Skip to content
BusinessesGrow
Buddy Guy's Legends, Chicago, IL

Photo: CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

NightlifeIconicDate Night

Buddy Guy's Legends

700 S Wabash Ave · Chicago, IL

Why you should go…

Buddy Guy opened this South Loop blues club in June 1989, and he still plays a run of shows here every January. Local and touring blues acts fill the calendar, with free all-ages acoustic sets at dinnertime before the 21-and-over night shows. Seating is first come, first served, with no reservations. On display are Guy's Grammy, old Howlin' Wolf contracts and guitars given by B.B. King, Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton and Stevie Ray Vaughan.

  • #blues club
  • #live music
  • #chicago blues
  • #music memorabilia

Good to know

General nightlife guidance

Habits that pay off across this whole category, not rules for this one venue. Always check the official site for the specifics.

  • Doors, showtime, last call

    Three different times, and only one of them is usually on the poster. Check all three.

  • Covers and minimums are normal

    Weekend nights often carry a door charge or a per-person minimum, especially for table seating.

  • Bring ID either way

    Age policies shift by night and by room, so carry it even if you have not been asked in years.

  • Weeknights show the room properly

    Quieter nights are the ones where you can actually hear the band and find a seat.

What's around here?

The closest stops to Buddy Guy's Legends, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Tours
    Iconic

    Big Bus Tours Chicago

    $25–$50

    Open-top, hop-on-hop-off sightseeing bus tours looping past Chicago's downtown landmarks.

    0.2 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours

  • Tours
    Quirky Fun

    Chicago Prime Tours

    $25–$50

    Narrated bus tours covering Chicago's true crime, gangster history, and general sightseeing highlights.

    0.2 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours

  • Theatre & Events
    History Buff

    The Auditorium

    $25–$50

    See concerts, dance and touring shows in Adler and Sullivan's 1889 theatre, a National Historic Landmark in the Loop.

    0.2 mi awaySwitch it up: Theatre & Events

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Buckingham Fountain

    Free

    Grant Park's grand 1927 fountain fires its center jet skyward every hour, with music-and-lights shows after dusk.

    0.4 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Grant Park

    Free

    Walk Chicago's lakefront front yard, home to Buckingham Fountain, gardens, the Art Institute and the city's biggest festivals.

    0.4 mi awaySwitch it up: Sport & Outdoor

  • Nightlife
    Date Night

    Green Mill

    Under $25

    Catch live jazz in a 1930s Uptown lounge with a curved booth tied to Al Capone lore and a long-running Sunday poetry slam.

    6.9 mi awayMore like this