Now, time for something completely different: a sober bar. Eli Tea started in the Detroit suburbs before opening a second location in Andersonville. The tea drinks are impressive: there are concoctions not seen anywhere else in town, such as a smoky lapsang souchong with white chocolate. There’s a selection of boba drinks also. The space is fun — there’s regular entertainment, including drag queen bingo — to give those who don’t want booze a lively location to grab a drink.

With a focus on community building and inclusivity, this Andersonville queer bar mixes old-school Chicago tavern charm with modern comfort. “The Pink Kitty” (Hendrick’s Gin, aperol, grapefruit, sparkling wine) is an example of the drink menu’s “classic cocktails, elevated” creed. The bar was a James Beard Award semifinalist this year for best bar program.

The Tap Room inside the new brewery and taproom Cultivate by Forbidden Root is a beer geek’s dream, stocked with a rotating assortment of hard-to-find beers from other breweries from Chicago and elsewhere, all on tap. There are cans available as well, plus bar snacks and a brief selection of cocktails, shots, and ciders.

Moonflower, the plant-themed cocktail bar that opened in Old Irving Park last winter, recently acquired a darker, moodier younger sibling, Nightshade. Located in the basement below Moonflower, Nightshade serves cocktails with more experimental ingredients — the Late Bloomer features purple rice-washed Ford’s gin while Son of a Gun includes salted tortilla chips and poblano peppers — plus fluffy alcoholic shave ice.

This eagerly anticipated bar opened in early March in Logan Square. It’s a spinoff of a well-regarded New York hotspot, a hybrid cocktail lounge and dive bar that offers a little bit of something for everyone. Boozy slushies are on tap as well as a fun mix of classic drinks with modern twists. Food, sandwiches, and waffle fries, are also available.

The bar side of this fine dining operations from Jenner Tomaska, a former executive chef at Next, and his wife, Katrina Bravo, has its own entrance on Clark Street. Esme’s bartenders mix bespoke cocktails and have a variety of spirits to pick from — just strike up a conversation with a bartender. Customers can also find top-notch eats, including a giant Cheeto that is pretty much the ultimate in bar food.

This new two-story bar in Lincoln Park from the team behind AJ Hudson’s and the Dandy Crown is two drinking establishments in one: the Albion Manor, an English-style football pub with beer and snacks on the ground floor, and the Parlour, an elegant cocktail lounge upstairs.

Adalina has been a hit in Gold Coast: chef Soo Ahn dazzles with a creative Italian-American menu that’s kept the second-floor dining room filled during the pandemic. The owners also inherited a downstairs lounge, and they’ve made the space their own with the assistance of beverage director Aaron Pollack. Rose Lounge is dimly lit with room for 50. True to theme, some drinks come with fancy block ice carved into roses. Reservations are available via OpenTable.

Selva means “jungle” in Spanish, but this new rooftop bar atop the Emily Hotel in Fulton Market (formerly the Ace) is really more about the flavors of Mexico. The cocktail menu features plenty of tequila and mezcal, but there are also other regional spirits, including charanda, a sugarcane-based beverage from Michoacán.

Kumiko, the West Loop Japanese-inspired cocktail bar, is known for having one of the most thoughtful drink menus in the city. Each concoction incorporates a carefully balanced mix of spirits, including a deep bench of Japanese whiskies. Those who don’t imbibe alcohol have plenty of options as well, as the menu offers a variety of booze-free drinks made with top-flight teas. Creative director and partner Julia Momosé recently won a James Beard media award for her book The Way of the Cocktail, cowritten with journalist Emma Janzen.

The owners of Porto and Beatnik have revamped their Loop wine bar along the river to focus on natural wines. It’s the same cozy and intimate space ideal for happy hours or after-work dates, but a refined menu with small bites.

Operated in conjunction with the steakhouse Gibsons, José Andrés’s new happy hour-friendly bar with a raw bar and high ceilings has expansive views of the Chicago River. The space, within a new Loop skyscraper that houses Bank of America’s local headquarters, was one of 2021’s most impressive openings in terms of scale and construction costs. The drink menu includes a caipirinha that’s frozen with liquid nitrogen and a presentation that will make you the envy of the room.

This new spot from the owner of Heritage Bikes & Coffee and Larry’s in Uptown promises a more low-key experience than the average West Loop bar. Choose from a selection of specialty and classic cocktails with unusual ingredients like cream cheese and popcorn-infused tequila while munching on selection of Mexican dips and burritos from the owner of Antique Taco. There are plenty of TVs tuned to sports inside and a dog-friendly patio outside.

Nine Bar, which opened last month, is Chinatown’s first cocktail bar, located behind the Moon Palace Express takeout counter. Owners Lily Wang (whose parents own Moon Palace) and Joe Briglio mix up “Asian-ish” takes on classic cocktails, creating Old Fashioneds, highballs, and margaritias with baiju, soju, and shochu.

The rebirth of this much-loved stuffed pizzeria is underscored by a talented staff of bartenders that will pour patrons more than just beer while they’re catching the big game. Williams Inn is a rare Black-owned pizzeria, and its owners are striving to create a welcoming space that caters to all appetites.