SIGNATURE ROOM MOVIE
SIGNATURE ROOM CODE
SIGNATURE ROOM WINDOWS

This was back in August 1970, a year after Skidmore, Owings & Merrill constructed their masterful creation with its signature, diagonal beams that form the structure’s windbracing and allowed this 100-floor structure to be built for the cost of a 40-story building. The space originally opened as the “Sybaris Lounge,” not to be confused with those cheesy motel pool suites of the same name. The Signature Lounge opened in July 1993 by former staff members, Rick Roman and Nick Pyknis who formed the Infusion Management Group, replacing the jacket-required predecessor “Images,” formerly run by Davre’s, the public restaurant division of ARA Services of Philadelphia. Deco murals of the L and street scenes seem to undulate to the steady groove of bossa nova tunes on the sound system, while the diagonal lines of the familiar Hancock x-pattern trusses frame the plate-glass expanse of the room.”

SIGNATURE ROOM MOVIE

The city skyline’s tiny lights shimmer and the stars in the inky sky glimmer above, while the ghosts of screen stars like Jean Harlow and Clark Gable haunt from black and white movie stills lining the walls. “The hushed, classic elegance of the leather-seated banquettes and green velvet mahogany trimmed chairs tames the rowdiest of revelers. As an added bonus for the fairer sex, the ladies’ room at the Signature Lounge also offers a smashing view of the Loop, while the mens’ offers nothing. For anyone bristling at the prices, a drink here is still cheaper than observatory tickets ($15 per adult), whose windy, open-air view is obstructed by wire lattice and is located two floors below the lounge.

If you’re feeling a bit peckish, the lounge menu offers a handful of appetizers, mostly of the fried variety. Cheapskates beware: there is a one-drink minimum and a bottled water costs $6. Signature Lounge features 24 “signature” martinis, ten champagnes and a nice selection of cognacs, single malt Scotch and armognacs. At the bar, a small selection of domestic and imported beers run $8 and cocktails $13.

SIGNATURE ROOM WINDOWS

Savvy locals bypass the line, stroll down the funky carpeted hallway and grab a high-backed stool at the square island bar or a seat at the cocktail windows that offer an impressive view of the West Side, particularly at night when streetlights illuminate “The Grid.” The closest you’ll come to this view otherwise is when you’re flying into O’Hare from out over the Lake.

People here are waiting for a seat at the low-slung, closely spaced, padded chairs that offer a southerly view of the Loop. Aside from early in the week or during inclement weather, expect a long line to form behind another velvet rope leading into the lounge. All are welcome, ranging from tourists in t-shirts to wedding receptions.

SIGNATURE ROOM CODE

While the restaurant is formal, there is no dress code for the lounge. The Signature Room restaurant takes up the eastern half of the building with its two-story dining room that looks mostly out over the Lake and the Loop, the latter of which makes seating at the southern windows the most sought after, particularly for the nightly fireworks display at Navy Pier in summer. You can also ascend a set of stairs from the restaurant to the lounge. The elevator stops at both restaurant level (95th floor) and lounge level (96th). The high-speed elevator takes about 40 seconds to ascend 1,000 feet at a rate of 25 feet per second, making your ears pop. Access to what some locals lewdly call, “The Top of the ‘Cock,” is found just inside the Chestnut Street entrance, behind a velvet rope. The Hancock building takes up most of the block between Michigan Avenue (west), Chestnut Street (south), Delaware Place (north), and Mies Van Der Rohe Way (east). It is also Chicago’s most well-known double entendre, and one of the city’s most unique venues for a cocktail. Both offer stunning views of downtown, Lake Michigan and visibility up to 60 miles, spanning four states on a clear day. The Signature Lounge is one of the highest bars in the world, located on the 96th floor of the John Hancock Center and one story above the posh Signature Room restaurant.

Signature room