’s. I will be back. I want to check it out on a Friday or Saturday to see the music.

Indie sux! Hardline sux! Emo sux! You suck!
This place is pretty punk rock. There is no stage, so the bands just set up in a corner of the charmingly dingy barroom. Get in the band’s personal space. Heckle if you must. Loudly demand that song you like. Most of all, stand right in their faces. That’s what seeing a show at Cal’s is all about.
It’s dirty, and the beer is cheap. This is a total anomaly downtown. The rest of the neighborhood is dead while Cal’s is jamming til 2. Really a fun time.

Not some hipster yuppie’s idea of a «dive bar» but the real thing; an old school watering hole. The bare essentials in an environment that’s becoming increasingly and sadly rare in a world that frowns on the open enjoyment of drinking for its own sake. And make no mistake about it, this is a drinker’s bar.
Reasonable prices, booze to go, and easy access to both train stations and the L make this a strategic spot for catching a buzz before you go off to where ever you need to go off to.
Places like this are getting rarer and to see one still operating at the cross-​roads of the financial district makes my weary heart smile. 5 stars, but I’d give 10 if I could.

I generally hate drinking downtown, but Cal’s is one place I don’t mind having a few pops.
Most Loop bars live for happy hour, and they mostly live for the two hours of solid business they can expect at that time. This usually results in a massive consumer shakedown. A $ 10 watery margarita here, a poorly poured $ 7 Guinness there. You will not find that at Cal’s.
Drinking with the locals is the best way to get to know a city, and Cal’s may be the best place to do so in the Loop. Saddle up to the bar alongside bike messengers, traders, and average working stiffs, and you’ll get a better feel for Chicago than you could ever hope to find at the chains and hotel bars that abound in the Loop.

This place is so classic it hurts!
It smells funky. The bartenders have attitude. The tunes are good. The prices are cheap. There’s an empty fish tank behind the bar. There are cardboard boxes everywhere. They squeeze rock bands in the small barroom with everyone else while they drink.
I’ll be going out of my way to go back. Cal’s 400 Liquors is my new loop fave.

Tried to call — no answer, no message. Went there on a Saturday night — closed, no sign in the door, desolate.
I had heard good things about this bar and have been told good Detroit bands play here and that it is similar to popular Detroit dive bars. I’m from Detroit — the popular dives here are open during their posted hours or they have an answering machine with a message explaining why they are closed (sometimes a human even answers!). I would have been happy just getting a beer… Very disappointed! Have they shut their doors for good?

My first memory of Cal’s was playing there many, many years ago in a galaxy far, far away. ] I think Mike was just getting started making this a regular music venue and no one (us or him) promoted the event so we ended up just jamming most of the night (Mike included). We actually invited people who did come (walk-​ins off the street) to sing or play. I also think we made about $ 100 passing the hat. I count it as one of my favorite nights of playing music.
Since then, it has become one of my favorite bars in Chicago and I’m sorry I didn’t go more often when I was there and am sorry that it is now 1,000 miles away. You never know you are going to miss a really good dive bar until it’s not close to you anymore.
A treasure. And Mike books some kick-​ass shows.

Anyplace that uses poster board and a magic marker to write up the beer list is someplace that I’m going to love. I’m a big fan of dive bars, and Cal’s is at the top of the list.
I was thinking about how I was going to write this review last night went I went to Cal’s to see my friend’s band play. The didn’t go on until well after midnight, but I arrived right around 11:30pm and the place was pretty crowded. Which, honestly, wouldn’t be that hard to do considering it’s a munchkin of a room to begin with.
Yet, I fell instantly in love with the filthy and crowded atmosphere. And I hadn’t even ordered a drink yet. When I made my way to the bar I ordered a High Life; $ 2.50 and my standby beer of choice. Imagine my surprise when I was told they were out of it. How does a dive bar run out of the champagne of beers? That in and of itself was enough to want me giving the place 4 stars.
So, I ordered my standby cocktail of choice, a Cuervo and Redbull. In any other neighbood this cocktail would have run me a good $ 8, $ 10, or possibly $ 12. Not a Cal’s. $ 4.00 for a Cuervo and Redbull that was poured like a double by the heavyhanded bartender. It wasn’t an accident. They poured them all like that… all night long.
Back to the 5 star rating!
As for the live music side of this joint. Don’t get your hopes up. It’s tiny. Super tiny. I like that kind of thing though… so close you can touch-​the-​dummer-​kind of close. The sound quality is all dependent on the kind of band playing, the volume of their music, and of course — whether or not the band actually sucks.
The only downside? How far it is from where I live! The trek from Andersonville to 400 S. Wells is a long one, but easily managed via LSD. I’m sure the train is a viable option; but I don’t do public transportation unless absolutely nessesary.
I’ll go back though… probably this weekend.

Stopped in on a Wednesday at around 5:45pm with a pal before a show at the Chicago Theater.
This was exactly what I was looking for on this evening. A shoddy atmosphere where two guys could sit down and casually pound as many PBR’s ($ 2 bottles) and shots of Jim Beam ($ 3 shots in large shot glasses) as possible in 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Bartender who was there to give you drinks and not give a F if you are there or not. Same goes for the crowd. There is sh! t on the walls that looks like a 5^th grader decorated it and it works. Tables from the 70’s. Floor that probably hasnt seen a hot mop in 15 years.
Also, there is a liquor store in a co-​joining room which works if youre looking to crotch a bottle of whiskey into a concert.