They can happily give you no-obligation advice and all the information you’ll ever need to know about your new city. However, if you are lucky enough to be considering a move here, we recommend reading our article about moving to LGBT Atlanta or getting in touch with a local gay realtor. Take into consideration as well all the world-class attractions, innovative food scene, and fascinating history, and you too will decide Atlanta makes a fabulous albeit slightly unconventional gay holiday destination….no matter where your interests lie!Īre you relocating? This guide will help travelers discover the queerer side of the city. Gay Atlanta offers plenty of quirky suburbs, a thriving queer events calendar, a ridiculous amount of gay bars and clubs, and more attractions than you could ever see in one visit. With a very active and visible LGBT community – this progress, liberal haven in the heart of Georgia is where politicians, gays, hipsters, artists, and musicians all live, work, and play in relative harmony. There is a reason why Atlanta as chosen for the reboot of Queer Eye in 2018… Gay acceptance and the culture around it in Atlanta is complicated, and we don’t want to over-simplify anything-but we would agree with the parallels drawn to Weird Austin and Nashville both are unique queer utopia’s that have arisen in rather unprogressive states.
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As does segregation within the local LGBT community. Politics can be a touchy subject in Atlanta – the inclusive blue dot on an otherwise deep red map – but people in Gay Atlanta are by and large trying to be accepting, but ‘the Christian question’ still comes up. Other smaller gaybourhoods worth exploring include Ansley Mall and Cheshire Bridge Road area, beacons for LGBT partygoers, vintage East Atlanta, and the hippie Little Five Points neighborhood. The result is a fabulous gay scene – mostly clustered in the Midtown area – that offers something for everyone. Tuesday brings all-day happy hour and $3 tequila shots and drinks, Wednesday is $4 you-call-it drinks, and on Thursdays, SIR celebrates industry professionals with 40 percent off the tab.In fact, the city of Atlanta has one of the highest LGBT populations per capita in the country at 12.8%, ranking third of all major cities, behind San Francisco and slightly behind Seattle. Anytime is a good time to go, Stewart says, though the Sunday drag queen brunches with Lacey Vanderpump is especially popular. Dark red lights make the mood more nightclub-like, but to keep it bright there’s a rainbow light shining along the exposed brick wall. The large cylinder structure that used to house the serving station at Vesta is now a DJ booth. Push them to the side and you have a late night dance party, or put the seats in the center of the bar for dinnertime dining.
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Now, there are movable booths so the area can change based on what’s going on at SIR on any given night. “This used to be an iconic Denver restaurant it has natural brick and a lot of history.”
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“It’s a popping area, but there’s not a good gay bar,” he says. It’s the history of the space that drew Stewart to the location. SIR Denver opened in what used to be Vesta Dipping Grill, a long-time downtown hotspot. “The bartenders get to be creative it’s not just a -unless that’s what you want.” “I wanted to serve more than just vodka soda,” Stewart says. Stewart says the idea was to make a place where you could go have a nice glass of wine solo, meet a friend, or make a whole night out of it. There are cocktails on tap, craft beer, and a curated wine list. Sunday brunch, bookable as an OpenTable experience, includes bottomless mimosas, a drag queen host, and a plate of those aforementioned bruschetta featuring duck pate, artichoke, brie, short rib, and more.Īside from bubbles, drinks also play a big part in the experience of SIR. Overseeing the menu is chef Marissa Hardman, who has added plates such as tahini-laced cauliflower and a lineup of hearty bruschetta during brunch service. “Something that we put a little more thought into than just throwing in the fryer.”
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“We wanted to create something more on the fine-dining side,” he says. But the team is pulling away from the steakhouse vibe a little by slowly adding other dishes to the menu, Stewart says. With options including a 10-ounce bavette steak, double-cut rack of pork ribs, a 14-ounce Angus NY strip steak, a signature burger with secret sauce, and roasted Brussels sprouts with nuoc cham and peanuts, it’s not surprising one might think it’s a meat market. The “LGBT” toast (lettuce, guacamole, bacon, tomato) | Photo credit: SIRĪt first glance SIR appears to be a steakhouse.