Top Chicago Loop Wedding Shower Venues

• Spaces for 16-120 Guests
• 3 Restaurants

The word Acanto is the Italian translation of Acanthus, the flowery leaf featured prominently in Roman architecture. Famed architect Louis Sullivan used Acanthus in his distinctive terracotta ornamentation found on the facade of our historically landmarked building at 18 South Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Steps from Millennium Park and along Chicago’s Cultural Mile, Acanto is the destination for those who appreciate Italian food, wine and an approachable, inviting dining experience. Inviting decor, proximity to world class destinations along Chicago's Cultural Mile, and outstanding food and libations make Acanto the ideal location for special group gatherings. Our dining room may be reserved for parties of 65 to 100 guests. And, our patio on Michigan Avenue is perfect for pre-dinner cocktails and mingling.

• Spaces for 15-250 Guests
• 7 Restaurants

From corporate dinners to bachelorette parties to private whiskey tastings, Bub City offers a wide variety of entertainment and amenities for groups large and small. In addition to in-restaurant event capabilities, Bub City also provides off-site catering and rents out “The Rig,” a mobile barbecue trailer that brings the barbecue experience right to guests’ doors.

• Spaces for 300 Guests
• 3 Restaurants

Host your next event where classic games meet cocktails. Once the original billiards room, Game Room now transforms into a lively playground complete with craft cocktails, local brews, and playful bites. From billiards and shuffleboard to skeeball, pop-a-shot, chess, and checkers, it’s the perfect setting for semi-private events that don’t take themselves too seriously.

• Spaces for 12-500 Guests
• 5 Restaurants

Katana, Chicago’s newest Japanese Steakhouse in River North will be your next essential hot spot. With 3 star reviews from Chicago Tribune and an energetic, seductive atmosphere, guests will indulge in a dynamic dining experience curated by the acclaimed Chef Masa. Given Katana’s premium, exquisite cuisine and sexy ambiance, it’s no wonder we’re the destination for celebrities, locals, and tourists alike.

The Chicago Architecture Center (CAC) offers the city’s hottest new rental spaces for your next meeting, cocktail hour or special event. Centrally located at 111 E. Wacker Dr., the Chicago Architecture Center is truly in the heart of downtown, near the bustling intersection of Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive. There are three spaces available to rent at the CAC, seven days a week. For more information, contact Anna Ploegman at aploegman@architecture.org or call 312.561.2100, extension 1015.

• Spaces for 285-400 Guests

Prepare to be captivated by the versatility and elegance of BIÂN's 35,000 sq ft space, where every inch can be customized to meet the unique requirements of your private event. Whether you're hosting an intimate dinner party, wedding reception, corporate panel, hands-on pasta making experience, or even a concert, BIÂN effortlessly transforms to exceed your expectations. Our indoor and outdoor spaces serve as a canvas for your special occasion, and our team of experienced hospitality professionals will ensure every detail from the food to the overall ambiance will be expertly handled, leaving you free to enjoy a truly memorable experience. Welcome to BIÂN, where the stage is set for extraordinary events.

• Spaces for 30-275 Guests
• 2 Restaurants
• 1 Outdoor
• 2 Event Spaces

Centrally located downtown, Avli on The Park is complete with a seasonal rooftop, private banquet room, and multiple semi-private event spaces. The venue has an attached parking garage as well, making it very accessible to guests the day-of your event. With private, semi-private, and full-buyout packages, we offer the option to host a variety of events from corporate happy hours, team dinners, bridal & baby showers, bachelorette parties, and more. For groups of 18 or less, please visit our Avli on The Park Reservation Page to book: www.exploretock.com/avlionthepark Avli venues are creative, reinvented Greek restaurants in Chicago where tradition meets new contemporary elegance. We welcome you in to host an event where you’ll enjoy our inspired dishes, lively beverage program, and an ambiance that reflects life in Greece.

• Spaces for 50-299 Guests
• 2 Restaurants

Kashmir. Located at the end of Randolph Street in Chicago’s Fulton Market District, Kashmir is an escapist nightlife experience, where exclusivity meets abandon. From international hospitality group Bonhomme, Kashmir is an homage to the over the top parties of New York and London clubs in the 80's, set in an intimate room filled with Italian panache and Parisian chic.

• Spaces for 10-90 Guests
• 4 Restaurants

Seven Lions features classic cuisine and cocktails with a modern twist and an approachable wine list with uniquely-grown varietals. Located in a landmark building at 130 S. on Chicago's magnificent Michigan Avenue, the American clubhouse concept is steps away from the iconic Millennium Park and the Art Institute of Chicago. Seven Lions features three distinct private dining rooms as well as a patio: The Blue Room: Located on the main floor, is the most intimate room and seats ten. The Den: Located on the first floor and seats 20-35 guests. The Symphony Room: Located downstairs and aptly named after the building’s previous tenants’ musical practice space, serves as a banquet hall for up to 100 seated guests and offers a separate bar. Seven Lions Patio: An expansive al fresco space along bustling Michigan Avenue open during the warmer months and seats 70-80. Seven Lions is open 11 a.m. – close Monday through Friday (with dinner service starting at 4 p.m.) and 10 a.m. – close Saturday and Sunday, beginning with brunch. For reservations, click here.

• Spaces for 30-400 Guests
• 3 Restaurants

Bambola // Turkish restaurant & cocktail bar exploring the flavors that span from Italy to China in Chicago’s Fulton Market District. From Italy to China, passing through Greece, Iran, India, Thailand, and Vietnam, Bambola offers an aesthetic and culinary expedition for guests that wish to explore the mosaic of flavors, colors, and textures that characterize the acclaimed cuisines along the legendary Silk Road. This multicultural exchange, created by merchants centuries ago, is now brought to life in the kitchen of our restaurant and cocktail bar, exploring the shared cultural heritage between the East and the West, using Istanbul as the historical gateway that connects both territories. Chefs Marcos Campos, Erwin Mallet and Shannah Primiano have traveled along the Silk Road to create a menu inspired by the rich traditions, ancestral techniques, exciting products and flavorsome spices widely exchanged and mastered by Eastern and Western cultures since the 13th century. Led by industry vanguard Brian Sturgulewski, Bambola’s bar celebrates modern beverages inspired by timeless ingredients from the historic Silk Road. Inspired by the amalgamation of cultures along the trade routes, our creative craft cocktails combine local drinking traditions, global spirits, complementary spices and ingredients. Nonalcoholic drinks have also been a mainstay of the beverage program since day one with spirit-free cocktails that share the same flavorful, colorful and fun originality as our spirit-friendly creations. Bambola’s wine list transports you to some of the most exciting regions of the planet through the lens of our favorite iconoclastic & natural winemakers of the moment. We aim to tell these winemakers’ stories while gently urging you to explore regions and styles that fall outside of “typical wine” parameters. We believe that these ancient techniques and wine styles incite the adventurer in all of us. Culture, travel and style are at the heart of everything we do at Bonhomme. Designed by our studio Maison Bonhomme, Bambola is a romantic voyage along the Silk Road as imagined through the travels of a bon vivant and connoisseur where one city, Istanbul — as a historic gateway between East and West, Asia and Europe — is our constant touchstone due to its peerless mix of influences and cultures, textiles and objects, highly decorative details, and a culture of hospitality. Bambola’s rare, imaginative and jaw-droppingly diverse array of artistic elements is a testament to the crossroads of Eastern and Western civilizations. Bambola is filled with Italy’s finest textiles, furniture by some of the most exciting designers of the 20th and 21st centuries, and Popham Design’s dramatic handmade cement tiles juxtaposed with museum-quality 18th and 19th century antiquities and rare furnishings collected from China, Thailand, Burma, Pakistan and India in collaboration with Doug Van Tress and Chauwarin Tuntisak of The Golden Triangle. Bambola is warmly illuminated with one-ofa- kind chandeliers from the masters of hand-blown glass in Milan and Venice to elevate the standard for restaurant lighting.

• Spaces for 140-916 Guests
• 3 Hotels
• 3 Ballrooms

See all the Windy City has to offer at The Westin Chicago River North located right on the Chicago River. With 30,000-square-feet of both simple and ornately designed indoor/outdoor venue space, any event hosted at at this hotel will be sure to dazzle any guest. Their dedicated staff is willing to help with all details of your event from decor to catering and everything in between. Perfect for large wedding receptions and intimate ceremonies or exciting birthday celebrations, The Westin Chicago River North is exactly what you are looking for.

Three floors. Five Rooms. Any type of party. Our private or semi-private spaces are where birthdays turn into long, loud dinners. A place to eat like a King (because we have one of those) and drink like you’ve got nowhere to be in the morning. A space to pour another glass, cut into a gigantic porterhouse, and celebrate something or nothing at all. And we’ve got five of them. From 16-seat private dining rooms to whopping 500 guest events we have versatile spaces to make your next event memorable. Think dry-aged steaks, incredible food, world-renowned drinks, friendly service, and a come-as-you-are mentality. Quiet celebrations or a big, boisterous bash; anything goes.

• Spaces for 35-100 Guests
• 3 Restaurants
• 3 Hotels
• 3 Historic Spaces

Tucked beneath the historic Chicago Athletic Association Hotel, we offer an intimate, speakeasy-style lounge designed for unforgettable private events. With moody lighting, custom leather seating, and a curated cocktail experience, The Drawing Room is the perfect hidden gem in the heart of the Gold Coast for gatherings that call for style, privacy, and atmosphere.

• Spaces for 32-150 Guests
• 2 Restaurants

Bazaar Meat by José Andrés is a wild and wonderful celebration of the carnivorous, in all its forms. The menu, ambiance and design all represent bold choices, big flavors and stunning showmanship. Experience a carefully curated theater of shared plates, ingeniously innovative cuisine, thoughtfully created cocktails, theatrical presentations, and attentive yet unfussy service. Bazaar Meat takes guests on a sensory adventure born of José’s Spanish roots, both traditional and avant-garde, in a bold, playful atmosphere where anything is possible. Named as one of Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” in both 2012 and 2018, and “Outstanding Chef” and “Humanitarian of the Year” by the James Beard Foundation, Andrés is an internationally recognized culinary innovator, author, educator, television personality, humanitarian and chef/owner of José Andrés Group. Andrés has earned numerous awards including the 2015 National Humanities Medal, one of 12 distinguished recipients of the award from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

It was originally constructed in 1892 as a Czech meeting hall and is now a historically significant building that has been landmarked. As of the year 2013, it has reopened and been re-imagined as a modern day town hall; a central meeting place with a tavern called Dusek's Board & Beer, two bars called Punch House and Tack Room, and a world-class performance space called Thalia Hall. The location is perfect for hosting large events such as weddings, holiday parties, galas, and other special occasions where you want to spend a memorable evening with your closest friends and family. 16" on Center (16OC) is a hospitality collective that was founded by Bruce Finkelman and Craig Golden in collaboration. The group takes on projects and buildings in neighborhoods where its members can't wait to hang out. Although each restaurant, bar, and venue that is a part of the collective operates as an independent company, 16OC is here to provide the support and services necessary to make each and every one of them stronger. The term "16" on Center comes from the construction industry and refers to a center mark that produces the most durable build. This describes our approach to each project, which is to produce spaces of the highest quality that are intended to be used for a long time. From Evanston to Hyde Park, our venues, bars, and restaurants coax Chicagoans out of their homes and into their respective neighborhoods, giving them the opportunity to participate in the life of those areas.

• Spaces for 15-250 Guests
• 5 Museums
• 5 Landmarks

Our state-of-the-art space brings private events to life against the backdrop of the history of American writings, providing a truly unique experience. Private events held in the museum have exclusive access to all exhibits and guests can enjoy food and drink while exploring the museum. Like a good book, your guests won’t want the event to end! With various rooms and seating options, we can accommodate a range of events - seated dinners in our Nation of Writers gallery, cocktail receptions in Readers Hall, intimate corporate breakfast meetings, and more. Attention nonprofit organizations! When you rent a party venue at the American Writers Museum, you can host a memorable and unique celebration for all ages without having to break the bank. Special Venue Pricing*: Save 30% off the venue fee for Sunday to Wednesday events and 20% off for Thursday to Saturday events. *Proof of 501(c)(3) status required

• Spaces for 160-1,000 Guests
• 3 Hotels
• 3 Ballrooms
• 3 Total Spaces

The Congress Plaza Hotel, located in the heart of Chicago is just minutes away from some of the city's most prime attractions. The Congress Plaza Hotel & Convention Center was originally designed and constructed in 1893 to accommodate visitors from around the globe attending the World’s Columbian Exposition. The legendary Congress Plaza Hotel has been home to many of the world’s greatest notables such as our nation’s presidents, foreign dignitaries, opera, stage, and movie celebrities. Every year our property is visited by hundreds of guests attending conventions, meetings, and events in our beautiful city. Our property is conveniently located in the heart of the downtown area here in Chicago just minutes away from some of the premier attractions that our city has to offer including, The Art Institute of Chicago, Buckingham Fountain, Orchestra Hall, Willis Tower, and The Shedd Aquarium. The Congress Plaza Hotel is located directly across from Grant Park, known as one of Chicago’s prime attractions for great outdoor jazz and blues music throughout the summer. Our property features 871 guest rooms, including 36 deluxe suites, many of which overlook the beautiful waters of Lake Michigan. The Congress Plaza Hotel & Convention Center is the perfect place to experience Chicago at just about any time of the year!

• Spaces for 100-500 Guests
• 3 Hotels
• 3 Ballrooms

Whether you're joining us in the Windy City for work or for fun, the recently renovated Renaissance Chicago Downtown Hotel is ready to help you create lasting memories. Located steps from the Theater District, our award-winning hotel will captivate you from the moment you arrive until the day you say your goodbyes, with thoughtful amenities and world-class service. Step into our intuitively designed lobby, which features a VIP R Lounge, Artist Studio, Coffee Bar and Library. Unwind in your spacious room or suite and enjoy deluxe bedding and superb downtown Chicago views. Take a refreshing dip in the indoor pool or get your workout in at our Fitness Center. Our dining options include a hip rooftop bar with great views, as well as American cuisine and terrific cocktails. Host an event in one of our elegant venues, including the Chicago Ballroom, or walk outside of the hotel and explore the Theater District and other notable downtown attractions. We look forward to welcoming you to Renaissance Chicago Downtown Hotel.