Dolphin Nightclub Rebrands, Reopens Following Fatal Shooting

By Jim Bochnowski in Arts & Entertainment on Jun 3, 2015 6:20PM

After a recent fatal shooting closed down Bucktown's infamous Dolphin nightclub, the bar has now reopened under a new name and is seeking out a new type of clientele.

The Dolphin, which has been written up for at least 14 different infractions since 2006, temporarily closed after a fatal shooting back in March. The Chicago police called on the club to shut down until it could operate without becoming a "public nuisance."

Apparently "public nuisance" no more, since the club has reopened. According to DNAinfo, the venue quietly rebranded itself as Rio Chicago. For the time being the bar will only be open on weekends. A soft opening was held over Memorial Day weekend as a special "sneak peak."

Louie Menetti, brother of the owner of the club, told DNAinfo that it would hope to attract a "better demographic" under the new brand.

Frank Monroy, the owner of the consulting company The Image Store, which is handling the rebranding project, further explained what kind of patrons, exactly, they were looking for:

"Louie is pretty much staying away from the hip hop type of thing. There won't be any hip hop Sundays or hip hop Thursdays. He has a lot invested. They own the building and they want to see this work so they are putting a lot of resources behind it."

If just eliminating hip hop music nights is the full extent of their safety plan for the rebranded club, now being billed as "an intimate lounge," that's pretty disappointing. (Editor's Note: It also seems a bit lazy and racist, too.)

Steve Jensen, president of the Bucktown Community Organization, told reporters he wanted to see the owners take a more responsible stance on club safety than before.

"We hope that the problems of the past stay in the past," he said. "We hope they can become more responsible over the entire area around their club and keep it clean and safe for their patrons and neighbors that pass by there on a regular basis."