By Aditi L.
gaytravel.com
“So, wanna meet at the Lex?” was the standard meet-up line I heard in San Francisco. Cute girl on Bart, a friend’s friend who wanted to get to know more lesbians- they ask for various reasons and in different ways, but the line is the same. The Lexington is THE lesbian bar in San Francisco. It’s nestled in the Mission between taquerias, hipster coffee shops, and vintage clothing stores.
It’s a small place, surprisingly small for the amount of times I heard its named mentioned as a go-to bar (but then again, San Francisco is surprisingly small for the amount of times it’s considered a World City). With low lighting, pool tables, and high bar stools, it seems like any other place. The thing that makes it unique, though, are the hoards of hot lesbians that cover every square inch. The drinks are *strong* (beware) and the bartenders are friendly, attentive, fabulous.
An intended early night turned into a drunk waste-fest after three drinks at the Lex and an intense conversation with a transwoman who brought her mother back to life by praying (or did she? It was all very confusing, and we were all very tipsy). Suffice to say, the people at the Lex are deeply interesting and eclectic. I could run off a list of stereotypical lesbian personalities and assure you that you’ll find them here, but I’ll save you the eye roll and just tell you: you’ll find them here. Every gay woman, that is. It’s not a place frequented by any other demographic, really.
Past the Lex and around the corner, Valencia has a series of quiet bars with amazing drinks. But to go clubbing, you’ll need to venture a little further. My favorite gay club in San Francisco (and possibly the world) is Bootie. The two floors with multiple dance floors is a sure guarantee that they’ll have your style, somewhere in that place. It’s a beautiful gay/straight mix of people with everyone dancing with everyone. The bottom dance floor is gorgeous and open- with high ceilings that prevent you from feeling cramped even when theres a jillion people on the dance floor. The real draw of Bootie, though, is the music. Where other clubs play Lady Gaga and then later on in the night play Flo Rida- Bootie, the amazing Bootie, mashes them together in a song called Metal Romance that is “Low” + “Bad Romance” = best dance song ever. And they do it again and again and again, not a single song is boring at Bootie. Michael Jackson + Duck Sauce = Beat Sauce. Eminem & Rihanna + Guns N’ Roses = The Way You Lie in Paradise. If you’re someone who thinks “ugh, the radio just plays the same f’ing 5 songs over and over again” (and really, don’t we all think that?), then Bootie will seriously keep you at the edge of your dance shoes- you’ll start singing along to a song you love and suddenly it’ll be mashed up with another song you love. It’s great.
San Francisco may be a small city, but it has the heart, passion, and dance moves of a big city, for sure. Whether you’re at the Lex or Bootie or the thousands of other bars and clubs in San Francisco, you’re sure to have a great time with some great characters.