TV Restaurants

What Happened to Underground Wonder Bar After Bar Rescue? (Chicago, IL)

Closed verified

As of September 2026, Underground Wonder Bar has closed — confirmed via the business's own closure notice, September 7, 2017.

Primary source
barrescueupdates.com ·
Secondary source
realitytvupdates.com ·

Last verified

What the source shows: The bar's own website announced it would close on September 3, 2017 after nearly 28 years in business (quoted by Bar Rescue Updates); a separate tracker page last revised in 2023 corroborates the September 2017 closure date, superseding an unrelated retrospective's apparently erroneous reference to a 2015 closure.

  • Season / episode Season 4, Episode 12
  • Original air date
  • Address 710 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60654

Interactive map — loads when you ask for it.

Everything on this map is also in the list below.

© OpenStreetMap contributors © CARTO

What happened after Bar Rescue?

Underground Wonder Bar was a live-music venue in Chicago founded in 1989 by musician Lonie Walker, who ran it successfully for more than two decades at its original Gold Coast location. A 2011 building sale forced a move to a larger, more expensive space in Chicago's River North district, and the higher rent, combined with a niche vegan menu and live-music format that didn't resonate with the neighborhood's younger clientele, left the bar losing roughly $2,000 a month by the time Walker's son Jordan called in Bar Rescue for "Crayons & Anger Lines" (aired February 15, 2015). Jon Taffer's team found a bar mismatched to its market, with Walker resistant to changing her performance-heavy approach to running the business. After clashes that included Taffer temporarily walking away from the project, Walker signed an agreement handing day-to-day management to Jordan and renaming the bar Clear Bar, with a redesigned, art-and-ice-themed interior, new cocktails from bartender Russell Davis, and a revamped menu from chef Crystal DeLongpre. Sales were reported up 30 percent six weeks after the visit, but within weeks Walker removed the Clear Bar signage and reverted the business to its original Underground Wonder Bar name, despite having agreed not to. The bar continued operating under that name for roughly two more years. According to a statement posted on the bar's own website and reported by the tracking site Bar Rescue Updates, Underground Wonder Bar closed for good on September 3, 2017, after nearly 28 years in business, citing the end of its run at the River North location. A separate update page, last revised in 2023, corroborates the September 2017 closure date; an unrelated retrospective article's reference to a 2015 closure appears to be in error given the bar's own announced timeline and the corroborating 2017 tracker update. No reporting has surfaced describing any subsequent business operating at the former River North address under a different name.

Featured on Bar Rescue

Season / episode
Season 4, Episode 12
Original air date
Episode title
Crayons & Anger Lines
What was featured
art-and-ice-themed rebrand of a live-music venue
Role
Featured restaurant
Name on the broadcast
Underground Wonder Bar

Frequently asked questions

Is Underground Wonder Bar still open in 2026?

As of September 2026, Underground Wonder Bar has closed — confirmed via the business's own closure notice, September 7, 2017.

What happened to Underground Wonder Bar after Bar Rescue?

Underground Wonder Bar was a live-music venue in Chicago founded in 1989 by musician Lonie Walker, who ran it successfully for more than two decades at its original Gold Coast location. As of September 2026, Underground Wonder Bar has closed — confirmed via the business's own closure notice, September 7, 2017.

Is Underground Wonder Bar permanently closed?

As of September 2026, Underground Wonder Bar has closed — confirmed via the business's own closure notice, September 7, 2017. We publish a closure only with a dated source behind it, and we say plainly when it has not been independently confirmed.

Where is Underground Wonder Bar located?

710 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60654. That is the address on the record as of September 7, 2026.

What season and episode of Bar Rescue featured Underground Wonder Bar?

Season 4, Episode 12 of Bar Rescue, first aired February 15, 2015. The episode is titled “Crayons & Anger Lines”.

Did the makeover last at Underground Wonder Bar?

The episode first aired February 15, 2015. Our most recent check was September 7, 2026 — 11 years later —: As of September 2026, Underground Wonder Bar has closed — confirmed via the business's own closure notice, September 7, 2017.

Is Underground Wonder Bar still using the Bar Rescue menu or branding?

A 2011 building sale forced a move to a larger, more expensive space in Chicago's River North district, and the higher rent, combined with a niche vegan menu and live-music format that didn't resonate with the neighborhood's younger clientele, left the bar losing roughly $2,000 a month by the time Walker's son Jordan called in Bar Rescue for "Crayons & Anger Lines" (aired February 15, 2015). Anything newer than our last check on September 7, 2026 may not be reflected here.

Every status on this site carries a confidence label and a date, and names the source it rests on. Read the Editorial & Corrections Policy for what each label means and how quickly we act on corrections. The questions above are generated from this record's own published fields — we never publish a question we cannot answer from the data.

More from Bar Rescue

Every Bar Rescue restaurant we track

Other TV restaurants in Illinois

All Illinois locations

Nearest tracked restaurants

Visit info

Address
710 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60654
Venue type
bar
Official website
None found

Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.

Sources

See something wrong?

We work hard to keep every status accurate and dated, but restaurants change fast and our sources aren't perfect. If something here is wrong — a status, a name, an address, anything — tell us what you're seeing and where you saw it, and we'll check it.

See something wrong? Tell us →

Share this page

Record br-072 · last verified .