Lost Lake Is Throwing An Awesome Benefit For International Women's Day

By Anthony Todd in Food on Mar 8, 2017 6:40PM

Photo via Facebook

Today, March 8, is International Women's Day. For some, the day is being celebrated as a "Day Without Women," a general strike to demonstrate the challenges women face. Lost Lake, the popular Logan Square tiki spot, is going in the other direction, with a benefit helmed by an all-woman bartending team.

There still, sadly, aren't that many female bartenders at the high end cocktail spots of Chicago, but Lost Lake is an exception. Most of their bartenders are women, and tonight, the bar will be run by the women only. They've also added drink specials created by prominent women mixologists around the country, and the proceeds from the night will go to the Transformative Justice Law Project.

Shelby Allison, a partner in the bar, cares deeply about this issue.

"Lost Lake has women shaping her service, selection, and business practices at every level: an owner, general manager, bar manager, six out of nine full time bartenders, and all girl barback and bar prep squads," explains Allison. "As a team, we decided to close in solidarity with the immigrant-led civil actions of A Day Without Immigrants, but we've decided to remain open for International Women’s Day and A Day Without a Woman because we are a women-led small business worthy of our guests' hard earned money, and we want to be very visible tomorrow."

Why did she pick the Transformative Justice Law Project, whose work focuses on the challenges facing transgender individuals, particularly those facing homelessness? "I wanted to use this business day to support a Chicago organization doing important work in the fight for gender justice, and we chose the Transformative Justice Law Project because we know that fight must include trans women.”

The bar will be open from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. tonight.