Hey, there! Log in / Register
One of the world's greatest gay bars is on Dot Ave.
By adamg on Wed, 11/23/2011 - 8:19am
Out names dbar as one of the 60 greatest gay bars in the world:
This gay friendly restaurant bar serves eclectic, to-die-for food, but the mellow and welcoming ambiance set by color-changing lights, music, and nouveau decor makes for an all around great evening. The only peeve is the lack of a maitre d' -- you’ll have to seat yourself -- and the oh-so-few male waiters.
It was the only Boston bar to make the cut.
Via Wicked Gay Blog.
Neighborhoods:
Topics:
Free tagging:
Ad:
Support Universal Hub
Help keep Universal Hub going. If you like what we're up to and want to help out, please consider a (completely non-deductible) contribution.
Comments
"It was the only Boston bar to make the cut"
It's a low bar.
It's a good place. Good for
It's a good place. Good for food, music, dancing. Less attitude than the South End. And it has parking!
1970s heyday
The 1970s were the golden age of gay bars in Boston. 1270, Sporters, Chaps, Styx, the Bar (a/k/a Skippers), Buddies (which came along in 1980), etc. There isn't much of a scene now at all. The cool thing about gay bars in those days is that the general public really didn't know about them. It was quite an underground scene, or should I say they were hidden in plain sight. That might seem like a dated attitude now, but, really, you had to be there. It was very cool.
most things were better in the 70's
I wasn't around for it, but from what I've heard/read, most things gay were better in the 70's. Nowadays, guys would rather sit at home constantly refreshing Manhunt, or even if they do go out, they're too busy checking their stupid-phone to notice the guy standing right next to him. It also doesn't help that the gay political culture has created such a normativity around marriage that gay-shame is back, just as single-gay-shame.
A relatively recent development
<>
This is an excellent point. I was there as part of the GLBT community in the 70s, 80s and beyond, and in my experience, which was rather widespread, no one EVER mentioned marriage, or a desire to be married in the conventional sense. That concept somehow sprang up full blown sometime later and became all consuming, as if it had always existed. I always liked the quote from director John Waters that went something like "the cool thing about being gay was that you didn't have to get married or be in the army". Now, apparently, we have to do both.
Themsevles against the 70s
It's not reality, just someone else's sentimentality.
What does it mean to us?
Better? Depends on how its defined.
In the 70s discrimination in any context was perfectly legal in most places. There were only a few religious organizations where a Gay person would feel comfortable. Forget about Gay sports teams, Gay people in movies were always depressed, alcoholic and/or suicidal. Positive and affirmative images of Gay people in movies, television or literature just did not exist.
Beating up Gay people was perfectly acceptable. The only "safe" place for a Gay person was in a Gay ghetto.
The implication that Gay life is defined by sex (as in the Manhunt reference) is a continuation of the stereotyping of
heterosexual bigots.
As for Gay shame or single Gay shame...what? That does not make sense. If anyone wants to revisit being Gay in the 70s go to a country where Gay people are persecuted as a normal part of society. I will take today over the 70s (and I was around then) any day.
Not all of dbar's fans are gay
I wonder if this award will give a wider audience the impression that dbar is only a gay bar. It should be as notable for being an excellent, modestly-priced restaurant, one of those bars-with-really-good-food that attracts a diverse customer base, not just gay men (think Franklin Cafe.) It's also one of the best options for casual fine dining in that part of Dorchester. The gay bar scene is something that happens later in the evening, after dinner service.
Just to be precise....
To be precise it opened as a gay bar where the restaurant happens earlier.
The 70s was a high point for gay bars and not just in Boston. That there were many gay bars at one time was in part a response to the demand for social places for gays. It was also a result of local police departments ending their persecution of gay bars. By the police ending the dirty of business of harassing gays, bars could open without consideration of having to pay off both mafia and police.
Given the cavalier pepper spray released by the cop at UC Davis, it's worth keeping in mind that up until 42 years ago police departments and newspapers had carte blanche to routinely try to destroy the lives of gay people by raiding gay bars and then reporting the names of people arrested in the newspaper. Unfortunately while cops have been reined in some places, protests apparently are one place where some cops are chomping at the bit of their riot helmets to inflict pain on citizens.
The demise of gay bars is in part a reflection of the growth and development of social groups (e.g., sports teams), religious groups and congregations and other healthier avenues for socializing and organization. Unfortunately the candidates of one of the two major political parties would turn back the clock and force gays at least back into closets. The husband of one even practices "reparative therapy," a pseudonym for mental torture.
The great thing about a business like dbar is that it is so utterly regular and everyday. It's normalcy is probably the best defense against the Inquisition like insanity of politicians and religious who preach love but practice hate against gay people.
Not to mention that gay
Not to mention that gay people can now be out in "straight" bars and other venues.