LINCOLN PARK — A new bar celebrating the era of Al Capone is set to replace Halsted Harp in Lincoln Park.
The new owners of Prohibition at 2138 N. Halsted St. plan to open the renovated bar early next week after a private event Saturday to work out the kinks.
Halsted Harp, a popular neighborhood Irish pub, closed in April after nearly five years in business.
Prohibition will feature specialty '20s-era cocktails, a selection of local beers, a speakeasy feel and Italian-American bar food.
Crews have stained the wood darker and are in the process of putting up a mural with scenes from the Prohibition era.
The new owners also upgraded the sound system in the bar and added a DJ booth.
"This was the perfect size, a good location and had a pretty good following already," said Joe DiTuri, co-owner of Prohibition. "We thought we'd come in and change it up a little bit."
Prohibition will still cater to sports fans with two 60-inch TVs behind the bar and a number of flat screens lining the walls.
DiTuri and his business partner, Paul Leix, each own a number of small businesses in the Chicago area, but this is their first venture into the bar world.
DiTuri owns a hair salon in Park Ridge, Leix owns an online supplement retailer and the two co-own a car wash in Wilmette.
The availability of the bar name came as a surprise to the new owners, DiTuri said.
‘We just ran with it," he said. "We called our lawyer, he checked to see if the name was available, it was, so we did it.”
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