After 39 years of operation, the Hard Rock Café’s Chicago location is set to close, marking the end of an era in River North.
In June 1986, when Ronald Reagan was in his second term as president, Harold Washington was the mayor of Chicago, and Bill Kurtis, Walter Jacobson, and Don Craig were the main anchors on Channel 2, the Chicago Hard Rock Café at 63 W. Ontario St. opened.
About five months after the Bears’ victory in Super Bowl XX, Chicago’s Hard Rock debuted. Speaking of rock, it also debuted the same month that Chuck Berry and Keith Richards took the stage together at the Chicago Blues Festival at the Petrillo Band Shell.
However, that enormous illuminated sign that resembles a boomerang-shaped guitar will go black on March 29.
“In the meantime, we will ensure all of our team members receive outplacement support and resources, we welcome them to apply for any other open positions throughout the company,” the Hard Rock Café stated. “We look forward to welcoming guests at any of our other 319 locations in 74 countries, including the nearby Hard Rock Cafes in Rockford and Northern Indiana and five new Hard Rock Cafe and Rock Shop locations opening this quarter.”
Hard Rock Café: An early Ontario Street entertainment venue
In the past, River North’s Ontario Street was primarily used as a route to the Kennedy Expressway and the Ohio Street Feeder Ramp. It was primarily recognized as a strip of gas stations as late as 1984.
However, the long-vacant old Chicago Historical Society museum at Ontario and Dearborn streets was taken over by club owner and party promoter Peter Gatien in 1985, and he transformed it into the Chicago location of his Limelight franchise.
The Hard Rock Café celebrated its grand launch on June 27, 1986, with a $200,000 party at its new location directly across Ontario Street from the Limelight.
The first Hard Rock Café was established in London in 1971 by American businessmen Peter Morton and Isaac Tigrett, while the first Hard Rock Café in the United States was established in Los Angeles in 1982.
Morton declared four days later that he was “very proud to be a part of Chicago.” Robert Palmer, a British rock singer, was the main attraction at the grand opening event on Friday.
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The Limelight, located across the street, was excited to welcome its new neighbor. They imagined that guests would stop by their nightclub to drink and dance before or after going to the Hard Rock Café for a meal.
The Limelight closed its doors on New Year’s Eve in 1988, and the next year, it was replaced with the well-known Excalibur nightclub. The space is now run by Tao Chicago.
However, the Hard Rock Café has always been located across the street and has a wide range of memorabilia on display. A handful of the numerous items that fans love include a shirt that belonged to Prince, a leather satchel that belonged to John Lennon, a drum set and a guitar from Cheap Trick, and guitars that belonged to Dire Straits, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, and Chuck Berry, who was mentioned before.
Hard Rock will keep running casinos in Gary, Indiana, and Rockford.
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