WICKER PARK — A "Saved by the Bell" parody pop-up diner themed after the popular '90s sitcom will set up shop in the former Geek Bar in Wicker Park, it was announced by magician/comedian Ed Alonzo on Tuesday.
The diner, to be called Saved by the Max, will open on June 1 and run for 30 days inside 1941 W. North Ave. Beginning Friday, reservations can be made on savedbythemax.com.
Located at the base of the triangular Flat Iron Building — which straddles Milwaukee and North avenues in Wicker Park's main hub — the pop-up diner will take over the Geek Bar. Before Geek Bar, the space had previously housed Storefront Company, a fine dining restaurant.
After the pop-up ends, Geek Bar, which recently closed and renamed its under-new-ownership venture to SFCO will return, a spokesman for Saved by the Max said.
Saved by the Max will open in this storefront on June 1. [DNAinfo/Alisa Hauser]
The news was announced over social media through a video starring Alonzo, who played the role of Max, the proprietor of a local diner, "The Max," that the show's characters hung out at during their years at fictional Bayside High.
In a news release, the diner's creator Derek Berry said the chosen space "would allow fans to feel as if they’ve been transported back to Bayside and are fully immersed in the universe of the show."
"The final look of the space is going to be a dream come true and deliver the grand slam nostalgic experience everyone has been waiting for,” Berry added.
The bar will open every night from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m., except on Saturdays, when it will stay open until 3 a.m. Saved by the Max's menu will offer dinner, weekend brunches and late night snacks.
Menu highlights include items like AC Sliders, Preppy BLT, Macaroni & Screech, Belding Fries, Miss Bliss Candied Bacon and a Lisa Turtle Milkshake. Drinks will be similarly "Bayside-inspired."
Some of the planned events include costume contests, karaoke, trivia, dance parties, a performance by a "Zack Attack" cover band and Q&A/Meet & Greets with To-Be-Announced past cast members.
So far, 6,500 people have said that they plan to go to the diner, and another 22,000 are interested, according to the month-long pop-up's Facebook event page.
Follow updates on Saved by the Max on Twitter at @SavedBytheMax or on Instagram.
About 25 new jobs will be created during the pop-up; those interested in working at Saved by the Max can send an email to Berry.
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