John B.
Yelp
Ah, the Whore's Shoe.
Once upon a time, this place was my Cheers. Hard to believe. I lived on Roscoe and Broadway, and met two of the owners, Sophie and Rene, when they worked at another strip club called the Inner Circle, down around Broadway and Fullerton. So when they opened the Horseshoe, just a couple of blocks from my house, I started hanging out there. It was a clean, well-lit place where the bartenders knew your name and your drink, and you could have an interesting chat with the guy next to you or even the dancers. Because it was strip club, the sexual tension was directed to the stage, so it was easy to talk to the other patrons. And because Sophie and Rene had a strict no hustler policy, the dancers were a fun group of guys. I even had my birthday party here for several years, and everybody -- men and women, gay and straight -- felt welcome.
That seems like a hundred years ago.
Now Sophie and Rene are both gone -- from the bar and this mortal coil -- and their third partner, who started instituting changes even when they were still around (calibrated pours on the bottles, no free drinks), has turned this place into little more than a whorehouse. Now most of the strippers hustle on the side, many to support their meth habit, no doubt. It is far less woman friendly, and the place smells of desperation. If you're someone like me, who thinks sex should be fun, this is not the place for you. If you're a married man looking to check out hustlers, give it a try!