Entry No. 71 — the Chicago file — filed under: speakeasy-bar
Chicago Magic Lounge
The storefront is dressed as a plain neighborhood laundromat; walk through it and you're in an Art Deco speakeasy-theater where close-up magicians work tables at the performance bar before a stage show in the Harry Blackstone Cabaret.
The story
You walk up to 5050 North Clark Street expecting a theater, but you're met with a wall of commercial washing machines and laundry carts in a brightly lit storefront. Locate the hidden door disguised behind the machinery and you step through into a 1930s-style Art Deco speakeasy. Co-founded in 2018 by Chicago tour guide Joseph Cranford and investor Donald Clark Jr., the venue was designed specifically to revive "Chicago-style magic"—a distinct, aggressive strain of tableside sleight-of-hand born in early-20th-century Chicago taverns like Schulien's.
While 20th-century stage illusionists like Harry Houdini were sawing assistants in half from fifty feet away, tavern owner Matt Schulien began pulling up chairs to patrons' tables with a deck of cards, pioneering close-up "restaurant magic." When the city's classic magic bars vanished in the late 1990s, Cranford launched a weekly pop-up show in Uptown to resurrect tableside card tricks, eventually converting a former commercial laundry facility in Andersonville into a permanent venue.
Behind the laundromat façade, the building houses three distinct performance spaces: the front Performance Bar, the 119-seat Harry Blackstone Cabaret (named for illusionists Harry Blackstone Sr. and Jr.), and The 654 Club—a hidden 43-seat close-up gallery dedicated to micro-sleight-of-hand.
What it's like
Arrive at least 45 minutes before showtime to order drinks and small plates inside the cabaret; house magicians cycle between tables performing card tricks inches from your drink glass during the first hour before the stage show begins. The vibe is dark and velvet-trimmed, with cabaret tables shared among small groups. If you hold a ticket with 654 Club access, stick around after the stage performance to be escorted into the intimate 43-seat gallery for a 20-minute post-show close-up set. If you don't have show tickets, you can still enter the front Performance Bar after 5 PM for craft cocktails and bar-side tricks.
The move: Book cabaret seats for a rotating-magician stage show, then linger afterward at the performance bar so a sleight-of-hand magician can work your table over a last round.
- 📍 Andersonville
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 5050 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60640
Hours: Added 2026-07-19 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Woolly Mammoth Antiques & Oddities — Pair an evening of sleight-of-hand misdirection with a daytime browse through mounted skeletons and taxidermy two blocks up Clark Street.
- Alchemy Arts — Trade stage illusions for genuine occult supplies and esoteric literature at Chicago's long-running metaphysical shop under a mile north.
- Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum — Explore the Victorian monuments and castellated gatehouse of Rosehill Cemetery before descending into Andersonville's secret magic theater.
- Andy's Art, Antiques & Oddities — Extend your night of curious discoveries with a short trip east to browse vintage artwork and weird curios in Edgewater.
Good to know
Do I need a ticket to visit the bar?
No. The front Performance Bar opens nightly at 5:00 PM to the public without a ticket, with magicians performing close-up sleight-of-hand behind the counter.
What are the age restrictions?
The venue is strictly 21+ for the Performance Bar. Patrons aged 16 to 20 are permitted in the Harry Blackstone Cabaret show when accompanied by a legal guardian.
How do you get inside?
The entrance is disguised as a neighborhood laundromat; you must find the hidden passage door behind the washing machines to enter the speakeasy.
What is The 654 Club?
It is an intimate 43-seat gallery behind the main theater reserved for an exclusive 20-minute post-show close-up magic performance, included with select ticket tiers.
Is food served during the performance?
Yes. The kitchen opens at 6:00 PM serving savory shareable small plates, with full table service available inside the cabaret theater throughout the show.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · theinfatuation.com · Time Out · Reddit
last checked: 2026-07-19