Shakers on Clark — Restaurant in Lake View Township

Shakers used to be my favorite karaoke bar! Mark is an awesome bartender and I always had great experiences with him working. Yet tonight when I walked in with two friends, I experienced two very rude men who made us feel unwelcome from the moment we walked in. The bouncer was rude from the jump when we asked an innocent question about their karaoke night and then as we were reevaluating if we should even stay after being treated so rudely, the older bartender asked if we were "even going to order" " (we were there barely two minutes!) . Then he accused us of leaving alcohol on the steps, which we absolutely did not and would never. I am sad to say that I won't be returning because it was truly one of my favorite places at one point but I couldn't believe how rude the staff were to returning customers who were about to pay and spend time there! It's no wonder this place it about to go out of business when customers are treated so rudely. RIP my passport but good riddance shakers !!!

Edit : I appreciate you clarifying that, and I fully understand the importance of keeping your establishment in compliance. If someone in my party did leave a drink outside, that was absolutely an accident, and we would have corrected it immediately had it been brought to our attention in a respectful way. That said, the issue wasn’t just that misunderstanding, it was how we were treated from the moment we walked in. A simple heads-up about the drink would have been enough, but instead, we were met with extreme hostility before we even knew that was the reason. I’ve always had great experiences here in the past, which is why this was so disappointing. I hope this clarification is "credible...

One drink minimum per person. Drink prices weren’t listed anywhere and, compared to surrounding bars, turns out it was on the pricey end. But that’s not the reason for the low review. There was a very weird atmosphere due to the bouncer.

The bouncer seemingly does not have security training. I personally didn’t have any issues with him, but it’s the way he interacted with other patrons that was appallingly upsetting and unprofessional. When it came to kicking out a rule breaking white man, the bartender had to be the one telling the bouncer to kick him out, and the bouncer very quietly kicked the guy out. But with non-white, non-men? Sadly, he was lashing out and used no deescalation skills. He was at full 100 aggression from the start. And I wanna make it clear, I don’t disagree with the act of kicking out, BUT I was very peeved by how the bouncer went about it. The white guy getting kicked out was the only respectful interaction I saw. These people were just rule breaking, slightly annoying but non-threatening patrons; the bouncer was not protecting anyone or himself from imminent danger or harm.

Ultimately, especially after reading the other low star reviews too, this is not the best place for women or POC, sadly. I wouldn’t tell my white guy friends to come by either though.

I wanted to enjoy my time here, but I don’t see myself coming back...

I can’t comment much on the food or drinks since I’ve only been inside the bar once but as someone who lives right above Shakers, they are super disrespectful to their neighbors in the area when it comes volume level of music. Hosting Karaoke/comedy nights multiple times a week until after 1am (sometimes as late as 2:30/3) is very disruptive and inconsiderate for people who live in the building and actually have jobs to tend to in the morning. Also, I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve seen more than 20 people inside the bar, so there is really no reason for their music/speakers to be so loud and obnoxious. My roommates and others in our building have tried to call numerous times to ask them to turn down the music and they either don’t pick up or hang up mid-call after we’ve ask them to turn it down. Please go to Trader Todd’s if you want a good Karaoke experience! Better atmosphere overall and to my knowledge, they do not have any apartments in their building so you won’t be disturbing residents :)

Sincerely, a tenant who lives above Shakers and is reaaalllyyy tired of not being able to fall asleep multiple...