Twin Anchors is an iconic Restaurant and Tavern located at 1655 N. Sedgwick Street in the Old Town Area of Chicago. It is one of the oldest restaurants in the Windy City. It is in a three story masonry building with a tar and gravel roof. The building dates back to 1881. As early as 1890, the first floor operated as a saloon. This was in operation until Prohibition. During Prohibition, Don and Ethel Humphrey operated a speak easy in the building. It was named Tante Lee Soft Drinks.Twin Anchors Front Door In 1932, Bob Walters and Herb Eldean opened Twin Anchors at the Sedgwick Street site. Bob and Herb belonged to the Chicago Yacht Club thus the name Twin Anchors. Originally, there was no kitchen at the bar. Bob’s wife used to cook dinners for the pub goers on Sunday. Eventually, A kitchen was built.
Area of the Tavern. There are booth for diners
The Tuzi family took over the ownership of Twin Anchors in 1978 and are still managing it.
The bar was a gift from Schlitz Company
The restaurant currently has 2 indoor rooms 1) room with an old bar (donated by the Schlitz Company) and booths for dining 2) second room with tables and chairs. Outdoor dining is also available.
Frank Sinatra was a frequent guest and he had multiple parties there. Twin Anchors was mentioned in articles in multiple publications including GQ, London Times, Fortune Magnazine, Gourmet Magazine, NY Times, Chicago Tribune, Sun Times. The restaurant was featured in 2 movies Return to Me (1999) and Dark Knight (2008)
raddoc1947 