John S, 53.
Friendly bar with outdoor sidewalk seating
I changed my review of this place esp after we got ripped off on drinks the last couple of times and a group of people pulled all the chairs from the others tables to their table for themselves, staring at us and leaving us nowhere to sit. We’ve come in here twice per year while on vacation until a couple of years ago. Not sure if me getting older and gaining weight over time has anything to do with it. However, they definitely rip off their non-regulars and non-locals. Typical gay experience where you aren’t really included despite the rhetoric of inclusivity esp if you’re the wrong kind of gay. Apparently, since the website has been revamped you can’t change your review title.
Not sure what to think
The customers seemed friendly enough when we first came into the bar. However, the bartender took his time (at least a minute) to finish up a conversation with another patron before getting our drink order. Then, our rum & diet and 7&7 ended up costing $16! It sort of made me feel like we were the joke of the bar, and they were hosing the out-of-towners. The crowd looked pretty low-end as well.
Nice bar, friendly crowd, not scary or cliquish
Pretty impressed.....nice atmosphere, and everyone was friendly. One of the best bar experiences I've had amongst other cities in years.
Nice seating, atmosphere, and bartender
We went during an off time on Sunday after a disappointing experience at Big Bar. Large place with chic seating and atmosphere. Had a dance floor. The half dozen patrons or so turned and gawked at us when we came in the door and then turned back around without responding when I said "Hello", but the bartender was personable enough.
Bartender was a douche!
Came in. Place is small. So, it should be readily apparent someone came in. Bartender continued to talk to his friends for five minutes even after glancing down at us once. When he finally served us, he served us drinks that tasted like sh!t.
Low end clientele
Preppy out-of-towners here. Walked in & everyone immediately turned and gawked at us. You would have thought we'd just walked into a black bar. We immediately left. Whole place smelled intensely of smoke. No ventilation whatsoever. Place was full of nothing but smokers and people that look like they spend their paycheck there.
Dive-ish, but I can usually find someone to talk to there
Cheap and strong drinks. On average, people are adequately friendly, some more than others, some a bit on the cliquish side though. Neighborhood type atmosphere.
Decent for Myrtle Beach
A little dive-ish, but overall a nice bar with really nice local people and staff. Large space, plenty of seating, and has a dance floor. The only negative is that smoking is allowed, and the ventilation isn't good. Based on my two visits there, it also appears to be frequented by the occasional preppy middle-aged traveler looking to hook up with guys that are way out of their league. I found it rather entertaining! Appears to be the only gay bar in Myrtle Beach. Unfortunately, it isn't in the most convenient location......down on the south side of town.
Most convenient to the bars and Oregon district
Doesn't look the most desirable and is misleading from the outside....could benefit from a good power wash and updating. However, the interior of the hotel was recently remodeled and is nice. Rooms are clean. Hotel has a bar and restaurant on the top floor. Closest hotel to the bars and the Oregon district if you attend Pride or Gay Film Festival events or if you otherwise had too much.
A place for younger, more alternative crowd
Whole neighborhood felt that way. Nothing wrong with it. It was very vibrant, but just not a place for a conservative, preppy 44 yo guy.
Appears to be closed
Drove by and no apparent signs of the bar. Looked like a dicey neighborhood anyway.
The best and biggest gay bar in Tampa Bay
Conservative, preppy gay traveler here. Tested out several places, and this was the one I liked the best. Large establishment with two bars, a dance floor, and deck seating as well. Staff was friendly. Above average quality crowd. Best yet, you can't smoke in the bar.
Very nice bar with outdoor patio
Well maintained bar. Upscale aesthetics albeit a bit boxy on the inside. Had a very large, nice patio with another bar. People seemed nice. Crowd was approaching middle age but not skanky. Only negative is that smoking is allowed in the bar. Also, the bar is a bit isolated from anything else that's gay themed. Not much around that would otherwise be a destination. Conservative, preppy 44 yo gay traveler here. Felt very comfortable.
Old Holidome in a bad area of town and not close to the downtown bars
Stayed here when I was looking for a home since I was relocating to Dayton. Booked on Hotwire, who stated it was a three star hotel. Not! No renovations done since it was a Holidome. Still had an arcade room with 80's games like Donkey Kong. The restaurant, which appeared to be an amateuristic effort, wasn't open the entire time I was there. Neighborhood is seedy with trailer parks and dilapidated vacant buildings all around. Not at all convenient to the bars.
Homophobic owners and staff
I can't believe this restaurant is even listed here. Visited restaurant in May 2012 while on vacation. Found some elements of food and service not quite up to par for the price. Left review on Tripadvisor and was subsequently harassed by the owner and his employees including making gay slurs and sending continuous text messages forwarding my own pics of me and my partner from my Facebook page. Also received several obscene voice messages at 1 AM one night. Got no help from the police and ultimately had to change my phone number. These people are really crazy, and I have documentation to prove my story. I'm not some jerk trying to smear a restaurant's reputation over something petty. Stay away from this place! I'm totally serious! Owner has major OCD issues and apparently flips out if you give his restaurant any less than 4 out of 5 stars. Talked to several others on Tripadvisor that were harassed on some level by these people too. (I neglected to mention the wife of the owner eventually offered me $500 to remove my review on Tripadvisor. I couldn't believe it. Of course, I ignored her.)
The bar looked straight to me
Didn't get the impression that any of the clientele were gay. Business traveler who went on a weeknight after work.
Business traveler, good place for after work
I went here nearly every night after woork. Nice bar, and decent crowd. Bartenders are nice.
Two people DIDN'T leave their attitude at the door
I had the strangest experience here. I went in after work while I was in STL on a business trip, and two guys in suits asked me to join them in conversation. Then, they acted like a couple of d!cks and started insulting me. I know it isn't the bar's fault and they shouldn't be nailed because of a patron's behavior. Still though, these are the type of people they attract. Not exactly the type of thing I want to put up with when I'm relaxing with a drink.
Overpriced and all about presentation
Looks nice and has potential. Food has a modern presentation that really doesn't add much to the quality. I stopped going here because I "drank and dashed" after I couldn't get the bartender's attention to pay my bill. It seemed that he preferred to talk to other patrons. I guess I wasn't cool enough.
Nice bar and staff
Nice bar, great atmosphere, and great food. The crowd is generally a little too young to my liking. Also, as I've found throughout the gay community in Columbus the patrons are very cliquish. Not a great place to meet people, but pretty good if you just want to drink, have dinner, and chill.
Has a lot of potential
It looks like a nice place with a lot of potential. Unfortunately, what mostly ruins it is an overrated Columbus gay community. The gay community is so highly touted here; I’m not impressed. It’s nothing more than a bunch of Appalachian hillbillies that have the pretension that they are part of a major metropolis. (As I like to tell people, Columbus is West Virginia's largest city!) It’s very cliquish and not open or friendly, and it is a low brow crowd. I had much better luck meeting people when I lived on the east coast, and they were people that were more appealing to talk to. In addition, there are problems with a couple of the bartenders: one charges different prices every time you come up to him (raising them in succession....he's the one that smiles at you phony), and another recently spent his time surfing the internet and acted perturbed when I asked him for the wifi password. He spouted it off quickly and unclearly, acting annoyed when I asked him verify. (The password contained a “plus” – is the word spelled out, or is it the “+” sign?) The back patio is overrated too; pretty dirty from all the smokers. Columbusites seem to have a thing about touting up themselves and their city, this bar included. It isn't all that.
There are better after work places
Was visiting and came here after work since it was highly ranked. The atmosphere seemed adequate enough, but it was a very old crowd quite cliquish. I finished my drink, left, and went somewhere else.
Best place to go after work on a weeknight
After hopping around from place to place, this was the only place I found that had a sizable crowd and people that I was comfortable with. The crowd was mixed friendly & mixed cliquish. I asked someone where the bathroom was, and he started to tell me something bogus before someone with some sense interrupted and told me where it actually was. That's a hell of a way to leave a good impression on a visitor to your city. What an idiot! Also, they apparently don't dress to impress in Indy, so don't go there with high expectations.
Dance club mixed gay/straight
Looks like a nice club, but unfortunately I never make it past the front door since I'm not willing to pay a cover charge when there is no one there. Of course, I've gone after work on a weeknight.
Very dingy and dead
Never gone into this place because it looks uninviting from the outside, and I've never seen anyone in it.
Recently moved and renovated
UPDATED 12/30/2014 - A step up and much improved after the recent move over to where "The Vault" used to be. Has a lot of potential. Unfortunately though, Dayton isn't the type of place where the bars draw out what few gay people are here. Also, I found out this place suffers from a bad rumor going around, which I won't post publicly on here. If you're looking to meet someone, don't be selective. Drinks are OK and reasonably priced.
Disappointing
Was visiting from another city. Is this really as good as it gets in Lex? Bartender was unfriendly. The crowd was really cliquish, low class, and appeared to be a lot of regular, degenerative drunks. Listening to some chick at the end of the bar, drunk & mad at the world, talking about what a rock she is in everyone's life, and everyone is listening to her. In that case, thank you everyone for not speaking to me. Very dark and depressing place. I'm giving it another 10 minutes before I head out.
Gay bar in a place you wouldn't expect
I visited this bar last night. It's in the heart of downtown Monroe, which more resembles a nice small town removed from the city than it does a suburb. The area around the bar is decent. The guys there were pretty nice.
This isn't a gay bar
This used to be a gay bar called Carol's, but it's no longer a gay bar. I checked it out twice after work and saw straight black people.
Some wear & tear
This hotel needs to be renovated. Walls marked up, carpets stained, and I even found a cigarette burn hole on the duvet cover (I had a non-smoking room). Despite this, it is clean. Also, you can get this room on Priceline by bidding $45/night for it.
Nice place, but not as good as it used to be
I used to see professional guys here after work, but not so much lately. Where are they going now? Nothing wrong with the bar itself though. It is swanky.
Kind of a creepy place
Not trying to be mean, but it just didn't feeel like a comfortable and safe place.