Lava Lounge

Um… Lava Lounge doesn’t exist anymore.

I miss you Ukrainian Village Lava on Damen! I know years have passed since Lava brought together a mishmash of low-​key peeps together, but it used to be a Thursday night stop and I still cherish my tipsy memories there.
I would like to first point out that I went to the Lava on Milwaukee two years ago, and I haven’t had any strong desire to go back. The place completely lost its flavor. Now it seems like any other bar cookie cutter bar in Wicker Park. Is this city trying to kill community diversity along with it’s continued racial segregation? I guess with our Starbucks, Chipotle and California Pizza Kitchens, our society is leaning towards consuming conformity in our bars and lounges as well.
Back to my experience, sorry for my digression. The bar is extremely small. Minimal sitting areas, so the lounge aspect sucks. Again, the bar is small, so the dancers don’t have a lot of space to express their body movements. I felt like this place had a lot of hipsters and washed up 30-​something ex-​ravers. I think I heard someone doing blow in the bathroom too.
I thought the bar tenders were nice and attentive. The people of the new Lava still seemed nonjudgmental and down to earth for the most part. Dancing is still fun here, which is my number one priority.

Blah

I miss the old Lava… it had more personality and made me feel like a real life hipster.
But I hear your closing once again for a re model… geez.

This place turned out to be a lot better than I expected. Some friends and I got there around 11ish on a Thursday night, and it was pretty dead. It started to pick up gradually around 11:30, and more friends showed up and I ended up having a good time, though it’s always fun when you are in good company…
Drinks are decent, and strong enough to keep me happy. The bartenders are a bunch of fun and hooked it up with quite a few shots. Yay.

Nice place! Have gone a couple times when my friend was playing records.
They have $ 3 PBRs. Not bad!
The people you’re likely to encounter in that neighborhood are insufferable, but I can’t fault Lava Lounge for that.

Been there once– great time!
We went to dinner on a Saturday night and decided to stay out… Ended up at Lava since we’d heard so many good things about it. Said things were correct! It was just three of us who arrived, started with a few rounds of strong drinks and the music kept us dancing. A group of five joined us a bit after. More rounds. And more. Equally strong. And it got that much more entertaining… It is a bit small and was pretty crowded, but the atmosphere was great…
Lava, you will definitely see me again!

I’m still recovering.
Got an invite to Lava last night. A new friend was friends with the guy that was going to be spinning and he was allegedly good.
Indeed, he was. I was wary of going out on a Tuesday and frankly didn’t want to get dressed. But then I thought «Heck.it’s Wicker Park! I can roll up in my PJs and still look hot.» Plus, I actually wanted to hang out with the person. Opted out of the PJs and wore jeans instead, but I TOTALLY observed the same «uniforms» as Rhonda G (below) — Tight jeans, Hoodie, Tennis Shoes, Baseball cap with random logo, slouched walk and head bob. Check. All of them. But again. it’s WP. What do you expect? (I digress — my date was not in that uniform. He had on a green track jacket. CHECK.)
I had peach martinis and I have to say they were the BEST peach martinis I’ve had. Hands-​down. And apparently they were strong, too [I only had 3? and by the time I got home, I had a headache and called a couple of people. sigh. so yeah – the drinks were strong] Oh… and they were only $ 7. Not bad.
Music? GREAT! When we first got there [around 11:30] it was slow. Not very many people (which is to be expected on a Tuesday, I guess.) The DJ was playing electronic/​house music. Played the the OLDEST old school hip-​hop, reggae (including a «rare» by Marlon Asher that I’ve only heard played in public once)…oh…and he even played Femi Kuti.
Basically…the DJ rocked.
Music is loud though. So not such a good place to go if you’re trying to get to know someone.
All in all, I think I’m still more of a Par Lounge type of girl.
But, I’m sold on Lava. I’ll def go back. Just maybe not midweek though when I have to get up the next morning!
I had a blast though. Glad I went out.

This place looks really cool and it seems like a very sexy environment.
oops, spoke too soon.
Here comes a group of people who are obviously unique individuals dressed in the same «uniform».
Tight jeans, check
Hoodie, check
Tennis Shoes, check
Baseball cap with random logo, check
slouched walk and head bob, check
The people who appear to be the regulars seem under dressed for this place. But because «they» outnumbered us we started to feel overdressed. Although the place itself looks as though it really wants to be ultra sleek and sexy, it’s not.
The drinks are pricey and average (don’t even think about getting a martini… because they aren’t all that), service was quick at the bar and I never had a problem getting a drink. The sound in this place was pretty good and the Dj’s played some pretty cool stuff although at times they seemed to be enjoying the music more than the crowd.
I probably won’t go back unless their is a specific event or something.

ok While Fridays here are usually awesome with the music…
some of the bartenders are rude namely the female one…
It was closing and the they wanted us to leave… understandable…
But while I was gathering my friends to help get them out (the goal right). I am told to move or I will be hit with a garbage can…
Ok well Maybe she thought I was drunk. But I wasn’t. I let her know where to put the can.
How rude! check your employees…

I came here on a really off night — the night of the crazy tornado-​like storm. After being stuck in the Division Blue Line station for about 45 minutes, I was seriously in need of a drink!
Luckily Lava Lounge was just a few steps from there. I liked the décor, it was funky and dark. The coolest thing EVER — hello Dyson hand dryer in the bathroom. I had never seen that before and it was the coolest.
It was a stormy Monday night, the place was dead except for a party promoter that was hosting Chicken & Waffles Night. I already ate so no chicken and waffles for me, but the promoter was stoked to have some guests. He welcomed my friend and myself with open arms, literally. I think he was happy to see people other than his own entourage.
I just had a few drinks at the bar. The beer was a little pricey, but not bad. Due to the horrible weather the place was dead, but I was thankful for that. This is a pretty small space and I would assume during busy nights this place would be a bitch to navigate through.
Decent service/​prices, cool décor, good tunes, and an AWESOME hand dryer in the bathroom. I probably would’ve liked this place better when it was a dive, but it was okay. I’d probably come back on a weeknight, but I’m pretty sure I can’t see myself hanging out here on the weekends.

Lava is in the details. Applause to the interior architect. Every inch was thought about– you get the feeling your dwelling in the lower depths of a volcano, the lava stewing above you. Given the porous tile banding on the back wall and the three dimensional wall art that encases the northern wall– the feeling of being in a cave or coal shaft is ever present. Serious thought was put into the selection of textures, finishes and the colour palette, cheers for that alone.
Came for a friend mixing– barside PBR bottles at $ 2 on a sunday evening. Come to loose yourself in design– calm environment, great sounds and conversation.

You won’t get any nostalgia here folks. I never went to the old Lava Lounge, not because I didn’t want to, I just wasn’t in the know.
This Lava Lounge is alright by me. The drinks are kinda pricey for what you’re getting, unless of course you’re going for the sound, then you’re getting what you paid for. Wait… what?
What I mean to say is the sound is AWESOME at this little insular club. The crowd danced reasonably well on the night I was there and I don’t think I paid a cover. I think it was a Friday night too…
Anyway. The sound and look are nice as hell so I’m down.

:(I’m sad because Lave used to be the bomb. Here is the scoop. When Lava was on Daman and Chicago it had that hot music AND the relaxed atmosphere that dared people to get snobby as they would be written off as douche bag tools and sent to a corner somewhere.
New Lava and its very fine decore kind of bring that douch bag out in people to where they arent just chillin anymore. They are in their own wack music vid. I still have love for the old so thats why I give 2 stars.

Anyplace that has bathroom hand driers that can make a grown man giggle is alright in my book. I’m pretty sure the dude was high as shit, but nonetheless, I was amused by his amusement. I was also amused by the girl collecting the cover. It was five dollars. I give her a twenty. She stares at a big wad of cash for about two minutes before slapping ones into my hand. I kept giving her the, «little more, little more» gesture and ended up with about thirty dollars. I thought, «oh shit! I just came out ahead.» But she gave me the evil eye and my conscience got the best of me. I would also like to apologize to Rocktapussy for being an asshole.
All in all a great place to get liquored up.

Stiff drinks, fast service, good sound, nice décor.
A bit cramped, but hey, it’s «intimate.» And I like to sit on the amps anyway.
The Dyson hand dryer in the ladies’ room is just fascinating. I’m not sure I can explain it; they may warrant a visit all by themselves.

This place reminds me of an absinthe café in Amsterdam. Except we’re not in Amsterdam. We’re in Chicago.
I don’t know. It’s sorta yuppie. Sorta embarrasses me.

If there’s one place I want to go to when I’m home visiting Chicago, it would be here. It’s the one place where I can go to see most of my friends I want to see while I’m home visiting, as they are all hanging out here! It’s not nearly as awesome as the old Lava on Damen, but I really do like what they did with what little space they have. Extra points for them because they finally added another stall in the bathroom. Extra extra points for being off the Blue Line.
However, they don’t have any beers on tap here. They do have an extensive selection of bottled beers though. If you are on a budget, drink the $ 3 Wittekerke they’ve got. Belgian beer served in a can. Nice.

Like most of the others who had been to the old Lava, I can’t help but feel a twinge of sadness whenever I come to the new Lava.
Not that there’s anything heinously wrong with it. Because there’s not. I just have memories of the old space, and it there was a bit more of it…
Now that that’s out of the way.
I like the sound. It’s got good sound. The bass isn’t going to break the Richter scale, but it’s prominent enough.
The drinks are okay. A few gems amidst the usual bar/​club choices. I’m sick of paying 4 – 5 bucks for a domestic bottle, but that’s starting to become the norm now, isn’t it?
I like the location. Not difficult to get to, nor is it in a foul part of town. Hobo begging doesn’t bother me as much as fratty douches, so I’ll take Wicker Park over Lincoln Park any day of the week.
I usually go when I know acts who are playing there, so I like the choices of music. No, it’s not for everyone. But then again, it’s not supposed to be. If I didn’t like the music, I wouldn’t go.
The general atmosphere is good. Like a few people have stated, those who don’t like the events there don’t come back, and those that do have a good time.
It’s a good place to see good DJs and spend some time with friends. You probably won’t be doing much conversing, so don’t expect a quiet intimate evening. But do expect an evening of fresh, local talent, and some small-​to-​medium national talent.
Really the only drawback of this Lava is the size. But as women often swear, size doesn’t matter. Unless it’s tiny.
We are still talking about bars, right?

In the interest of full disclosure, I know the owners of this establishment and also promote a monthly show here.
That said, I will outline what I believe to be the positives and negatives of Lava as objectively as possible.
The Good:
The design is sleek and pleasant without being garish and overpowering. It was designed in part by Suhail, who was also responsible for Sonotheque and the old Mod and Del Toro spaces.
The sound in the space is top notch for a space that size and has been tweaked over months of use to be appropriate for both the number of patrons and the style of music being played.
Lava caters to a fairly broad spectrum of people via both an extensive and varied drink menu and full spectrum of music talent rotating nightly, weekly and monthly.
The bathrooms make me smile. I love the sinks and I am getting those hand dryers installed in my home bathroom.
The Bad:
No place can be perfect for everyone and Lava isn’t above that rule. It’s small and often crowded. If you don’t like feeling cramped, check this place out early in the evening or go some place else entirely.
It’s loud. Again, get there early and you are likely to be able to carry a conversation, but when a night is in full swing and the system has been cranked, you’d better be ready to dance or yell your conversation to your friends.
So it’s clear how I feel about it, but I would recommend everyone check it out for themselves. And if you are there one night and don’t like the music, try a different night and you may change your mind. If you are there a second night and still don’t like the music, it’s likely you just have bad taste.