Sloopin Retail Roundup: Niu B & Porkchop Open; First Draft Opening Soon; Monkey Bar Gym Closes

There seems to be a flurry of businesses opening and closing recently, so here is a quick recap on some of the news we're hearing/seeing:

Now Open
Niu B (888 S. Michigan)
It was just January when word leaked out that Niu B was going to replace OYSY sushi at 888 S. Michigan.  Well a couple readers sent us notification that they opened and we recently walked by and snapped the picture below.  Congrats to them and looking forward to trying out the new spot:

Porkchop (555 S. Dearborn)
It was just May when we just heard (and saw) that Porkchop would open a second South Loop location in Printer's Row.  Porkchop will also be opening up in Roosevelt Collection.  Why have two restaurants so close to each other?  We're not sure.  Regardless, apparently they're open on Dearborn and a reader sent us this info:

Porkchop on Dearborn is open!!! My husband and I had dinner there last night and it was fantastic! I snapped quick pics of the menus, and we can vouch for the ribs, pulled pork, mac & cheese, and cornbread. The delightful girl working the front register said they're testing hours, currently open 8-8. I don't know who's eating BBQ at 8am, but there is something called the "Fat Elvis" on the menu, which is some combo of waffle, peanut butter, and bananas. So excited to have them in the neighborhood, and hoping we can drive traffic there to support them!

Opening Soon
First Draft (649 S. Clark)
There has been many false alarms on the opening of First Draft, the bar/restaurant replacing Villain's at 649 S. Clark.  Last we heard, they were shooting for an April opening.  Clearly that didn't happen.

A couple readers sent us emails and according to their Facebook page, June 16th is the official opening date:

Closed
Another blow to Motor Row as Monkey Bar Gym has closed up shop at 2255 S. Michigan.  The gym opened in late 2010 and had a pretty devoted following.  Sounds like it just wasn't working from a financial standpoint based on this Facebook post a reader sent us:

(Hat tip: ES, AK, VG, SC, SW!)