I Take Great Comfort Knowing Ceres Cafe Is Still Serving Chicago's Stiffest Drinks
The purpose of this blog is on the 4th tab of that instagram post which is video proof of just how awesome Ceres is in Chicago. A famous bar that I've talked about at least a couple of times of the years, particularly when we embraced degenerate behavior in late 2019. Those were good times, but Ceres is always a good time. People think it's a joke and then you go there for yourself and end up drinking a couple of these.
Best part is the bar is prominently featured directly in the center of the Chicago financial district. Literally on the first floor of the Board of Trade building right when you walk in. Any time from 11am until close, there's always dudes in there boozing their faces off and stepping outside for cigs. Age ranges all over the place with a slight emphasis on 40 year olds that live each day as if it's their last. And like I said this place is prominently featured. You're not walking down a strange flight of stairs or looking for a discrete side door with a password or anything even remotely secretive. It's actually quite the opposite. You can see Ceres coming from quite literally a mile away coming down LaSalle Street. Without being a nostalgic pussy, we need to hang onto these legendary places.
Truthfully I have no idea how they make money. You can sit in Ceres for hours and not be bothered by staff. Patrons, absolutely. But nobody is rushing you out. Everyone just kinda treats you like you're coming off the worst day of your life which makes sense when you consider the history of serving traders. I feel like that's baked into the experience of going.
I don't know how much things have changed since COVID but I sincerely hope Ceres is still stockpiled with people in business casual looking for a break from life. And it's one of the easiest ways to figure out if you actually like your coworkers. Bring them to Ceres and just see how the group reacts. You can tell a lot about a group dynamic based on how they spend 2 hours at this bar. For better or worse, that's undeniably true.
Maybe you've been. Maybe you haven't. Regardless of your experience, you take one look at that rum pour and you know you're in business. That's a place you want to spend some time and I can't encourage it enough. Maybe a perfect starting point for Season 2 of Da Bars? Time will tell.
Until then go get yourself a quadruple whiskey-something and maybe go down to the basement cafeteria if it's still working hours. These are trade secrets I swear by and I know I'm not alone.
Long Live Ceres. One of Chicago's great traditions:
