Camp Social Owners to Open The Rabbit Hole, An Alice in Wonderland-Inspired Bar

The fate of the building that housed Joe's Midnight Run has gotten curiouser and curiouser.

Owners of the shuttered Seventh Street restaurant, which closed in March, are transforming the property into an Alice in Wonderland-inspired cocktail bar. It will be called The Rabbit Hole. And just like its source material, its reportedly going to be both colorful and fanciful.

Anthony Georgoulis of Glass Half Full Concepts, the restaurant company behind the project, says The Rabbit Hole's décor and cocktails will riff on Alice in Wonderland's more madcap elements.

That means oversized furniture, crooked mirrors, and maybe even drinks served in teapots. The theme will also extend to the food and drink menus, titled “Eat Me” and “Drink Me.”

“We're trying to do some fun and creative stuff,” Georgoulis says.

In other words, it will be in the same playful vein as its neighbor Camp Social, the summer camp-themed spot that Glass Half Full also owns.

Georgoulis says the company is aiming to open The Rabbit Hole by mid-May. It will be the second Rabbit Hole bar run by Glass Half Full. A Chicago location opened in 2016.

Phoenix's version, Georgoulis says, will be “a little more dedicated to the concept” than its sister location.

“The Rabbit Hole in Chicago has some paintings and a few references to the Alice in Wonderland motif,” he says. “This place is definitely more of a trip down the rabbit hole, so to speak. It's going to be more whimsical and more colorful.”

You'll be able to sit on a giant teacup couch or a large ottoman shaped like a slice of cake, he says, both of which aren't available at The Rabbit Hole in Chicago.

Besides appealing to Lewis Carroll fans, Georgoulis says they want to appeal to the nightlife crowd. As such, The Rabbit Hole will be open from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. from Tuesday through Sunday and offer late-night food service, which was a hallmark of Joe's Midnight Run.

"That's an homage to Joe's that we wanted to include,” Georgoulis says.

They'll also have sets by local DJs filled with "accessible, toe-tapping, high-energy" mixes of music and occasional performances by solo musicians or small ensembles.

“We're definitely hoping to make this attractive to the nightlife crowd,” Georgoulis says.