By 
In December 1963 when Maxim’s de Paris opened in the basement of Chicago’s Astor Tower Hotel—the all-suite modernist masterpiece designed by architect Bertrand Goldberg—it instantly transformed the very idea of nightlife for the Windy City’s elite. But, when its revolving door spun for the last time in 1982, the clientele vanished along with the space’s Parisian allure—until last month.
What remained as a time capsule for the better part of 40 years has been transformed into The Astor Club—a private member’s club founded by real estate investor Adam Bilter and his wife Victoria. “We were living just a few blocks away and would walk our two little dogs by this place,” Bilter recalls about the Astor Tower’s 24 East Goethe Street side entrance. “The lights were never on inside and the old red carpet had turned green because of sun damage.”
Nearly identical to its namesake Art Nouveau bistro founded in Paris in 1893, Maxim’s would remain a Chicago institution for two decades before proprietor Nancy Goldberg—the architect’s socially savvy wife—closed the restaurant. Everyone from Judy Garland to Frank Sinatra, Bette Davis, Andy Warhol, the Rolling Stones, Dizzy Gillespie, and the Beatles descended the grand staircase for dinner and dancing on their way through town: in 1966, John Lennon made his infamous “we are more popular than Jesus” comment there at a press conference. “Recently I watched the History of the Eagles and [legendary guitarist] Joe Walsh recalled being denied entrance with John Belushi in the 1970s because they were wearing blue jeans and Maxim’s had a dress code,” says Bilter. “So, they got a can of black spray paint and sprayed their jeans black and got in. But the painted rubbed off onto the seats and they had to walk out backward [at the end of the night].”
Converted into a luxury apartment building in 1979, the iconic property has continued to attract aesthete residents including former Scalamandré president turned author Steven Stolman—whom the Bilters consulted with on various aspects of the restoration and design—and his husband Rich Wilkie, while the subterranean restaurant and nightclub languished like Satis House in Great Expectations. “The first time I saw the space, it was rather eerie,” recalls Stolman. “It was the epitome of a time warp, as if some sort of apocalypse occurred right in the middle of a swanky party—empty champagne bottles overturned in their ice buckets [and] lipstick prints on coffee cups.”
Although the 8,120-square-foot space was sometimes used for events—and occasionally offered for sale—over the last 20 years, it wasn’t until the enterprising couple imagined restoring it to its former glory that the historic spot found its ideal stewards. “I discovered it has been owned by the City of Chicago since 2000 and, on a whim, I turned in an application to purchase it,” says Bilter who also now lives in the Astor Tower. “I presented the idea for a club that would pay homage to the original Maxim’s, and they liked it.”
When the Bilters bought it and took possession in spring 2022, they knew the bones were good, though there would be a lot of elbow grease and research needed to revive it. “The vibe was already there,” says Stolman, who is also a founding club member. “All Adam and Victoria needed was a sounding board, and I was happy to share my opinions—this chair over that one, a cigarette table here, some throw pillows there—but it was really their vision.” From Maxim’s original 1936 Steinway Grand Piano and a 120-year-old champagne bar imported from Sulmona, Italy to the hand-molded plaster ceilings and original zoomorphic Sherle Wagner faucets, the entire space and its existing décor were painstakingly restored—including the design for the original dining room. “All the beautiful bronze chestnut-shaped sconces throughout the place had to be taken down one by one to have 60 years of grime and smoke removed—and then they all had to be rewired,” he says. “And in doing our research we even found photos showing the original wall art placement and were able to put [the works] back where they originally hung.”
Membership to The Astor Club—decided by a committee of three members who live in the neighborhood, but don’t know each other’s identity—quickly reached its 100-person goal months before opening. “Without spending a dollar on advertising we’ve already exceeded our original membership cap of 250, and we think we’ll scale up over the next year to about 400 members,” Bilter says about the supper club concept that currently asks a $4,800 initiation fee and monthly dues of $300—both of which will be on the rise in several months. “We’re a walkable neighborhood spot for socializing with other members, and we have a great chef—Andrew Spagnola—who can crank out the classics as well as really innovative dishes.”
With limited summer hours through August as programming continues to develop, members are able to enjoy happy hours, dinner service—followed by live music—and weekend brunch, Thursday through Sunday.
