The Velvet Lounge is not fancy. It is not in a touristed part of the city (though it is very close to McCormick Place) but the neighborhood is no longer unsavory. It is not going to see the crowds of Chicago's iconic blues bars. But it is, hands down, the best place to see live jazz in Chicago being played by people who know what they are doing and trying to innovate, rather than just playing jazz like a cover band for the amusement of people who only like to hear the familiar. The owner, 70-ish Fred Anderson, is a highly respected and influential fixture on the Chicago jazz scene and he is often working the front door if not playing on stage. The new location doesn't have the smoky, lived-in feel that the old location a block away did (actually , the new location is non-smoking), but the music is top rate and you will find everyone there super-friendly. The Sunday night jazz jam is of consistently high quality. If you like glitz and glamour and never venturing outside your comfort zone, maybe this place isn't for you. But if you have any adventurous streak whatsoever, an interest in hearing great jazz by musicians who take their music seriously, with other patrons who take their music seriously in a no-frills location, this is indisputably the place to go.