My brother Bradley and me

This past weekend I had the distinct honor of joining my brother, Bradley,  for the grand opening of his nightclub in Chicago, Loft Six Ten.  It was such an amazing experience and an evening I will cherish forever.

I’m sure this will shock you, but I’m not much of a socialite.  As a SAHM with 5 children, my version of a “night life” is a bowl of popcorn and a good Disney flick.  Needless to say, I don’t get out much…especially out in downtown Chicago. However, the grand opening of my little brother’s dream come true was something I wouldn’t have missed for the world.    

My brother is one of four managing members of a company that buys/renovates/reinvents/manages night clubs in the Chicago area.  He has ownership in several clubs but Loft Six Ten is his “baby”.  He named it after the large loft area in the building and his actual height…he is 6ft 10 inches tall!  Along with his partners, he bought an abandon building in Wicker Park and transformed it with vision like none I have ever seen before.  He gutted the building and turned it into a glamorous, vintage throw back of a jazzy 1960’s house of bourbon.  The exposed brick walls, black hardwood floors, vintage wallpaper, and large loft area that overlook the main level of the bar give it such a distinct vibe.  There is a DJ booth perched up in the corner of the club that looks like it is suspended in mid air.  The DJ has to climb a ladder nearly two stories to even enter the booth.  In addition, one of the most unique elements of the club was a large mural he commissioned a local artist to paint with an eclectic collage of Chicago history.  There are vivid and poignant images from Abraham Lincoln to the Chicago fire to a Maker’s Mark whisky bottle.   

The food…oh, don’t even get me started on the food.  It was to die for.   It was fine dining with an exotic and unique flare!

And if I’m being honest, I felt like a fish out of water.  Everyone attending the opening was so glamorous.  Men in suits and women wearing 6-inch heels were swarming the place.  It was “the place to be” on Friday night in downtown Chicago…and I was actually there!  I mean, I was pregnant at 19 years old and I have been a mother for almost 13 years now.  I never had a chance as a young adult to experience the sophisticated night life of a big city.  It was truly a unique and moving experience for me.  I might best describe it as…”We’re not in Kansas anymore, Dorothy”…

What amazed me more than anything was that all this was created by my little brother. He may be a 32-year-old, 6′10″, hot-shot business executive now, but he will always be my little brother with the crazy curls who didn’t like loud noises.   Somehow…at some point…he turned into a man.   He had the vision.  He had the dream.  He designed the club from floor to ceiling and from kitchen to bar.  He chose the candles, the tables, the menu, and he even named a drink after his daughter (my Godchild)…the “Alexandra”.  No detail was forgotten and no stone left unturned.

And seeing his dream to fruition was no easy feat, either.   He ran into road block after road block in getting this place off the ground.  He had more setbacks that you can imagine and he fought through it all.  When he finally received his occupancy license, the city denied him the liquor license.  After over a year of litigation, he finally received the liquor license, and they said his occupancy license had expired.  But through it all, he never let go of his dream.  That kind of tenacity and vigor can only be met with admiration.  

Sitting there  on Friday night watching my little brother shaking hands with millionaires, directing staff, and managing  the few mini crisis’s that arose throughout the night…I was enamored with the  man he has become.  

I’m so proud of you Bradley…I’m so proud!