Gay bars in san luis obispo
SLOcialite: Native’s Synergy late hours brings out pride
Bridget Veltri
arts@mustangdaily.net
Homophobes and the like top avoid Native Lounge in downtown San Luis Obispo on Sunday nights from now on.
Synergy, a evening dedicated to the same-sex attracted, lesbian, bisexual, and gender diverse community (and friends) is now happening every Sunday at Native instead of just the first Sunday of the month.
Since coming to college here in SLO I have spent my fair share of hours at the bars, but my experience at Synergy was unlike any I had at any bar anywhere.
I went as a “wing woman” to my dear friend, and as a straight lady who had never been to a gay lock or night before I wasn’t quite sure what I was in for but I was ecstatic to support my confidant and the a part of the community that I feel is underrepresented to say the least. I didn’t mind paying the $5 cover because proceeds from that overnight were going towards AIDS research.
I will admit that I observed more than I danced that Sunday, and was surprised and a little disappointed that no one really slap on me, but as I stood among the group and watched as my friend (who really didn’t need a wing woman at all) danced beneath the strobe li
Live the SLO Animation with Pride
LGBTQIA+ Scene
The SLO life is for everyone, especially during Pridefest 2025, a weekend-long celebration of love, culture and community in the heart of San Luis Obispo.
Hosted by the GALA Pride & Diversity Center, this year’s festivities contain the high-energy Pride in the Plaza festival on Saturday, featuring drag performances and local sustenance, plus Trans Self-acceptance in the Park with 50+ vendors, food trucks, tune, and resources. Plus, attend fundraisers, workshops and other events coordinated by Pivotal Coast Pride throughout May and June.
Dance along or soak up the vibes: Pridefest is the perfect time to experience the happiness and inclusivity that define the Pivotal Coast, Then, Now, Forever.
Central CoAST Pride
Central Coast Pride, the events program of the Gala Pride & Diversity Center, hosts inclusive events throughout the year, including the annual Self-acceptance celebration each June. This month-long series features advocacy workshops, community gatherings, performances, and a weekend of festivities that bring people together to celebrate diversity and stand with the LGBTQ+ community.
Plan Your Visit
Central Coast Gay Archive Project to host reunion at historic former homosexual bar in SLO
The Central Coast Queer Archive Proposal is co-hosting an event on May 12 ahead of Pride Month. They describe it as a “re-queering” of a San Luis Obispo business which used to be one of the few gay barsin the city’s history.
Journey’s Inn was likely the first general queer bar in San Luis Obispo. Its heyday was in the 1980’s, but it’s gone through a lot of changes since then. It’s now the Jewel of India restaurant on Broad Street.
Journey’s Inn was one of the few queer bars in SLO’s history, and there are none in the city right now.
David Weisman is the Project Director for the Primary Coast Queer Archive Project, which is holding a reunion dinner there on May 12th. He said it’s meant to reunite people who used to hang out there and to grant them share their experiences with the younger generation of queer people.
“San Luis [Obispo] isn’t Novel York City, we don’t have a historic Stonewall Tavern, we don’t hold a Castro District like San Francisco or a West Hollywood. What we have are these occasional buildings that were those places, closeted or concealed from the public," Weisman s
LGTBQ+ residents of the Core Coast push for queer-centric nightlife
For decades, gay bars own been a safe haven and communal place for the Homosexual community to come together. But even as much of population moves toward more acceptance and inclusivity, queer-specific spaces can still be hard to find, and the Central Coast is no exception.
While four locations in San Luis Obispo pop up on Yelp when conducting a easy search for "gay bays and clubs," the reality is there are no centralized late-night establishments that cater strictly to the growing LGBTQ+ community.
Melody Klemin, founder of the Central Coast Homosexual website Queer SLO, said there are only two main queer-dedicated groups in the city. One is a queer-owned coffee shop called Skipper’s Brew.
“I feel appreciate the only organization right now trying to cultivate or erect community is the GALA Parade and Diversity Center, and Skipper’s Brew. And beyond that, there’s not a lot happening in the city of San Luis Obispo,” Klemin said.
The lack of gay bars in SLO has pushed many to look outside of the area for an inclusive nightlife or take matters into their own hands.
Karen Pike, co-founder of Skipper’s Bre