Nightmare on Clark Street is one of Chicago's scariest haunted houses
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Even in daylight Monica was scared by the Nightmare on Clark Street haunted house. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios
I recently checked out the revived Nightmare on Clark Street at the Bamboo Club in Wrigleyville — alone.
What happened: After my son, my partner and my "friend" all backed out of helping me test this three-story scarefest, I said to myself, "Buck up; it's not real, and you'll be fine by yourself."
Reality check: Wrong. After about 15 seconds in this horror den, I screamed and bolted for the nearest emergency exit.
- Before I could leave, a publicist suggested I tour it with some other visitors who didn't mind if a terrified stranger clutched their arms for 15 minutes — and that's how I survived.
The scares: "Nightmare" offers three floors of indoor and outdoor rooms and corridors filled with bone-chilling sounds, sights, actors and air blasts to aggravate a wide range of phobias:
- Spiders, aliens, insane clowns and butchers, killer dolls, rabid animals, chainsaw wielders, ghouls and zombies. You get the picture.
Food and drink: About nine-tenths through the house, you can stop at a bar for spooky Halloween drinks and Jell-O shots injected into your mouth with a syringe.
- And once you emerge back into the real world, you can munch on the Bamboo Club's Tiki bar-themed menu of egg rolls, crab Rangoon and meat skewers that, honestly, looked a little less appetizing after all that gore.
Price: Tickets range from $20 for general admission to $30 for VIP, which includes express entry and a cocktail.
- The experience runs through Oct. 31.
Of note: Visitors ages 15-18 won't be admitted unless accompanied by a paying adult. Anyone under 15 will not gain entry. No refunds.
