Miguel Becerril didn’t initially intend to be in hospitality; he originally started his career in fashion design. But through an opportunity to purchase his uncle’s restaurant, he became entrenched in Chicago’s food and beverage scene—leading to the opening of El Bar, 3209 N. Halsted St., Northalsted’s newest Latino bar.
El Bar, which opened on St. Patrick’s Day 2026, aims to be a home for Latino culture among the Northalsted nightlife scene. With mezcal and other agave drinks aplenty and Latin music every night, Becerril hopes the bar will make Latino patrons feel safe and welcome, and invite others to experience the culture.
While in high school, Becerril began his passion for fashion design. He attended New York Fashion Week for the first time at 17 and started creating his own clientele book in Chicago—mostly students for prom, but also other festivities.
However, he grew up involved in the hospitality industry thanks to his parents in Mexico as well as an uncle in the United States who owned a restaurant. Originally from Mexico, he grew up traveling between there, Chicago and Los Angeles. Once reached adulthood, he settled in Chicago.
To make some money as a teenager, Becerril worked part-time in a number of restaurants around the city including his uncle’s. He learned a lot about the business from his uncle, eventually leading Becerril to be “sucked in” to the industry.
When his uncle passed, Becerril was the only family member he had trained. Eventually his aunt sold the restaurant, which he then bought from her—it became Becerril’s first restaurant, Tacos Lotería, which opened in Logan Square in August 2020.
His second restaurant, El Taco Cart, opened in Northalsted in spring of 2024—next to where El Bar would open two years later. Becerril eventually sold Taco Lotería and turned his focus to El Taco Bar and forming it into a more late-night space near the bar scene.
He was inspired to open El Bar because he wanted to see more Latino representation among Northalsted nightlife.
“Every bar always has [something] like a Latino night,” he said. “But I feel like it would be nice to have more Latino bars in the area and also try something different.”
Becerril’s main focus was to “show people [his] culture, educate them more about tequila, mezcal and agave spirits and bring something different to the neighborhood.”
He also emphasizes Latino music every night, so neighborhood patrons won’t have to wait for specific Latino nights at different bars. He hopes to provide opportunities to multiple DJs who are looking to find work in the neighborhood.
As a part of many business groups in the area—LGBT Chamber of Commerce, Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce and Northalsted Business Alliance, to name a few—Becerril said he’s thankful for all the networking and support he’s received before and after opening El Bar.
As someone who’s been going out to queer bars since he was able to—high school mentors and family introduced him to Northalsted’s social and educational programs as a teenager—he was already quite familiar with all the businesses in the neighborhood.
“Every bar, every club—they all know me,” he said. “I’m like, ‘Let me just be part of it now.’ I’ve always wanted to do something like that here.”
He initially didn’t think it would be possible, daunted by the amount of bureaucracy and regulations that go into opening a bar, and how difficult the industry is. Becerril said it took him about two years from finding the property to finally opening El Bar.
But he said since day one, the business owners from around the neighborhood have been “very, very supportive and welcoming.”
Becerril has also received positive feedback from patrons over the nearly two months of operation—“We already have regulars,” he said. The few complaints he said he does receive are that the space should be bigger and should be open later, which he said he wishes could be true.
“I’m happy with what I have,” he said. “I mean, later in the future if the opportunity comes along where I could move or open another one, something bigger in the area … I would love to take the opportunity. But I’ll just have to wait until that comes along.”
The El Bar website also boasts an extensive resource of FAQ’s, including a number of specific FAQ’s regarding accessibility. Becerril said he credits his I.T. staff member on creating the guidelines, and he hopes he can make all patrons feel empowered to access all areas and experiences at the bar—from countertops, to restrooms, to visual or auditory accommodations.
With attacks on the Latino community from the federal government running rampant, Becerril said he wants people to come to his bar to “enjoy life and forget about the problems.” He also hopes non-Latino patrons can come experience how exciting and welcoming the culture is.
“I want people to … try things that maybe they haven’t tried before, whether it’s some mezcal, a margarita or listening to a song they never heard before,” he said. “I want people to come here, enjoy, have fun, feel safe, feel welcome.”