Chicago Is Getting a Star Wars Pop-Up Bar for May 4

Just in time for May the Fourth, Star Wars fans in Chicago are getting their own pop-up bar inspired by the beloved sci-fi franchise. Replay Lincoln Park, a bar devoted to vintage arcade games on Chicago’s North Side, is transforming into the Wretched Hive Cantina this weekend.

Between Friday, May 4 (also known as Star Wars Day) and Sunday, May 6, the front bar at Replay Lincoln Park will be transformed into a cantina straight out of George Lucas’s dreams. The bar will be serving up specialty cocktails like the Dark and Stormy Trooper and Wretched Blue Milk along with the local Revolution Brewing’s Galaxy Series beer. There will be costumed Star Wars characters to take pictures with and a live cantina band. If that's not enough, on Thursday—the night before the official opening—Replay Lincoln Park is hosting a Star Wars-themed trivia night where cosplay is encouraged.

If you get tired of nerding out over Ren-Tinis, you can always switch things up with the bar’s 60 arcade games. But we know you’ll probably be too busy trading Solo: A Star Wars Story predictions in advance of the May 25 premiere.

Pop-up bars are all the rage right now, both in Chicago and beyond. Just a few months ago, a gastropub in the city’s Ukrainian Village transformed itself into a pop-up inspired by The Shining. Replay Lincoln Park is no stranger to pop-ups itself, either—the bar has recently hosted pop-up bars themed around TV shows like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Rick and Morty, and The Simpsons. Washington, D.C., meanwhile, has an entire venue called Pop Up Bar (PUB) that opens on a temporary basis throughout the year, redesigning itself each time around pop culture touchstones like Games of Thrones or the upcoming royal wedding. What can we say? People love a themed cocktail.