Dog-friendly patio, hip menu on tap at Bunker
During the pandemic, social distancing and work from home made life feel like folks were hunkering down in bunkers. Now that the world has learned to better handle COVID, the owner of Heritage Bicycles is asking locals to come join him in their own shelter, one made comfy by the presence of beer, vintage cocktail arcade video game tables, and unique burritos from the chef at Antique Taco.
Bunker is the name of a new bar from Heritage’s Mike Salvatore, with food from his close friend, chef Rick Ortiz. While Randolph Street and Fulton Market, with their escalating real estate prices and nonstop development, may overshadow much of the West Loop, Salvatore is determined to give the area the neighborhood sports bar and hangout it deserves, where the bartenders know their customers’ names and where patrons can have real conversations without being drowned out by bass.
Bunker is located at 1515 W. Monroe Street. Salvatore opened Heritage in 2012, a hybrid coffee and bike shop he founded with wife Melissa. They’ve gone on to launch more projects including Larry’s, the cocktail lounge in Uptown.
Salvatore wants to fill Bunker with what it would take to create his perfect hangout. There are coolers filled with canned beer (they’re also available to go). Most will be local, but Salvatore also wants to stock Pilsen, a Peruvian lager. There are also 12 drafts on tap. Two arcade cocktail tables are loaded with hundreds of vintage games.
The food would have to match that vibe, and so he enlisted his friend. Ortiz met Salvatore about 10 years ago as a customer at his Wicker Park restaurant. The two men are about the same age and come from a Latin background (Ortiz’s family is Mexican, Salvatore’s is Peruvian). They’re both South Siders and their families travel together. And they both work at family-run businesses; Ashley Ortiz co-founded Antique Taco with her husband in 2012 and they’ve since added a Bridgeport location.
Ortiz schemed up three special burritos made with 12-inch flour tortillas. These aren’t “burritos as big as your head.” It’s kind of a compromise as Salvatore was excited about having sandwiches. The poblano pombazo is a mushroom melt in disguise, with chihuahua cheese, roasted poblanos and crimini and shiitake mushrooms.
“It’s good ingredients, technique; it’s not something as big as [Antique Taco’s] fried chicken burrito,” Ortiz says. “The goal is to try a few — let’s say order two burritos and a side.” All burritos benefit from crisping after a kiss on the flattop.
Another of Ortiz’s creations, cerveza chicken, is marinated in beer for 24 hours. It’s also served with aji amarillo aioli, a nod to Salvatore’s Peruvian roots.
The bar is located about a few blocks from the United Center, and Salvatore hopes future playoff runs by the Bulls and the Blackhawks would eventually help fan-driven business. Coming down the road this year is the Pitchfork Music Festival in nearby Union Park, so he’s hopeful for the near future.
Bunker also has a 74-seat and dogfriendly patio. Eventually, they’ll add what Salvatore calls a “fresh-air menu.” That’s a way to distinguish the patio’s food from the more robust nutrition that a burrito provides. Ortiz is still experimenting, but the thought is light fare such as oysters, ceviche and salads. They’ll also serve the appropriate patio pounders for beverages. Yes, West Loopers, frosé is coming from bar manager Eric Jobes. So is a Spanish-style gin and tonic using infused spirits.
The interiors will also feature some obscure music from a Chicago record label. Numero Group specializes in reissues and compilations of previously unreleased tracks.
The overall space is a former Salvation Army center site, which lends itself a bit to a bunker. Salvatore and his team finished the buildout in June 2020, but the project stalled as they waited for proper city approvals
But that’s all behind them now. They’re ready to show off their space.
Bunker, 1515 W. Monroe Street, (773) 823-5818, open 3 to 10 p.m. Wednesday; 2 to 10 p.m. Thursday and Sunday; 2 to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.