Billy Goat Tavern

From baseball curses to television shout-outs, Chicago’s Billy Goat Tavern has seen a lot during its 90 years of operation. In 1934, Greek immigrant Bill Sianis purchased the Lincoln Tavern on Madison Street, which was located across the street from Chicago Stadium.

According to local legend, a few months after purchasing the tavern, a goat fell off a truck and wandered inside. Sianis adopted the animal, named him Murphy and started bringing him into the bar during service, earning himself the nickname “Billy Goat.”

The goat even became a part of Chicago Cubs history when Sianis attempted to bring it to a 1945 World Series game. The goat was forced to leave following complaints that it smelled, and the Cubs lost the game, then the series. (For years, Cubs fans would chant, “Let the goat in!”)

Then, as the legend goes, Bill’s nephew Sam Sianis broke the curse in 2016 — by ringing the bell that Murphy wore in 1945 — during the extra innings of Game 7 of the World Series against Cleveland, delivering the Cubs their first Fall Classic victory in 108 years.

In 1964, the tavern moved from its original location to its current one along the lower level of Michigan Avenue, where a grill was installed and the bar began serving its famous Cheezborger and other fare. 

The famous Billy Goat Tavern cheeseburgers include up to four thin beef patties, American cheese, kosher dill pickle chips, raw onion, mustard and ketchup on a kaiser roll. The burgers are so legendary, in fact, that they inspired the “Olympia Diner” sketch from a 1978 episode of “Saturday Night Live.” 

Today, there are seven Billy Goat Tavern locations across Chicago, but the walls of the Michigan Avenue spot recount the deep Chicagoland lore of the longtime local favorite, which is still owned by the Sianis family. Lower 430 N., Michigan Ave., Chicago, Illinois 60611, 312/222-1525, billygoattavern.com