Cobra Lounge
Cobra Lounge is a single-location Chicago bar and live music venue on the West Side offering food, in-house craft beer from All Rise Brewery, live band programming, and branded merchandise to neighborhood residents and regional live music fans.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Cobra Lounge does
Cobra Lounge is a privately held, single-location bar and live music venue operating since 2006 at 235 N Ashland Ave on Chicago's West Side. The business combines three integrated offerings: a full bar with an in-house craft beer program sourced from affiliated All Rise Brewery plus rotating guest drafts; a food menu led by Chef Jason Gilmore featuring burgers, bar staples, and vegetarian options with a Chicago rock 'n roll character; and a live music events calendar booking local and Midwest-touring bands via a public submission system.
The venue is open Wednesday through Saturday with a closed Sunday-Tuesday window (unless a show is booked), and revenue is generated primarily through walk-in food and beverage transactions plus event-driven foot traffic. A secondary merchandise line sells branded apparel (T-shirts, hoodies, flannels, beanies, koozies) through an external e-commerce storefront on Sad Boitees. Customer acquisition relies on social media presence (Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Twitter/X, Linkin.bio), an email newsletter, and community word-of-mouth rather than any formal sales motion.
The underlying technology footprint is minimal: a WordPress website with contact forms, standard privacy compliance (GDPR/CCPA disclosures), and no proprietary systems, mobile app, APIs, or integrations. Headcount of 51-100 employees supports on-site bar, kitchen, and event operations. No institutional investment, parent company, or venture backing is documented; ownership structure is not publicly disclosed, and the only recorded funding event is a Live Music Society grant on 2025-06-11 with a $0 disclosed amount.
Cobra Lounge firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cobra Lounge
- Legal name
- Cobra Lounge
- Website
- https://cobralounge.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Cobra Lounge is a single-location Chicago bar and live music venue on the West Side offering food, in-house craft beer from All Rise Brewery, live band programming, and branded merchandise to neighborhood residents and regional live music fans.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cobra Lounge industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Bar & Live Music Venue
- NAICS
- Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (72241)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Live Music Bars & Venues (CRANACAH)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Neighborhood Bars & Taverns (CRANACAA), Cocktail Bars & Lounges (CRANACAD)
Keywords
Where Cobra Lounge is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cobra Lounge business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Food and beverage sales: Primary revenue from selling food items (burgers, chickens, veggies, soups, bar staples) and beverages (beer, wine, cocktails) directly to walk-in customers at the bar and restaurant.
- Event and entertainment: Revenue generated from live music events and band performances. The venue books bands and charges cover or generates foot traffic that converts to food and beverage sales.
- Merchandise sales: Sale of branded merchandise including T-shirts, flannels, hoodies, beanies, zip-ups, onesies, and koozies through an external online storefront (sadboitees.com).
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels7 records
Cobra Lounge product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cobra Lounge operates a single-location bar and live music venue in Chicago's West Side that sells food (burgers, bar staples, vegetarian options), full bar service including rotating in-house craft beer from All Rise Brewery plus guest drafts, wines, and cocktails, and live music entertainment by hosting local and touring Midwest bands. The venue also sells branded merchandise (T-shirts, hoodies, flannels, beanies, koozies) through an external e-commerce platform.
Product overview
Cobra Lounge is a single-location bar and music venue in Chicago's working-class Ashland Ave neighborhood. The venue operates as a unified hospitality business combining three core offerings: a full food service operation led by Chef Jason Gilmore serving burgers, bar staples, and vegetarian options; an in-house beer program featuring rotating selections from affiliated All Rise Brewery alongside guest drafts; and a live music/events venue that books bands and performers, particularly those touring the Midwest. The venue also operates a merchandise store selling branded apparel through an external e-commerce platform. The business functions as a traditional bar and grill with entertainment, not as a technology product or SaaS platform.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Food Service
Companies that use Cobra Lounge
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Cobra Lounge technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Cobra Lounge partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Cobra Lounge competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- The Hideout: Independent Chicago bar and live music venue with a strong neighborhood-community identity and history of hosting touring and local acts. Operates a comparable small-room bar-plus-concert format.
- Reggie's Music Joint: Chicago South Loop bar combining a full restaurant, rooftop, and dedicated live music venue with regular touring band programming. Similar integrated F&B-plus-live-music operating model at slightly larger scale.
- Schubas Tavern: Long-running Lakeview bar and live music venue with attached Harmony Grill food operation. Closely mirrors Cobra Lounge's combination of neighborhood bar service, kitchen, and a regular live music calendar.
- Subterranean: Two-room Wicker Park bar and live music venue running multiple nights of music per week alongside a full bar. Comparable scale and operating model to Cobra Lounge.
- The Empty Bottle: Iconic Chicago dive bar in West Town with rotating craft beer, full kitchen, and live music programming almost nightly. Directly comparable neighborhood bar-plus-music-venue concept with a similar independent, no-frills identity.
Regional players
- The Stone Pony: Historic Asbury Park, NJ bar and live music venue with integrated food service and deep touring-act history. Closely comparable community-bar-with-live-music concept, but serving the East Coast market.
- The Continental Club: Long-running Austin, TX bar and live music venue serving food and drinks alongside regular music programming. Comparable integrated neighborhood-bar-plus-live-entertainment model in a different regional market.
Broad incumbents
- House of Blues Chicago: National chain of music venues combining a restaurant and bar with a live music room. Overlaps with Cobra Lounge's F&B-plus-live-music format but as a much larger, branded operator.
- Metro Chicago: Established, larger-capacity Chicago music venue hosting bigger touring acts with attached bar and food service. Comparable live music venue model but at a meaningfully larger scale and broader draw.
Emerging players
- Sleeping Village: Newer Chicago bar and music venue in Avondale with curated craft beer, food program, and live music. Comparable neighborhood-bar-with-live-music concept, though at an earlier stage of development.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Cobra Lounge social profiles
Digital presenceCobra Lounge compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Cobra Lounge financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cobra Lounge leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Cobra Lounge funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cobra Lounge M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cobra Lounge
What does Cobra Lounge do?
Cobra Lounge operates a single-location bar and live music venue in Chicago's West Side that sells food (burgers, bar staples, vegetarian options), full bar service including rotating in-house craft beer from All Rise Brewery plus guest drafts, wines, and cocktails, and live music entertainment by hosting local and touring Midwest bands. The venue also sells branded merchandise (T-shirts, hoodies, flannels, beanies, koozies) through an external e-commerce platform.
Is Cobra Lounge a public or private company?
Cobra Lounge is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Cobra Lounge founded?
Cobra Lounge was founded in 2006. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Cobra Lounge based?
Cobra Lounge is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Cobra Lounge make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Food and beverage sales are the primary driver. The others are event and entertainment and merchandise sales.
Who are Cobra Lounge's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are The Hideout, Reggie's Music Joint, Schubas Tavern, Subterranean and The Empty Bottle. Regional players are The Stone Pony and The Continental Club. Broad incumbents are House of Blues Chicago and Metro Chicago. Sleeping Village is listed as an emerging player.
Does Cobra Lounge have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cobra Lounge.
What industry is Cobra Lounge in?
Cobra Lounge's product category is Bar & Live Music Venue. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRANACAH, Live Music Bars & Venues, with a secondary code of CRANACAA, Neighborhood Bars & Taverns. Its NAICS code is 72241 and its SIC code is 5810.