Los Angeles Gay Bars & Clubs

Exclusive misterb&b data about gay bars in Los Angeles for 2026

The Abbey Food & Bar - the most famous gay bar in the world

When I want to start a night in West Hollywood, I always head to The Abbey Food & Bar first. It started as a small coffee shop in 1991 and has become what many consider the single most famous gay bar in the world - it has won the MTV Logo Best Gay Bar in the World award twice, and on any given weekend its multi-level indoor-outdoor space is packed with every kind of person: drag queens holding court on the terrace, muscle guys at the bar, tourists mixing with locals, and a DJ setting the temperature for the evening. The food is genuinely good, which is rarer than you would think for a bar of this scale, and the cocktails are strong and crafted. Going early - around 5pm - gives you the terrace in the afternoon light before the volume cranks up. Going at midnight gives you something entirely different. Both are worth experiencing.

Micky's, Mattie's WeHo, and the best gay bars on Santa Monica Boulevard

One of the bars I always come back to for dancing is Micky's - a WeHo institution since 1989 with a two-storey layout and a dance floor that gets genuinely sweaty on Friday nights. Their Monday Showgirls drag event has built a cult following over the years, and the go-go dancers are a WeHo staple. For Drag Brunch - and I have done a lot of Drag Brunches in a lot of cities - my preference when I am in WeHo is Mattie's WeHo (formerly Rocco's), which sits right on the corner of Santa Monica and San Vicente by the iconic rainbow crosswalk. It is gay-owned, it is operated with genuine community pride, and the 5,000-square-foot space fills up fast on Saturday and Sunday mornings - book ahead. For a dive bar that feels genuinely like a local's bar rather than a tourist destination, Mother Lode on Santa Monica Boulevard is the one I come back to: strong drinks, no attitude, and a crowd that has been coming here for years. The Bayou WeHo is the New Orleans-themed dive on the strip - cheap drinks, Cajun food, and a rowdy, unpretentious atmosphere that I find myself at more often than planned.

Gay sports bars, leather bars, and the full spectrum of LGBTQ+ nightlife in LA

The gay bar scene in Los Angeles covers ground that very few cities can match. For sports: the one I always head to is Hi Tops on Santa Monica - a proper gay sports bar where you can watch every major game and actually enjoy the atmosphere. The owner described it as "a gay bar where you can bring your parents" and that is exactly right: welcoming, no attitude, genuine sports bar energy. For the leather and bears crowd, my preference is heading east to Eagle LA in East Hollywood - one of the great leather bars in the United States, with a strong local following and regular fetish nights that draw from across Southern California. Trunks is WeHo's traditional relaxed sports bar - over 25 years old and still going strong with daily drink specials from 1pm. For something more glamorous and lounge-y, Beaches WeHo has a fun 80s Miami aesthetic and Pina Coladas that are genuinely excellent. Silver Lake's Honey's at Star Love is the queer watering hole I recommend to travelers who want something more intimate and alternative - open Thursdays to Saturdays, with DJ nights, comedy, and karaoke.