LGBTQ nightlife Los Angel n be a b tached, but each separate 'gayborhood' has s own vibe and appeal. From Wt Hollywood to downtown L.A. to Long Beach and the Valley, we've provid nightlife guis to everythg for L.A. Weekly rears over the past uple years. But we saved the most historic for last: Silver Lake. On the eve of the Off Sunset Ftival on Sunday, L.A. Weekly put together a gui on how to have a great gay night (or day) out Silver Lake.
Contents:
- BEYOND OFF SUNSET: A GUI TO GAY SILVER LAKE
- THE BT GAY BARS AND CLUBS LOS ANGEL
- FLTLE GAY BAR CLOS, LOOKS FOR NEW LOTN
- IN SILVER LAKE, A GAY BIKER BAR FOR LA’S LEATHER DADDI
- 20 YEARS OF AKBAR, SILVER LAKE'S GAY BAR FOR EVERYONE
BEYOND OFF SUNSET: A GUI TO GAY SILVER LAKE
* gay bars silverlake *
LGBTQ nightlife Los Angel n be a b tached, but each separate “gayborhood” has s own vibe and appeal.
's bt-known gayborhood, and the burgeong one of Downtown L. Then there's the important and well-tablished gayborhoods Long Beach and the valley. Then there is perhaps the most historic gayborhood: Silver Lake.
THE BT GAY BARS AND CLUBS LOS ANGEL
The bt gay bar and club optns L.A., om flirty Wt Hollywood stutns to hip Silver Lake alternativ, pl bars Venice and the Valley. * gay bars silverlake *
Weekly put together a gui on how to have a great gay Friday or Saturday night out Silver Lake. Back the 60s, like most gay bars across the untry, the police were nstantly raidg Silver Lake's bt known LGBTQ hangout, the Black Cat Tavern. Predatg Stonewall, the Black Cat raid and prott were signifint steps forward the gay rights movement and laid the groundwork for the events at Stonewall two years later.
…Two months after this moment, havg that many gay and lbian and alli e together to prott police btaly was major, ” he tells L. While many nsir Stonewall to be the birth of the gay rights movement, Black Cat laid the groundwork for to occur, so one uld argue that the te birth of the natnal gay rights movement began right here Silver Lake.
Though ran as Le Barco for several years terg to a gay Lato clientele (and hostg legendary queer fetish night Club Fuck), new owners who took over 2012 returned the Black Cat Tavern to s origal name. It's mostly straight a hipster hub but is gay-iendly, and 's worth visg to see photos of the 1967 events displayed si. Keepg the historic signifince of Silver Lake to the LGBTQ muny md, the first stop on our gay night out the neighborhood is for some dner at 33 Taps.
FLTLE GAY BAR CLOS, LOOKS FOR NEW LOTN
It isn't officially a “gay” tablishment, but sce the neighborhood is very LGBTQ, so is the rtrant. “The Silver Lake [lotn] is very neighborhood-specific and has a very big gay followg general. We are a beer and sports bar, but we have a very big gay clientele and we're gay-owned and a lot of our staff is gay.
This has been a somewhat of a gay-centric place, ” says owner/found Ryan Floyd. While sports bar and gay don't often go together, many of do enjoy sports! “This neighborhood, which is why I thk has such a ol vibe to , was always kd of like the gays and the gangsters for many, many years, ” says Floyd.
IN SILVER LAKE, A GAY BIKER BAR FOR LA’S LEATHER DADDI
It first opened as a gay bar lled the Shed 1968 before beme the Outst om 1972 to 1983, then Gntlet II om 1983 to 2005 before openg as Eagle LA 2006 (all were gay bars).
Is one a long le of leather/uniform/fetish gay bars. “[The leather scene] is still very alive and well, although, the Inter and social media has changed the gay scene and the gay nightclub scene across the board, ” says Matula.
“It was our bra child om a time when most gay bars Silver Lake were closg. Opened 1994, Fltle had prevly been home to var gay bars cludg The Stud and Griff's. “We feature artists and events as diverse as Tiffany to JJ Fad and pretty much anythg you n thk of between…We want to make sure that the Fltle ntu to be one of the inic gay bars Los Angel.
20 YEARS OF AKBAR, SILVER LAKE'S GAY BAR FOR EVERYONE
Though 's a ltle outsi of Silver Lake, Fltle do a great job of keepg the spir of the gayborhood alive and kickg. ” Openg right after the AIDS epimic was at s most btal force, the owners felt that, at the time, the stigmas and fear place meant more isolatn for the gay muny, but they wanted to change that. “There were bars the neighborhood, there were gay bars the neighborhood, there were straight bars, but there was not a bar where and our mix of iends, which are straight and gay, uld go together.