My husband and I live in Pasadena. We moved from Los Feliz about 10 years ago. We've had a hard time finding LGBTQ+ events in this Far East. We can only go up the Boulevard a limited number of times (although we love it). Any tips for finding LGBTQ+ events in Pasadena, Eagle Rock, Highland Park, Glendale, or SGV? I feel like there are bars here that can host weekly events that I just don't hear about. -Will Birnie
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Will, you are so right. While there are several queer bars in your old neighborhood (Hi Tops in Los Feliz, Akbar in Silver Lake, Club Bahia in Echo Park, and Honey's at Star Love in East Hollywood), they are few and far between in the eastern part of Los Angeles County. But your question sent me down a rabbit hole, and I'm proud to report that I've found several regular places and events you should check out in your area. (Shout out to my colleagues and everyone who responded to my request for help on Instagram.)
Highland Park is home to Offbeat, which is one of my friend Jaycen Mitchell's favorite bars in the area. The beloved bar hosts karaoke nights, drag shows, live music performances, “RuPaul's Drag Race” screenings and other themed nights throughout the week. “I've been able to see all my favorite drag queens there in more intimate settings, and the DJs kept my friends and I dancing until we were the last ones there,” Mitchell tells me. Also in Highland Park is Blind Barber, a speakeasy that hosts Homo Happy Hour on Thursdays. Mitchell says happy hour is always a good time and an opportunity to “show your authentic self, be in community and reign with your girls.”
Then, in Glendale, there's Junior High, a nonprofit art gallery and inclusive gathering space that hosts a variety of events, including musical performances, artist exhibits, comedy nights, pottery workshops, and more. A notable event is Fantasy Suite, a pole dance show featuring queer dancers with different body types. Cherry Jayne and Jax “Lil Sumthin” launched the queer strip club experience in 2022 after struggling to find work due to “gorphophobia that affects hiring at traditional strip clubs,” they told me. The next event will take place on February 7 and will feature Valentine's Day songs of love, lust and heartbreak.
At Footsies in Cypress Park, queer Latin artist and DJ Mino Sánchez and his boyfriend, Iván Castañeda, who is also a DJ, have been hosting Gay Night for almost four years. The event, which takes place on the second Saturday of every month, features BIPOC queer DJs playing house, disco, Spanish dance music, electronic, pop, and international sounds. There is also a drag show at midnight. In El Monte, the San Gabriel Valley LGBTQ Center hosts Gayme Night on the third Thursday of every month. The all-ages event includes karaoke, video games and board games.
And you know and love Boulevard: it truly is a gem (and the only gay bar in Pasadena). Although at risk of closing during the pandemic, the 45-year-old bar survived and continues to host a Tuesday drag trivia night and a Friday night drag show presented by Borgia Bloom Facade. Times food columnist Jenn Harris writes that the Boulevard bar has served as a “safe haven for the area's gay community and an alternative to the West Hollywood bar scene.”
If you're looking for a different type of community beyond bars and events, my colleague Jaclyn Cosgrove recommends Throop Unitarian Universalist Church in Pasadena. “My pastor, the Reverend Tera Landers, likes to say she doesn't like religion, but she loves church,” says Cosgrove, who also lives in Pasadena. “That is largely due to the community we have in [the church] including our choir, which has a large number of transgender and queer members. It’s where I go to refill my cup every Sunday.”
I hope this list helps you and your husband find more spaces in your neighborhood to build community and have a good time.
