Granville Anvil

Have been to this bar a few times I’ve the year and each time I remember why I don’t go there. The service is horrible, bartenders are rude and try to rip you off. They won’t serve doubles so they can charge you more per drink. I would avoid this place when there are many other bars in Andersonville worth you time.

Dive-​y but in the best possible way. This is the way gay bars used to be. Eclectic but just because it is not because it aspires to be. Multi-​cultural but in a way that suggests camaraderie rather than trying too hard. Skews older, but I see younger guys having fun.
The point of gay bars used to be we were all in this together, so why not be at least cordial to one another?
Now we are so segmented and judgmental. Stratification is boring! Muscle boys are fun and hot, but they are often so scared to let go and be themselves because they are in a role.
I want my gay dive bars to be like a John Waters movie. It knows it’s a little offbeat but it celebrates that fact by laughing at its edges and circling back to a place that has something genuine about it.
The icing on the cake is the music. It’s a jukebox so you are likely to come in some night and hear Motown or a night of girl pop. You never know.
I like 135 bpm wall-​of-​sound dance tracks as much as anyone. When I go out to dance I want that energy.
But there is a place for bars where you can walk in and hear The Shirelles. The Granville Anvil is that place.
My new neighborhood bar.
My only complaint: no debit or credit cards.
This clearly indicates that someone in charge is just so out of touch — and probably just stubborn. My younger friends almost never carry more than $ 20 on them. Debit, credit, the world is moving to a non-​cash society. I went in with a friend in his 20s and he was just puzzled by this policy. It seemed so. foreign to him.
You’re going to get left behind Granville Anvil.
And that would be a shame.

Never boring! Never expensive! One could meet anyone here — extraordinarily diverse crowd.

Awesome place!!! Super strong drinks for a ridiculously cheap price, and not because they serve cheap alcohol. Great environment, super welcoming and you get to meet all different kinds of people even though it’s technically a gay dive bar. A great pregaming place or a good time for the whole night!

Back in the 1960’s Joanne Bishop and Mike Costello turned this into a Gay bar. It is probably the oldest Gay bar on the North Side.
Not continually owned by same people but still the same concept a Dive Bar and a comfortable place to drink.
I will have to go in soon, did not know they had remodeled the place. Hope it has not changed too much.

It’s a dump and you get usually a huge over pour. So basically a vodka cranberry has a slight pinkish hue. If you are a raging alcoholic low on money, this is your place. One of the bartenders is cool, the other seems to have untreated ADD. I like the patio in the back in summer although on weekends it can get really crowded and sloppy drunk back there. It is what it is.

First visit to The Anvil tonight, and I’ll definitely be back! No pretense here; it’s a bar. Plain and simple. Our bartender, Gary, was an absolute HOOT. Funny, engaging, and attentive to everyone in the bar. Inexpensive drink prices by Chicago standards. Clientele was friendly and not the least bit pretentious. GREAT time.

I’m going to respectfully disagree about Having a positive experience when Stephen is there. In all my years of going to neighborhood bars, I’ve never been so blatantly ignored by someone. Yes, he is friendly… to his regulars and gives them free shots constantly while he downs them as well and shows everyone pics and vids from his camera while my drink needs were ignored.
I literally had to tap him to get attention while he catered to his regulars and ignored me. I’m not in bars alone often but had some time to kill and I’ve never felt so uncomfortable in my life…
I still give it 3 stars because I’ve had much better experiences with Gary and whoever else was there in the past. Both alone and with friends. If Stephen is nice to you, more power to you. Maybe he just didn’t like my shirt or something…
Now that I know he works Friday early evenings, I’ll make sure to go other times to increase my odds he won’t be there. By the way, I made my way over to Scot’s and had a much much better experience … And the bartender checked on me often …-:)

This is a little hole in the wall bar that caters to a more mature audience. Cheap drinks and an outdoor patio… plus stumbling distance from the red line at Granville!

I mean, its a cheap dive bar under the El. Our beers were like 2.50 or something stupid cheap. The bartender was super friendly. Unique, comfy space inside. If I lived up here, this could definitely be a regular spot! You wanna hang in a chill place with nice folks and drink cheap beer? Yep. Granville Anvil.

A total neighborhood dive bar. Cheap, classless and not pretending to be anything else. And the place has carpet on the walls.

It’s a gay dive bar. If you think that’s an insult, then you have absolutely no imagination. Cheap bear, saucy bartenders, a patio out back full of smokers, a bathroom that looks straight out of the Amityville Horror, brass dildo over the doorway, porn on the TV … wtf more could you ask for?
Well, I’ll tell you. Right off the red line Granville stop, so you can get there and back easily without driving. Friendly people just looking to relax after a long day. Great little eateries nearby so you can chow down (these poor places must be used to all the drunk gay men stumbling in for pizza). I might start to hate myself if I went there too often, but I’m SO glad the Anvil is there when I need it.
Plus you will probably have a vaguely recollected story to tell when you wake up the next day, hungover from too much cheap beer and Abba.

How do i rate the ANVIL? if Stephen or Wade was working I’d give it a 5! but because of bartenders like Gary [that for some reason they keep on staff] i have to give the bar a 3. Gary himself would get a 1.
Make sure you call ahead to find out of Gary is working — If he is STAY Away ! He is beyond rude. He thinks he is being funny berating and belittling the customers and I have spoken to many regulars there and NO ONE thinks he is funny, Gary keeps patrons away. I will NOT go there if Gary (or Frank) is working. (IF you are lucky enought to get their attention — they spend most of their time outside smoking or talking to their favorite customers.
It is a shame because the bar itself (had a new remodel), the owners are nice guys and great regulars hang out there. WHY do they keep Gary on staff???
If more patrons like me stop going to the bar during his shift — Maybe the owners will wake up and hire someone friendly & patrons will want to hang out.
Call ahead — GARY is such a piece of work — stay away!!!
On the other hand — Run to Andvil and hang out when Stephen or Wad are working — makes for a great night and cool hang-​out!

Classic. My new local bar is exactly the kind of place that I want to be a regular; lively, friendly, unpretentious, inexpensive, Old school Gay!
It’s nice to be welcomed in the cozy bosom of someone else’s home.

This place is extremely friendly. This is a gay bar, but they don’t care if you come in and you’re female. It is very nice for the majority of gay men, who can come into this gay bar and not be exposed to all that crazy shit that Chicago apparently thinks is some kind of requirement or majority for all gay males, but actually is not. In other words this bar is for NORMAL people, who don’t think that being gay requires any particular type of interest other then having boyfriends and/​or sex with men. I came in here one day because the human who’s apartment I was sleeping in was not home to let me in, Edgewater is an absolutely horrible neighborhood regarding businesses, and Internet, and I had absolutely no money whatsoever to get on a bus and go somewhere. The owner or bartender had absolutely no problem with me being there and even welcomed me, and gave me water because «I looked uncomfortable without anything to drink.» This is a place where if you are alone and don’t know how to talk to people, the bartender will talk to you in an ACTUALLY FRIENDLY way, which is very unusual. I mean he will start the conversation. I am sure I will be back and buy something on another day when McDonald’s closed too early for me to get my work done and I don’t feel like getting on a bus. I don’t know what the prices are since I didn’t have any money, but this is a «neighborhood bar» not a «rich people hangout» so I am sure there is something affordable. Of course if It does turn out to be expensive I will lower the stars. This place is ACTUALLY CLEAN, as in, «it actually looks like a restaurant» and is not horrifically dirty like what Chicago people might still consider «clean».
There is just one problem big enough to remove this 5^th star: The music is absolutely TERRIBLE!!! And it is loud enough to act like people might come there to listen to the music (which they obviously won’t!!!), which means it is impossible to ignore. When I came in they were playing black noisemaking, even though there were no black people in the bar due to the bar being in Edgewater and not shitty. I mean very severely black music, where they were literally saying a word that makes you want to kill yourself every other word. After that they played WOODY GUTHERIE, yes literally Woody Gutherie!!, a shitty tune from a musical (not the good ones), and then they started playing coffeehouse music, like thinking you’re in the worst musical example of that, Starbucks. There are two other major problems, but don’t take away from me returning with money. One is no Internet access, but this doesn’t matter because there is an Internet signal from next door. Since this is such a nice bar (excepting the HORRIBLE music!!), lets give them the benefit of the doubt and assume they know that and that’s why they didn’t waste currency getting one. The second problem is they card you when you come in, rather then doing the sensible thing and only carding you if you buy an alcoholic drink. They don’t card you to come in or have someone standing at the door, but I was carded after being there for about 15 minutes because I look either 16 or 19, depending on who you ask. It’s MOSTLY forgivable because most people don’t get carded at all, including on the way in the door, and I’ll CHOOSE not to get pissed about it because it’s a nice bar. So even though there are two things that would make absolutely certain you don’t give a bar your money no matter what, I will give them currency anyway :).

Regardless of where I’ve lived, neighborhood bars have always been some of my favorite places. Add the Anvil to this list.
It’s been cleaned up a little over the past couple of years. There’s no longer holes in the floor, the bar has been resurfaced, and there is new lighting. The exterior hasn’t changed a bit and like others have said, you’re likely to walk right past it.
There’s a regular cast of characters here, most of whom have lived in the neighborhood for the past 20 or 30 years and the Anvil has been the neighborhood hang out just as long, if not longer. The crowd is friendly and cool. This isn’t a cruise bar — it’s a place to grab something to drink and relax.
Students from Loyola frequent the place as well, so on any given night, there’s a mix of ages saddled up to the bar. This mix is reflected in the music you’ll hear on the juke box — always something playing there that you’ll enjoy. There’s a decent patio out back for smokers. Be prepared to engage in some sort of conversation here regardless of where you sit.
The bartenders are attentive and friendly. Drinks are cheap! Probably the lowest price anywhere in Edgewater/​Andersonville. Guys might buy you a drink every now and then and the bartenders comp you one from time to time as well — it pays to be a regular.
The surrounding area is safe and well lit and the Granville L stop just a few feet away.
If you live in Edgewater you aught to swing in to the Anvil from time to time. Frankly, the demographics in Edgewater are changing and there are a lot of new guys moving in to the area to take advantage of the low priced housing. Stop in in meet your neighbors at the Anvil.

Nice and divey. Just like I like it… no really its a nice neighborhood bar

Word on the street is this it the oldest gay bar in the city. I had to give it a look.
Word on the street is porn is normally on the monitors, but Bears games apparently trump porn.
The entry looks like you are going into a cave and there are no windows to the outside, a throwback to a different era for gay bars.
Bathroom is a little sketchy and 70s and wood paneled.
This place must have stories.
Tasteful naked guy posted on the wall.
The bartenders get 5 stars. Friendly, quick, polite, comping me and my group shots, and STRONG mixed drinks.
Crowd mostly in their 50s.
So two weird things. There was this woman, whose name I will not state but it sounds like something sweet and is spelled in a non-​traditional way, who was drunk, and apparently a regular. She went up and down the bar grinding on and handling gay guys. We wanted her to go away after she spilled not once on us but twice. I’m aware this sort of thing can happen in a gay bar.
Second weird thing. This is both a pro and a con. Some dude brought in his dog, dressed in a cubs outfit. This small dog looked over groomed. Clearly a happy dog. He put it on the curvey long 60s style bar, which envelops the whole place, and let it run around up and down the bar. Now this dog was well behaved and didn’t knock anything over. This made it cute and charming. However, this was very surreal to see a dog running around on the bar!
Music was way too loud to hear or talk near the front. We asked for it to be turned down only to have it turned back up later.

I’ve been to this dive bar before with friends its ok for cheap drinks. But today I was there with and out of town friend, for a quick drink and there was a dog walking up and down on top of the bar.
I was quite disturbed by this and one point it was licking on one of the open juice cans it walked over by us and the bartender thought it was cute I didn’t. (gross)we left after one drink .
It’s not that I don’t like pets, but if its not a service dog, leave it home.
It should not be in a bar and on top the bar counter at that.
Be respectful of others

So, theoretically, I’m a fag hag. I love Boystown, and the buzz of Halsted St., and sometimes even the pretentiousness. That being said, there is no gay bar in Chicago better than The Anvil.
Yes, The Anvil is a dive bar.
Yes, there are pretty much no (mostly) straight females unless I happen to come in with my posse.
Yes, sometimes I’ll get the strange stare or two. Maybe the occasional creeper.
Yes, there is gay porn on the flat screen tv’s at either end of the bar.
Depending on who you are, what I just said might not sound like the positive attributes you’d wish your neighborhood gay bar would possess. Regardless, you will always have a good time at The Anvil. Seriously, just trust me.
The mixed drinks are cheap (around $ 4.50 each), the bartenders are lovely, the men are awesome and sometimes super cute. There is no pretension, just all around fun.