Venue Information

Ever since the Roaring ‘20s, the building now home to the Tonic Room has had a colorful history that lends itself to tales of the paranormal. A brothel was once located in the upstairs apartments, and the tavern was a popular hangout for a North Side Irish gang. When they first opened their establishment, the owners of the Tonic Room discovered Egyptian iconography painted on the basement ceiling and a pentagram painted on the basement floor, leading to speculation that it had been a meeting place for an American chapter of the Golden Dawn. One elderly woman claimed to have witnessed a ritual murder there in the 1930s when she accompanied her father to a secret meeting. According to author Ursula Bielski, patrons and staff have reported seeing apparitions in both the basement and the main bar.

Starting in January of 1969 what is now The Tonic Room was known as “El-Sabarum”.  Frederic De’Arechaga was the owner of the shop which catered to those in ...