Bernice’s Tavern

Chicago, Illinois

Field Note

One of the great gifts of a dive bar, especially in a town as storied as Chicago, is the ability to pack an immense historical punch in what is otherwise a nondescript corner of a major American city. Bernice’s Tavern embodies this bit of dive bar mystique as well as any drinking spot in the city, a structure that can trace its existence back to the late 1880s, transforming over the years from personal residence to funeral parlor to potential speakeasy to the Bridgeport dive bar it is today.

The story of Bernice’s Tavern starts early, the address of today’s location listed as residence to a midwife named Katrina Block as early as 1884. At some point during the early 1900s, the building was repurposed as a funeral parlor, ultimately cruising into Prohibition under the eyebrow-raising purpose of selling a “hair tonic” of some kind for men. The front of the building continued as a funeral parlor, the back as an auto parts store and all of it as, supposedly, a Prohibition-era speakeasy.

When Prohibition ended in 1933, the space was converted officially into a bar named Adam’s Place, the namesake of co-owners Adam and Anna Dauksha. Dauksha was a prominent Lithuanian businessman, owning a number of properties in the district that Bernice’s Tavern inhabits today, long a Lithuanian neighborhood. Those Lithuanian roots can be seen still today in a beer selection that includes Lithuanian beers Ekstra and Svyturys.

Though Adam retained ownership of the structure, the name of the bar changed over the years first to Marie’s Lounge, then to John’s Place, named after John Bardauskas, who tended the bar and ultimately attached his wife’s name, Bernice, the the business in 1965. Bardauskas eventually purchased the structure from Dauksha in 1975, ushering in a period of family ownership that persists today.

John died in 1998, Bernice in 2017, leaving sons Mike & Steve to take ownership of the business and reimagine the space. Thankfully, the wall decorations were left untouched and have been added to over the years, with the real breakthrough coming in the creation of Stingo Night, now a weekly staple. A mashup of owner Steve Bardauskas’ name and, you guessed it, Bingo, each week’s Wednesday Stingo game draws a strong crowd lured by the promise of sometimes non-traditional prizes.

Given all of that dense dive bar history, the Bernice’s Tavern space is strikingly simple, a shotgun-style layout with a long bar on one side of the room and sporadic seating along the opposite wall. Though the bar’s exterior is pretty much just a brick wall with a small window and door cut out, the neon that hangs in the lone window is some of the best in the city, the name of the bar mixed in with a cocktail glass and a few musical notes. A less ostentatious red sign can be found above the door but despite these markings, a first-time visitor would be forgiven for missing the bar at first pass.

In a space filled with compelling visuals, the most noteworthy is probably the sign reading “Bernice & John’s Place” purchased by son Steve at the Grand Ole Opry in 1985 and gifted to his parents. Red string lights mitch with knick knacks, liquor bottles and a large chalkboard describing current beer selections. “If we don’t got it, then you don’t need it” can be found as the unofficial Bernice’s Tavern motto on at least one sign behind the bar. If the vintage cash register didn’t spoil the surprise, Bernice’s Tavern is indeed a cash-only institution. Said cash can be used not only to purchase Lithuanian beer but also light up the vintage jukebox.

Owner Steve’s artwork can be found in spots along the bar’s walls, one piece even inspiring a long-time regular to design a shirt matching the design. A small corner in the back of the lone Bernice’s Tavern room opens up just slightly to offer a bit more square footage for Stingo, open mic nights and the occasional live music act. A ledge that almost resembles an offering altar can be found here, the staging spot for that week’s Stingo prizes.