Coffee Talk is a blog dedicated to getting a variety of discussions going among the women in our community. Post your comments. Let your voices be heard. Discuss. Bring up questions. Make friends. Talk it out!
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“It seems that lesbian bars in Austin come and go..and come..and go. Why do bars geared more toward the lesbian crowd seem to struggle while gay bars thrive in our city? What would you like to see in your ideal lesbian bar? What would make it last? Let’s get a discussion going here…”
I think a laid back bar that can double as a sports bar would be a cool place… just a fun place to hang out and become a regular… “I will have the regular please.” Plus gotta have good bartenders and good scenery… wont anyone make my wish come true?
Has anyone noticed that most of the bars that have popped up the last few years have all been country bars? I mean, hello? Not every lesbian is into wearing Wranglers and line dancing! If they could take something like Rain and put more of a female spin to it, I think that would be a great start. And Kiss N Fly doesn’t count. It’s just Vicci with a few more gay people and drag queens sprinkled in.
Amen Brandy. I mean I enjoy a little two-step every ONCE but I don’t want to be constantly stuck in scene from Urban Cowboy. I was excited about Kiss N Fly before it opened because we heard rumors of a hip “Lesbian Lounge” underground…but we were fooled. It’s the same ‘ol techno-driven gay bar
Have you ever seen ‘Queer As Folk’? That club Babylon that the guys always go to would be perfect here if it was lezzie oriented. It had so many different themed nights so everyone got a taste of what they wanted.
Yeah, I know it’s a t.v. show but a girl can dream can’t she?
Keep it 21 and up, the yound ones killed RCC on Thurs nights, no offense. We need a bar with different themed nights like country, hip hop, latin, karaoke, etc. Also a good DJ would help too.
Haha! The female version of Babylon would be amazing… especially since there wouldn’t be men having sex in all the dark corners. The themed nights is a great idea.. keep it interesting! And a good DJ is a MUST! I would beg for more hip hop instead of techno or country.. but that’s just me
I agree: 21 & up, more hip-hop!
Sports, themed music nights and live music sprinkled in, 21+, never a cover unless there’s a super special event and cheap(ish) drinks. Seems like a lot to ask for, I suppose, but aren’t there like 100 straight bars in town that adhere to this concept? Everyone (including all age groups) needs to feel comfortable. You want to make sure you can sass it up but also show up in your soccer uniform (not that I’m one to care either way). And yes, like Danielle said, a place where you can become a regular.
Agreed Nichole! Maybe you should start up this amazing bar..
Oh, and just fyi… I gotta give it to the Lesbian bars in San Antonio… they are always happenin’ good music and lots of girls. We need that to happen here!
Wait a minute…did we all just describe The Planet??!
I like Danielle’s idea too, with maybe a few enhancements. I am not from Austin, but I was just in town for the newest lesbian bar opening. While the people where great, it was just another four walls and dance floor. The advertisement was great but it certainly fell short in several departments. They have much room for improvement, like the restroom or lack there of. We had a bar here in Dallas that for awhile was great. Bar in front, dance floor, another bar, backdeck with a fullsize pool and cabana bar. It also had another bar off the pool with pool tables and bigscreens for sports viewing. In, you guessed it, one of the worse parts of town. We had a great DJ once, now she is in AUSTIN…lol. The bar closed end of september. Why? Who knows? Personally, i think it became stagnant, same events, same shows…etc. When I move to Austin, I will open my own Babylon…hope yall can wait that long. Sorry, that was a very long comment. And I cant say it enough, the Austin women rock. Love Yall.
@ Tracy – Um, if you open your own Babylon, I am SO there.
You know, when I was first coming out I decided to venture out to RCC and yeah…lets just say I went home and cried. It was awful.
I just don’t understand why there hasn’t been a successful lezzie bar here. A friend of mine who manages one of the guy bars down on 4th said that there have been numerous attempts at opening a lezzie bar but after a month or so, they just fail.
It sounds like everyone wants a place for us girls, so what’s keeping us from supporting these establishments? Is it just the atmosphere? Is it just the music? What is it that makes the excitement dissipate over time? What is it that our male counterparts are doing to keep their bars up and running?
IDK but what I do know is that when I visited San Francisco last year, I was blown away by their girl scene. I think it would be fab to capture some of that here in Austin.
It’s not just bars that our culture lacks, it’s lesbian venues of all sorts. When I wa younger I used to wonder where all the old dykes go, only a few would still belly up to the bar and suck on beer watching young hotties go home with others. now tha I am the older dyke, I know I dont’t to compete with young folk but I’d like to still go out. Dance still, but also talk, and even parlor gaming, like dominoes, spades or poker. Watever happened to coffehouses where you could talk…They are abundant overseas, why not here? If Austin is such a mecca, then consider more than just bars, typ [ull all of in we need more than just bars.
I would love to see a lesbian bar that had half of it more like Halcyon with simple appetizers, coffee, wine, beer, mixed drinks. This would keep people coming in all day and opens it up – ideal if there was poetry, spoken word, etc 1 or 2 nights. The other half needs to have a GOOD DJ Fri/Sat nights – no country, no techno (we have those) and live bands the other nights. Extra points for patio. Smaller place is better – easier to mingle.
Any one heard of a new lez bar called Lipstick? I heard it was opening on halloween… anyone know anything?
i’ve managed a few bars over the years and here is [part of] the reason why lez bars fail – much of it is a numbers game.
everyone ends up wanting cheap [no cover, cheap beer & drinks but not cheap liquor]. The reason straight bars can run and survive on that model is because they have high turnover. College kids will come in, buy a beer and shot and maybe leave but there’s a whole herd behind them. Compare to a lesbian who walks in buys a cheap beer, maybe a cheap shot but there aren’t enough behind her to sustain the costs of maintaining a bar. Not only does the business have to pay their lease, pay the DJ, pay for maintenance, marketing, flyers etc etc but the bartenders also need to pay rent, eat, live and have working at a lez bar be worth their time. It is a well known fact that gay boys spend the most and lesbians spend the least — makes it a very difficult business proposition to even try and take the risk. The new bar [lipstick] seems to have all the attributes to keep us all interested – but the question is can they survive [and better yet thrive]? only if we support them financially and understand at the end of the day they’re running a business.
I agree that it would be nice to have places to hang out that are not necessarily bars. Is there a lesbian hang out like this? I would also like a book club to join or something like that.