Sidetrack

About this place Sidetrack

Sidetrack opened in 1982 and has been the undisputed anchor of Boystown's Halsted Street ever since. The format — multiple rooms, each playing a different video theme throughout the week — has been widely imitated but never replicated. Show Tunes Sundays and Musical Mondays are Sidetrack institutions; the Broadway show-tune singalong culture that has developed here has no equivalent at any other gay bar in the United States. The physical space has expanded over the decades: what began as a single-room bar now occupies a large footprint with an outdoor patio, multiple interior bars, and a capacity that allows it to serve as the de facto community living room for Boystown. During Chicago Pride week in June, Sidetrack is the command centre of the neighbourhood — the line stretches down Halsted, the patio is at capacity, and the video screens show the parade route in real time. The bar is politically engaged in the tradition of the best American gay bars: it has been a fundraising platform, an organising space, and a community institution through 40 years of AIDS crisis, marriage equality campaigns, and ongoing advocacy. For first-time visitors to Chicago, Sidetrack on Halsted is the non-negotiable starting point.