Gay bar hells kitchen
Bar-Hopping In Hell’s Kitchen
The Gay Capital of the World has a way of re-energizing the heart like nowhere else on earth – and I had clearly forgotten what I [heart] about New York…
By Doug Wallace
What perform you call a pub crawl of just one person? I know what some might ring it: sad. Me, I’m calling my bar-hopping memory of Hell’s Kitchen alive by labelling it “research.”
Honestly, my first evening in Recent York does commence off with a friend, for a tête-à-tête in the rarified, quiet confines of the Baccarat Hotel across from the MoMA. The Champagne-hued Grand Salon is an ocean of glass and red roses, waiters hoisting trays of cut-crystal cocktails to the beautiful people. I consider it a sign – a gift from the gay gods – that my first celebrity sighting of the trip is Wanda Sykes. Turns out she’s doing a week-long stint as guest host of the nearby Daily Show. My friend and I just smile at how cool-by-association we are, and act the Toronto thing and ignore her completely.
The night is still early when I escort my friend into an Uber, so I carry on with my plan to wander the Ninth Avenue gay bars – they are too numerous to do all in one night
Iconic NYC queer club The Ritz is back in Hell's Kitchen with a major facelift
One of Hell’s Kitchen’s most storied gay bars is getting a second act. The Ritz Bar and Lounge, once a go-to spot for late-night dancing, performative shows and celeb sightings, is officially under new ownership and mid-reinvention, with a bold design to reopen its doors just in time for Lgbtq+ fest Month in NYC.
RECOMMENDED: The best Queer bars in NYC for a heated night out on the town
Located at 369 West 46th Street on Restaurant Row, The Ritz was recently purchased by Eric Hanninen, a civil engineer-turned-hospitality entrepreneur who’s frequented the club since 2014. After years working on wind and solar force projects, Hanninen is ditching desk being to bring modern energy—and accountability—to a venue that’s been through its disseminate of ups and downs.
“It’s going to be a massive refresh,” Hanninen told W42ST back in February. “It’s not going to touch exactly the alike old way it used to.”
And that’s by design. In recent years, The Ritz struggled with deteriorating facilities and, more seriously, its connection to a high-profile 20
Hell’s Kitchen is Manhattan’s most vibrant gay-borhood and its community makes sure that PRIDE is way more than just a passing holiday. Now is the flawless time to support queer-owned and LGBTQIA+-focused bars and restaurants in the neighborhood. So, here are some West Side spots to visit this June (and July, August, September, October…)
Bars
9th Road Saloon — 656 9th Ave (corner of W46th St)
Shuttered by the pandemic, the venerable 9th Avenue Saloon reopened under modern management reopened just in second for 2022’s PRIDE — iconic popcorn machine included! It has the deepest heritage of any gay bar in the neighborhood — having started off as Town & Country, and then Cleo’s, before it’s current iteration.
Reader Alex chooses “9th Avenue Saloon for a low-key, dive exclude vibe.” Another fan of the popcorn machine, reader Doug, added: “The mix of people who gather there has always been a microcosm of gays and allies. It’s the least judgmental spot in HK, and of course, the popcorn!”
Atlas Social Club — 753 9th Ave (corner of W51st St)
Designed to look like a glammed-up salon-meets-athlet
Out Late: Empanada Mama's flagship restaurant is the hottest gay bar in the city
“Out Late” is Moment Out’s nightlife and party column by DJ, Whorechata founder, and Staff Scribe Ian Kumamoto, which publishes every other Tuesday. The previous edition highlighted Whorechata’s sold-out anniversary party.
In my nearly 10 years of living in New York, I haven’t found any business that encapsulates the essence of gay New York beat than an empanada shop that has outlived a global pandemic, a fire, and many of its gay neighbors—including a multi-story queer club (R.I.P., The Q) and a fantastically chaotic two-story bar (miss you, Bottoms Up).
But located on the corner of 9th Avenue between 51st and 52nd Streets lies a restaurant that stands as a fortress of queer hope. If you’re a gay person in New York who goes out, you probably know exactly what I’m talking about—if you’re not, I’m referring to the flagship Empanada Mama, my modern-day Stonewall.
You might not think of an empanada shop as a fertile ground on which to build a queer haven, but everything a