Nite Cap Lounge

Very reasonable! A $ 7 cover charge to see 2 rock bands. Both heavy metal. They do have different genres but that was the type for this evening. They have a full sound system. So you might want to bring ear plugs (if you are like me and don’t want to damage your hearing).
The crowd was diverse and laid back. Clientele would talk, sing and joke around with you.
We got a $ 3 MHL and a $ 5 Hendricks gin drink. My date from Lincoln Square couldn’t believe it.

I was actually the bass player for the first ever band to jam at Nite Cap. I would go there with my buddy Russ (he was the guitarist in my band, as well) because all of our Foreman High School friends were there. One night we convinced the (then) owner Frank to let us use the raised dance floor he installed in the adjoining room and play a couple of sets (he was looking to make it a Euro-​style dance club, that never worked out). I moved on, but I was amused when I drove by the place several years ago and saw that they had regular live music.
Good times… I may have to check it out to see what it’s like these days.

I use to go there back in the day when it was a night club and wow it has changed lol they updated one of the rooms and hope they do the other room bc its a great place for local musicians. Last night i went there for an acoustic show and had a great time. The owner is a real nice guy too!

Great place. The owner, Dave, is a great guy. Every 1^st Mon of the month, they have a burlesque fetish show with hooks and bdsm acts for NO COVER.
Beer selections is pretty weak, as I mainly dig craft beers, but the bartenders are quite skilled at choosing alternatives for you.
The people there are somewhat the older biker crowd, but they’re still good people that know how to ROCK!!! \m/

Excellent times at the Wednesday night open mic. Good times, indeed.

A cool looking rock club. I like that this place is away from everything else and the bs of downtown clubs. The staff is really friendly and this bar has a nice neighborhood fel to it. They have open jam nights and two cool looking bars in a small place.

I attended a local hip hop show here the other night. Most of the acts were appropriately awful but the reasonably priced drinks and friendly staff mitigated the pain. Notably the jovial manager (?) Dave who imparted a couple of hilarious stories.

This place is great. Drinks are cheap, people are cool and the music rocks. Come by for their wednesday night open mic, it was a good time

Oh I really acted a fool at this place. They had old school house music and the drinks flowed one too many. Next thing you know I’m dancing in a shirtless male sandwich, sweating, trying to wave up others to the dance floor. (Oh GOD am I a dork.) There was some weird metal pipe or bar sticking out of the floor near the dance floor which I wiped out on twice, the second time it happened I tore a perfect circle out of the top of my leather boot. Granted I had no business drinking that much or wearing those boots but overall I like the place. I’m glad they didn’t’ give me the boot.

Nite Cap is decent. It’s quite a distance (even for my near-​west-​ish self), but ya know.
I’ve only been here a few times to see a friend’s cover band play (plug for them — Boom Shakalaka. They’re fun, I promise). It’s one of those places. Ya know, just a place unless there’s something cool going on.
I wouldn’t come here without a purpose. Just sayin.

I’ve played at the Nite Cap with bands several times. It’s an interesting place. Not a top venue, but definitely a step-​up from places like The Mutiny and The Big Horse (RIP). They expanded the stage a few years ago, and it’s kind of an odd shape, but ultimately servicable. Acoustics are just okay. Drink prices are not too high. All-​in-​all, a good place to see an up-​and-​coming or beginning band.
The only unpleasant experience I ever had at the Nite Cap came from the management’s demeanor. They sometimes have an Eastern-​European stentorian gruffness that is offputting. And it’s like, maybe that’s what everybody did back in «the old country,» okay, but this is America, and I’m not going to try to rip you off or perceive you as weak if you’re polite and you smile occasionally. I’m just a dude in a band hoping to get my $ 2 a head at the door or whatever. That’s no reason to be stern and gruff.

Saturday night. Craving a beer and some jams. Don’t really feel like rolling all the way out to friggin Chicago Heights (where the crew is this fine evening) What’s a girl to do?
Oh right! My boys band is playin Nite Cap tonight. It’s a jillion times closer and I’m always down for some skull thrashing metal. Might as well go check this joint out.
Got there around 10:30. Nabbed parking pretty easily. There’s a slew of black clothed, long haired, big booted folks out front. Yep, this is the place. Payed my $ 12 cover (apparently the «I’m with the band» don’t fly around here) and strolled on in. This side is narrow with a small bar on the right and a wall on the left. As you venture in, a room on the right appears with a large oval bar in the center and the stage up front. It was quite a small stage. So small, in fact, that it just so happened to be a good thing that Veneficum (buddys band) just canned the drummer for his divatude. More room for the singer, 3 guitars, and keyboard. There were two other bands that followed, both with 4 members each. They had a bit more room to groove. Over all the sound was pretty good. Nice and loud, just the way I like it. The levels were pretty spot on too. Biggest problem is the lack of space between the front of the bar and the stage. I’m not big on the mosh pit deal, but for those who were, they kept falling onto the stage and jostling around the mics and whatnot. But hey — that’s metal right?
Service was quick. I never waited more than a minute for a beer. $ 5 for Heinekens, $ 3 for PBR. Worst part of the night is spent waiting for the ladies room. Only one and it was consistently out of toilet paper. Thank God for bar napkins!
I don’t think I’ll be hitting this place up on a Tuesday or anything, but as long as they keep the shows comin — I’ll be back.

If you are in a band this is not the place where you will play the best show of your life. Seriously… this is not a fun place. I could have fun in a hole in the ground but I couldn’t here.

Surprising amount and variety of good local rock bands, especially for a divey neighborhood bar. Great service, and awesome, laid back crowd.

i didnt really care for the set up. its a big bar but its divided strangely. I cant comment on prices being reasonable, seein that ive only been here once and my boyfriend at the time took care of that. I’d go back only if a friend was playing or to grab a couple beers.

like mentioned above good place for shows. i went here in 2006 when my boy played one with his band. sound was okay though. it’s funny no one’s written a review later than 2007 til now. makes me wonder if this spot were a faded hollywood star they’d be on vh1’s «where are they now?». can anybody actually answer that question?

Decent room for a band, smallish stage, decent sound. Bars in front room and stage room. Fearless waitresses, some of the ballsiest I’ve seen working through a packed crowd during a show, props. Price of booze, average, decent cross section of bands that play here weekly. Solid bartenders. Good room overall. Saw a Sabbath coverband (Dio era) nuff said.

There have been some GREAT shows here. But I remember thinking, «I wouldn’t come here at all except for a show.» And I haven’t. It kind of seems to be in a gray area between bar and venue. That’d be a compliment if it were just a venue, but since I guess it’s a bar, hmmm… make sense? Anyhoo, yeah, great place for shows, not much else to it.

Meh. This place is a local neighborhood watering hole where the softball team comes after a game, but is trying very hard to be a reputable music venue. They do get some decent bands through there on occasion, but I swear to god this is the smokiest bar I have ever been to. That’s not even an exaggeration. The sound varies widely, and the bands tend to be metal, loud rock, punk/​hardcore, and the odd cover act here and there. Blue collar all the way, and you may very well have your ironic ass kicked if you are a wiseass hipster, so at least it’s got that going for it.