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Or Bar West Hollywood
Photograph: Courtesy Chelsea Lauren

The best gay bars and clubs in Los Angeles

Find your new favorite gay bar or club, from West Hollywood institutions to Silver Lake watering holes

Edited by
Patricia Kelly Yeo
Contributors
Duane Wells
&
A.T. Dixon
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When it comes to gay bar and club options in Los Angeles, there’s lots to choose from—and not just in rainbow-dipped West Hollywood. To help you pick the best spots for dancing, boozing, flirting and cruising in Hollywood, Silver Lake and beyond, check out this list of our favorite gay bars and clubs in L.A.—there are even Pasadena, Venice and Valley options, for those sick of the WeHo scene. Now get out there, tiger.

Gay bar and club favorites in L.A.

  • Bars
  • Dive bars
  • Silver Lake
  • price 1 of 4

Akbar’s retro-style lounge has become Silver Lake’s ultimate gay alternative hipster hangout. As such, the crowd tends to be toward the younger side, drawing from L.A.’s burgeoning pockets of cool like Echo Park, Downtown and Elysian Fields. Drink and dance in the front room, or head to the back for comedy, queer history nights, open mics, benefit parties and more.

  • Bars
  • Lounges
  • West Hollywood
  • price 2 of 4

The Abbey is annually voted one of the world’s best gay bars, which explains the long lines on the weekends to get into this once-humble coffee house—which now boasts four full bars and five times the amount of real estate it originally occupied. The drinks at this West Hollywood stalwart are notoriously strong (albeit pricey) and the upscale, Gothic-meets-the-Mediterranean indoor/outdoor spaces, plentiful cabanas and hunky bartenders are all aesthetically satisfying.

If there’s a downside to the Abbey it’s actually the bar’s success: Not so very long ago, it was the nucleus of gay life in West Hollywood, but as its popularity has grown, increasingly the crowd—particularly at night—seems to be made up of tourists. To its credit though, the Abbey famously announced in 2012 that it would ban bachelorette parties until marriage equality was achieved, which helped to shore up its gay street cred among some of the faithful who felt it had overextended itself in its efforts to be hetero-friendly.

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  • Bars
  • Lounges
  • West Hollywood
  • price 3 of 4

Micky’s is a West Hollywood institution. A few years ago it literally burned down, but it came back bigger, better and gayer than ever, as if it had never missed a beat. The cavernous club has two notable distinctions: Its various stages, boxes and showers are always filled with an abundance of scantily clad boys in every imaginable shape, size and proportion, and it’s the only place on the entire boulevard with a regular after-hours that goes until 4am on Fridays and Saturdays. Like other local hot spots that’ve stood the test of time, Micky’s also has a loyal local fan base, which makes it a premiere spot to get better acquainted with the boys of WeHo.

  • LGBTQ+
  • Silver Lake
  • price 1 of 4

If you prefer beer to cocktails and like your strippers hairy and in harnesses—or some form of leather—then the Eagle might top your list of favorite bars in L.A. Formerly known as the Gauntlet II, the Eagle has become the haunt of choice for a cross-section of L.A. leather daddies, bears and sexy alternative Silver Lake types, all of whom play well together in this dark, sweaty, no-frills space that really packs in a crowd on the weekend. Popular monthly events include monthly Cruise Nights (check the calendar for exact dates of these and other events).

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  • LGBTQ+
  • West Hollywood
  • price 2 of 4

A favorite among locals, St. Felix is as close to a neighborhood bar as it gets in West Hollywood. The wait staff are memorably friendly, the bartenders are expert mixologists and the bar’s daily happy hour (from 4 to 8pm) is one of the best bargains on the Boulevard. Always buzzing but rarely uncomfortably overcrowded, St. Felix is the perfect place to go when you actually want to have a conversation with friends over a cocktail after work. No dancers here, just good food and great drinks in a bordello-style setting that keeps all the cool kids coming back for more.

  • Clubs
  • West Hollywood
  • price 2 of 4

The fun to be had at Fiesta Cantina is far from secret. In fact, this festive bar and Mexican restaurant is often packed to the gills with patrons taking advantage of one of WeHo’s best happy hour deals: two-for-one drinks from 4 to 8pm, and again during late-night. Fiesta Cantina offers a main floor and a rooftop deck for mingling, intermittent dancing, solid Mexican food options and walking bartenders that offer shot specials. Just a stone’s throw from the Abbey and never dull, Fiesta Cantina is a popular spot for a reason—strong drinks for cheap, a lively crowd and an upbeat vibe from noon till close.

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  • Nightlife
  • West Hollywood

In the mood for a big night out in WeHo with major Miami disco vibes? Look no further than this tiny, mighty South Beach-inspired queer nightclub and lounge. With all the booming club music and energy in the air, you’ll feel like you’ve stepped straight onto Ocean Drive here with the lounge and bar's Cuban-inspired kitchen menu and tropical feel.

  • Bars
  • Dive bars
  • West Hollywood
  • price 2 of 4

Mother Lode is another one of those West Hollywood staples that has withstood the test of time. In fact, this laid-back bar built around a pool table and stash of video games has been around so long that it has come full circle: from “it” spot to out of favor, to “it” spot again—and got a semi-recent facelift, to keep things fresh. It counterbalances its more stylized neighbors with a low-key dive bar atmosphere. Elsewhere in Boystown, attitude and preening may best define the current posture of patrons, but not at Mother Lode—here, the vibe, from the bartenders to the crowd, is casual and the only attitude allowed is “friendly.”

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  • Bars
  • Cocktail bars
  • West Hollywood
  • price 2 of 4

Taking over the old Gold Coast space, this sultry gay bar—and daytime coffee shop—skews more cocktail lounge than high-energy nightclub. A glittering chandelier overhead and plush banquettes makes the act of sidling up with a friend (or a date) feel glamorous as hell. While the cocktails here run more expensive than the main Boystown corridor slightly further west, the crowd of handsome daddies and well-made drinks make Or Bar a great place to have in your queer nightlife arsenal.

  • Restaurants
  • Contemporary American
  • West Hollywood

The current home of the famed Wigs & Waffles drag brunch, this relatively new queer resturant, bar and nightclub hopes to fill the void in West Hollywood created by the pandemic closures of Flamin’ Saddles, Rage and Gym Bar. Featuring fun events throughout the week, Stache caters to a locals' crowd with Monday queer movie nights and a daily happy hour that includes $10 martinis, $7 well drinks and $5 beers. 

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  • Bars
  • Downtown Historic Core
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Positioned as a more inclusive Downtown alternative to the oft-overwhelming WeHo gay bar scene, Redline caters to LGBTQ folks of all stripes. It's also home to weekly game nights (Wednesdays), RuPaul's Drag Race watch parties (Fridays) and drag brunch (all weekend), which makes this community-oriented queer watering hole a great place to grab a strong drink with friends and let loose Downtown.
  • Bars
  • Lounges
  • Pasadena
  • price 1 of 4

Boulevard Bar may not be your average gay nightlife destination. A little off the beaten path and far outside WeHo’s party-heavy orbit, this long-standing Pasadena hole in the wall is favored by locals young and old, from hipsters to silver foxes. The Boulevard offers karaoke, a pool table, drag shows and a bar patron’s holy grail: a heavy pour for a cheap price. This San Gabriel Valley spot may not be the wildest of bars, but it’s perfect for an evening of entertainment where you can make new friends and hang out with old ones. The bartenders and patrons at the Boulevard are friendly and down to earth, and are unafraid to belt it out at karaoke.

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  • Bars
  • Dive bars
  • Downtown Historic Core
  • price 1 of 4

A dive in the truest sense of the word, this stripped-down Downtown bar boasts the cheapest of drinks, a raucous dance floor, regular drag shows and plenty of Latinx flavor. The ever-evolving Downtown scene may have no shortage of buzzy new restaurants and upscale coffee shops, but when it comes to gay bars, the New Jalisco is one of the few and the proud. With a largely local clientele, cash-only drinks and music ranging from pop to cumbia and reggaeton, the New Jalisco is a Downtown institution that guarantees an uninhibited good time, no matter who you are or what neighborhood you hail from.

  • Bars
  • Gastropubs
  • Downtown Historic Core
  • price 2 of 4

The self-dubbed “rock and roll gay bar” serves as a cool update for a turn-of-the-century building that once housed the Department of Corrections by going classic in décor: exposed brick, lots of black, and a red arrow above the door to mark the spot. The expansive 8,500-square-foot second-floor space includes a bar, dance floor, performance space and its best feature, a wrap-around terrace with commanding views and feels more Bourbon Street than Downtown L.A.—and serves as the perfect place for a Sunday beer bust.

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  • Bars
  • Lounges
  • West Hollywood
  • price 3 of 4

Revolver is a video bar reborn. Several years ago it went out of business and the space became an upscale gay lounge. But when the lounge folded in 2011, Revolver came roaring back with a new look, better cocktails and, in a nod to the times, strippers on the tabletops. The result has been a resounding hit with the West Hollywood crowd, who now pack the relatively small bar to overflowing and often wait in line to get in at peak times. A happy medium between neighborhood bar and megaclub, Revolver strikes just the right note with a simple winning formula that combines good music, familiar videos and an inviting atmosphere.

  • Bars
  • Venice
  • price 1 of 4

Roosterfish deserves a shout-out if only because it’s one of the Westside’s only gay bars. Not only that, but this fun little hole in the wall, just a stone’s throw from the ocean, has been serving the gay community for over three decades, long before Abbott Kinney—the street it calls home—was the fashionable address it is today. The staff can be notoriously rude, but still, this gem of a bar attracts a quirky bunch of artsy Venetians and Westsiders of all stripes, making it a refreshing choice for Angelenos in need of a change of scene or who just happen to be hanging at the beach. Hint: The back patio is an excellent option for whiling away a few lazy hours in the sun on the weekends.

More options for the ladies

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