Progress Bar

Progress Bar is one of Boystown's most visually striking gay bars, a sleek, modern spot in the heart of Chicago's Northalsted strip whose showpiece is a mesmerizing, voice-reactive "cloud" ceiling made of some 19,000 twinkling light bulbs. Beneath it, a rustic-industrial room with two bars, huge open windows perfect for people-watching, and a dance floor draws a lively, mixed LGBTQ+ crowd for great DJs, long-running drag shows, music videos, and themed nights, all with no cover and an enviable lineup of craft beers on tap alongside imaginative cocktails. Energetic, photogenic, and reliably fun, packed on weekends when the house DJ takes over, it's a favorite stop on any Boystown bar crawl.