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Drag queens and twinks. The lowdown: some straight bar owners learned of the closing of Cleveland's largest gay dance club- The Grid- and decided to seize the opportunity to cash in by offering gay people a new place. Reality: these owners rely on gay stereotypes to tell them what gay people want. So the new bar offers drag shows, twink strippers, etc. Located on a busy street and a convenient location, but parking is a big problem. Not located in Cleveland, but in Lakewood, and Lakewood cops are notorious for busting drivers for DUI on weekends. Also, strangely, located across the street from a punk rock bar. I've never heard of any trouble, but it does not seem like a hospitable site for a bar full of flamers. As for former Grid employees supervising the bar, there are many reasons why the Grid closed, some of which are the fault of the employees, so putting these same folks in charge of a new gay venue does not bode well for Bottoms Up.

It's not a real gay bar. It's a bar located inside a bathhouse. For out-of-towners, Cleveland's 2 baths have suffered a serious decline in patronage over the last several years. Today, most bathhouse customers are the sort of guys who can't get laid at a bar. So, you wanna meet these guys at the Mean Bull? Go ahead and knock yourself out. Just don't bring an STD home.

The oldest gay bar in town, the Stallion is famous for its summer Sunday afternoons, complete with DJ and burgers and hot dogs on the grill. This is not a typical gay bar experience- more of a cook out with hot guys. Yes, there is a tendency to stand and model, but most of the bartenders are friendly, and if you can't meet anyone, at least you can enjoy the sunny weather on the spacious patio and shake your rump to some tunes. However the winter months, especially, chase away the customers, and only a few old men patronize the bar in the "off season." Sundays at the Stallion are a Cleveland tradition, but exercise some caution on the street- the neighborhood is deserted at night and men walking alone should be aware of their surroundings. Example: a straight bar a short distance up the street is known as a crack bar, and homeless men often sleep in doorways along St. Clair Avenue.

If any gay bar in Cleveland shows the potential to be a first-class fun and manly bar, it's Cocktails. Spacious, with a patio, basement leather room, and even some limited parking on the premises, in any other city Cocktails would be a hit. Of course, welcome to C-Town! Since the new owner purchased the property from the old owner, who was a legend in Cleveland, loyal customers have deserted the bar in droves. The former "Rockies" (now Cocktails Cleveland) is rapidly being turned into a clone of its sister bar in Akron (Cocktails Akron), instead of being allowed to develop its own unique personality. Unfortunately for the new owner, who does not seem to realize that a city the size of Cleveland does not have enough leathermen to patronize 3 separate leather bars, the hoped-for leather clientele is not materializing. While the former Rockies was a bar with a manly vibe that welcomed everyone, the new Cocktails puts on a veneer of leather to hide its quickly disappearing customer base. Queeny bartenders, and one unfriendly masculine one, also don't keep the leather image honest. In addition, and worst of all, the new owner, when he bothers to appear in his own bar, makes little effort to mix with customers or make them feel welcome. A weekly karaoke night also thwarts the leather vision. In short, the owner needs to make up his mind about what he wants. Meanwhile, a renovation of the leather basement will hopefully improve things.

Bounce and Union are two sides of the same building. If you want to dance, watch a drag show, or buy an overpriced beverage, then Bounce/Union is your place. If you want to meet people, have a conversation, or enjoy good music, then Bounce/Union is not your place. If the sight of dancing queens gives you an ounce of steel in your jeans, then get your butt in gear and go to Bounce right now. If having sex in the restroom of a gay club is your thing, then Bounce may be for you (although i'm not telling you to do this and I strongly condemn it). If you like parking your car in a parking lot sprinkled with glass shards that can give you a flat tire, then go to Bounce. If you like walking at night along a street with no crosswalk and plenty of scary people, then Bounce is your place.

Last time I went to Union Station, the doors on the men's room stalls had been removed because twinks were doing drugs in the john. The restroom was covered in strange graffitti. Most of the customers were lesbians and their twink friends. The bar serves food, so I guess it is a combination bar-restaurant, but why would a gay guy go out to a bar to eat? The many many tv screens show lame stuff like Madonna and Britnery Spears videos and other regular dance fare. The bartenders are nice if the customer is attractive. If you're not hot, and if you don't like drinking in the noisiest bar in Cleveland, skip Union. Also, the neighborhood is dicey. A gay man got stabbed and killed about 2 blocks away not very long ago. Muggings and car vandalism all the time. Why would anyone go here? Why do gay bar owners in Cleveland open their businesses in such crappy areas? We deserve better.

I can't imagine a more gross-out place than this one. On two separate occasions, I found the bar to be inhabited by old women and one or two old queens. No offense, but the bartender, like the bar itself, had that peculiar look that implied he had seen better days. The bar sends out a very negative vibe. To top things off, it's located next to a blood bank, where desperately poor people line up to sell their fluids. If you go to Muggs at night, you're just a crazy f*ck. The neighborhood is like something out of blaxploitation flick from the seventies. I was offered crack by a dealer as I walked back to my car. Again, if you're from out of town, skip this bar. The street is lined with straight strip clubs and two boarded-up adult bookstores that onced catered to cruising gay men. Since those places closed, most gays skip the neighborhood. I have no idea why a gay bar is even located in this area. Most residents are decent, but West 25th Street at night is just crawling with ho's and felons.

A Man's World represents the image of Cleveland past: the same image that the city wants to overcome. A mishmash of drunk bar flies, hustlers, drag queens, and dirty old men on the prowl. The downstairs is reserved for leather on weekends, but the dress code was recently relaxed, as most leather guys simply don't show up. The bar's name is a misnomer. Few "real" men, and a lot of queens and skeezers. Jukebox blares R and B and hiphop constantly, but for an occasional Motown tune. Not a trendy or a friendly place. Only one bartender had a nice attitude, and he worked on the other side of the complex, which only had a few customers. The main bar room is packed late. Don't bother going early. The neighborhood is combination of poor black, Latino, and gay yuppies. Don't park far away, and keep your keys handy as you walk down the street. You can occasionally catch a whiff of marijuana coming off the patio, so if you don't like illegal drugs, or don't want to get caught in a police raid, go someone cleaner and nicer.

Go early and you'll find a few bar flies hanging around. Go after happy hour and the place lights up with sparkling twinks of all ages and races. Definitely a spot for enjoying eye candy, but if you're looking to get laid, go elsewhere. A place with ultra cool decor, standard dance music, and stand-and-model crowd. Nicely located by a bank and a cafe, in case you get the munchies or need some cash. Situated on Clifton Boulevard, Cleveland's main gay drag.