RIVER NORTH — Headquarters Beercade in River North is asking guests to check their phones in a bid to stoke more conversations IRL.
The bar-arcade at 213 W. Institute Place has debuted a new, free charging station that can handle up to 15 phones at a time — nine iPhones, six Androids. The station will be open from 7 p.m. to close Thursday through Saturday so patrons can "put down their phones and live in the moment," Headquarters said.
"Go back to the good old days before electronics when socializing and personal interaction were the true highlights of the party," the bar said in a statement.
The station. [Provided]
Guests simply hand their phone to a bartender to get their phone charged. They then will receive a key with a corresponding logo of an 80s or 90s icon (e.g. Pamela Anderson, John Stamos) and can pick up their phone from the lockbox when they leave.
Dave Matthews says even arcade bars patrons are on their phones:
This bar pities the fools that spend their nights out on Instagram. [Provided]
The charging station is made from all reclaimed material, making it a first among Chicago's bar scene, Headquarters said.
Other local bars have discouraged cell phones, including Harry's Velvet Room, which opened earlier this year in Lincoln Park — then closed five months later — with a selfie ban. Though not a bar nor based in Chicago, retired New York Yankee Derek Jeter also famously asks guests to check their phones at his house.
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