Wheres the closest gay bar
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Dominguez said the whole system of bars on the Central Coast and in the nation caters to heterosexual, cisgendered people. He's heard it all, but said business owners typically say they don't want to "alienate" their other customers. One business in Santa Maria allowed SLOQueerdos to host an event there, but shut down the whole bar and called it a "private event." One bar owner told SLOQueerdos that he didn't want his establishment to be known as a gay bar, Dominguez said. While some local businesses-including SLO Brew and The Siren in Morro Bay-are incredibly supportive, others aren't. Since then, SLOQueerdos has hosted successful shows and events across the Central Coast each month and on special occasions.īut Dominguez said it hasn't always been easy to find venues.
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There were about 60 people at the first show in October 2016, he said, double made it to the next, and more than 200 attended the third. It wasn't, but Metro Brewing let Dominguez host several of his first SLOQueerdos parties and drag shows at the bar. "And I was like, 'Oh my god, is this a gay bar?'" Dominguez said. He wanted to spice things up by starting a group that would make it easier for local LGBTQ individuals to meet, and was mulling over the idea one day when he walked into the now closed Metro Brewing Company in San Luis Obispo and just happened to spot two gay couples inside. Dominguez grew up in Nipomo and when he returned to the area, it was as if nothing had changed. That's an issue a lot of locals run into, including the owners of SLOQueerdos, an organization that puts on monthly drag shows and other LGBTQ-inclusive parties on the Central Coast.Ĭo-owner Frank Dominguez initially started SLOQueerdos a few years ago when he moved back to the Central Coast after living in bigger cities for several years.
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"And it would be nice to have a space to go and just know that everyone could accept us," they said. When the club goes out, Uribe said they have to be careful about where to go and how open to be. Sometimes those events are on campus or in someone's home, and sometimes they're at restaurants or bars. MULTIPLE DOPE QUEENS SLOQueerdos hosts monthly drag shows throughout the Central Coast.Those completely safe and inclusive spaces are less of a necessity for the LGBTQ community as a whole now, and that's positive progress. Santa Barbara's once thriving gay club scene dwindled, and eventually completely disappeared, as varying sexual orientations and gender identities became more widely accepted and dating apps became more readily available. The lack of LGBTQ-specific nightlife on the Central Coast is an issue much of the local gay and trans community is forced to work around. "And I was unpleasantly surprised when I turned 21 and found out there aren't any here." "I've dreamed of going to a gay bar since I was like, 16," Uribe told New Times. So Uribe always thought the gay bars in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties would provide that much-needed and missing support system and network. SLOQueerdos will be hosting its annual pink party at the Siren in Morro Bay on July 3, and another Pride party at SLO Brew on July 13. GAY CLUB ALCHEMISTS Daniel Gomez (left) and Frank Dominguez (right) are known for turning typical bars into hugely successful, LGBTQ-inclusive parties.