Speakeasies are definitely on the rise here in NYC, and there’s no better way to pay homage to the historical defiance of the Eighteenth Amendment than to visit a speakeasy that was actually in use during Prohibition.

Chumley’s, located in the West Village, had the pleasure of hosting literati like John Steinbeck, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and Willa Cather. 

In the process, the bar became kind of a big deal. It even got a tip of the hat on Mad Men.

And now, Chumley’s is set to reopen its secret doors (on Barrow and Bedford streets) on September 6th.

Time Out reported that Alessandro Borgognone (of Sushi Nakazawa fame) has been renovating the place with a blend of new tables and old portraits, but it hasn’t been an easy process.

Jim Miller, owner of the pub, struggled to start rebuilding the historic bar after a wall collapsed in 2007. When he began work on renovations, neighbors were like, ‘naw.’

Their opposition forced the new Chumley’s to close earlier and have a more secure liquor license (to which we were like, ‘secure liquor license’? You just nail it to the wall, secure enough!).

[anad]

We’re totally running down to the West Village on September 6th to experience another little piece of NYC history. See you there?

[via Time Out] [Feature Image Courtesy Untapped Cities]