10 Festive New Venues for Holiday Parties in Chicago

Disco opened in River North in August. Inspired by the nightclubs of the 1970s, the venue is outfitted with an LED dance floor, fur sofas, mirrored ceilings, tropical plants, and shag carpets. Disco serves 25 types of champagne, and also offers craft cocktails and bottle service. Specialty drinks include the Porn Star Martini, which is served frozen in a miniature disco ball; the catering menu offers passed hors d'oeuvres such as crab cakes and pulled pork sliders. The venue can be bought out to host cocktail receptions for 100 guests. Semiprivate bookings fall under the table reservation guidelines, which let groups of eight sit at a table with bottle service for two hours.

Revival Food Hall opened in a landmark building in the Loop in August. At 24,000 square feet, the venue has 15 fast-casual food stalls that showcase neighborhood restaurants. Vendors include Antique Taco Chiquito and ramen shop Furious Spoon. There's also an on-site coffee roaster, a full bar, and a bakery, as well as a record store and a "reading corner" with books for sale. The venue hosts standing cocktail receptions for 600 guests. Furniture, which is made by local artisans, is used for stationed and passed-appetizer events; the space doesn't facilitate traditional seated dinners.

The Lakewood, an event space from Paramount Events, opened in the West Lake District in August. With an on-site kitchen, the venue is outfitted with rustic wood ceilings and polished concrete floors; the sleek space serves as a blank canvas for holiday parties, meetings, weddings, and social functions. The Lakewood holds seated dinners with a dance floor for 300; without the dance floor, the seating capacity is 330. It seats 150 classroom-style, with a breakout space for 30 guests. The venue also hosts cocktail receptions for 600 guests.

The Loyalist opened in the West Loop in July. A more casual alternative to its sister restaurant, Smyth—which opened below the Loyalist in August and provides a tasting-menu experience—the Loyalist serves rustic, seasonal fare using farm-fresh ingredients. Menu items may include heirloom tomatoes with cheese and fried bread, grilled squid with sun-gold tomatoes, and a signature burger. Decked with charcoal-grey, herringbone walls, the Loyalist is available for buyout. It seats 91 guests in booths and at communal tables; there are 14 additional seats at the bar. Smyth and the Loyalist also share a private dining room. The room seats as many as 28 guests for dinner, and can serve menu items from either restaurant.

Temporis is scheduled to open in West Town in October. The fine-dining restaurant offers a tasting-menu experience. Themed to reflect specific ingredients, menus comprise 10 to 12 courses. On the opening menu, dishes will include peach carpaccio with aged balsamic and skate wing with summer squash, goat's milk, and gooseberry. In the sleek dining room, recessed LED lights change colors over the course of the night. The dinner experience is designed to be interactive, and each table is outfitted with unusual condiments such as herb gardens and frozen salt blocks. The restaurant is available for buyout, and can host seated dinners for 24 guests.

Unanimous, an upscale boxing ring, opened in Logan Square in late June. Outfitted with crystal chandeliers and Italian leather punching and speed bags, the 6,000-square-foot venue hosts private receptions for 500 guests. Venue rentals include a coach who can lead teambuilding exercises.

El Che Bar, a South America-inspired eatery, opened in the West Loop in August. The dining room's focal point is an open hearth, where chefs prepare wood-fired cuisine. The venue is decked with black pillars, slatted wood, and exotic plants. For a full buyout, the restaurant seats 90 guests at booths and tables or holds 121 for a cocktail reception. Its semiprivate dining room, located just off the entrance, seats 30 or holds 38 for a cocktail reception.

Ironside Bar & Galley opened in River North in August. The sports bar's decor includes steel-top bars, walls made out of shipyard ropes, and red damask wallpaper. The menu focuses on seafood, bar snacks, and craft cocktails, and has offerings such as lobster tater tots. Off the main floor, a private dining room seats 10 guests and has two large flat-screen TVs. On the lower level, a bar area known as the Hull seats 50 guests at bar stools and tables; it has eight flat-screen TVs. 

Fat Rice unveiled a major renovation in July, and can now host private events. The new space has a Chinese bakery on one side, and a craft cocktail lounge called the Ladies Room on the other side. The main dining room hosts seated dinners for 42, while the bakery seats 24 guests. For cocktail receptions, the main dining room holds 45, while the bakery holds 26. The venue serves fare that combines Asian and Portuguese flavors. Special menus are available for large parties, and items include green-curry mussels, pot stickers, and Portuguese egg tarts.

Arbella, a globally inspired cocktail lounge, opened in River North in May. The main bar hosts standing receptions for 100 guests, and seats 74 at stools and tufted booths. There's also a semiprivate bar in back, which holds standing receptions for 45 guests or seats 34 in booths and at tables. The internationally inspired cocktail list offers unusual concoctions such as the Old School, which combines peanut-butter-infused vodka with jelly-flavored ice cubes. The 1,800-square-foot venue also serves passed appetizers including smoked mussels and mushroom croquettes.