The 2 OFFICIAL Lesbian Bars in Los Angeles & 9 Lesbian-Friendly Bars

The Los Angeles lesbian social scene is honestly more centered on curated queer parties and community organization than specific bars and restaurants. While West Hollywood is home to around 20 gay bars, the options for lesbians specifically are more slim, especially with growing concerns about women’s safety at popular WeHo bars like The Abbey. So here are the two official lesbian bars and the ten lesbian-leaning bars helping queer femmes in LA to carve out a space of their own!

The Official Lesbian Bars in Los Angeles

1. Honey’s at Star Love ★

Honey’s is my favorite lesbian hangout. As a bar that can sometimes feel more like an intimate club, it is the perfect spot for a night of good music, cocktails, and dancing. Since Honey’s is one of two official lesbian bars in Los Angeles, I’ve never experienced a night without a solid crowd. Between the dedicated dance floor, the bar area, and the booth seating, there is almost always somewhere to squeeze yourself in for the night.

With back-to-back theme nights ranging from Reggaeton to Pop and from Indie to Hip Hop, this sapphic watering hole tends to attract a different crowd almost every night. WIth that said, I would recommend checking their Instagram to make sure you’ll like the DJ, or at least the genre for the night before you head to Honey’s.

This eccentric hole-in-the-wall is queer-owned, Black-owned, and women-owned. Almost everyone here on the average night is likely to be sapphic, with the main demographic being young femme queers in their 20s and 30s. You might also see celebrities and influencers hosting everything from birthday parties to album releases here.

Cover: varies depending on the event, usually ranging from $0-$20
Address: 1532 N. Western Ave., East Hollywood, Los Angeles,
Hours: Thursday (8 PM – 12 AM); Friday, Saturday (8 PM – 2 AM)

2. The Ruby Fruit ★

The Ruby Fruit is the first permanent lesbian bar to open in Los Angeles since 2017 (with Honey’s opening a few weeks later). This natural wine bar in Silver Lake, one of LA’s gayborhoods, also serves a wide menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. My favorite thing on the menu is the bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich, although I am dying to try the hot dog.

Throughout the week, The Ruby Fruit hosts a variety of events, including co-working partnerships, book clubs, figure-drawing classes, and so much more. Check their Instagram to stay up to date on all of the community opportunities they have to offer. The crowd at this queer, woman-owned hangout is usually women and femmes of all ages.

The facade of windows and colorful decor make the space feel bright and airy despite the limited space. Their more crowded events even tend to have people spilling out of the doors and into the strip mall parking lot, which has dedicated spots for The Ruby Fruit – a Los Angeles luxury. Whether I am grabbing a meal with friends or bringing my laptop to work on the weekends, my favorite thing about The Ruby Fruit is the unapologetically sapphic community atmosphere.

Address: 3510 Sunset Blvd., Silverlake, Los Angeles
Hours: Monday – Thursday (11 AM – 10 PM); Friday (11 AM – 11 PM); Saturday, Sunday (9 AM – 11 PM)

10 Lesbian-Leaning Bars in Los Angeles

The Semi Tropic ★

If you watched The L Word: Generation Q, then The Semi Tropic might look familiar. A replica of this Echo Park bar was made for filming at Dana’s, and the first few scenes in the bar were actually filmed on location at the bar. The reason they used this bar as inspiration is clear when you walk in. The decor is gorgeous, the music is perfect for a casual cocktail with friends, and there are almost always quite a few sapphics hanging around. There is plenty of room in this cozy-but-industrial-style bar for you to work during the day, and then meet friends for drinks at night.

Note: No laptops after 6 PM.
Address: 1412 Glendale Blvd., Echo Park, Los Angeles
Hours: Sunday – Thursday (2 PM – 12 AM); Friday, Saturday (2 PM – 2 AM)

Bar Flores ★

Bar Flores is a cozy Latin bar in Echo Park. Starting as a pop-up, this queer woman-owned bar found a home away from the chaos of Sunset Blvd and the rowdier downstairs bar below. The intimacy of the bar itself, along with the tucked away back patio, is likely why this spot could be great for a lesbian date night. Bar Flores has the coziest warm lighting and interior, and it smells so good they have the scent in candle form listed on the menu. They have live music, food vendors, and events throughout the month, but my favorite time to stop by Bar Flores is during their Queer Nights. These nights feature performances, DJs, an oyster vendor, and something new and fun every time like tarot readings or permanent jewelry.

Address: 1542 Sunset Blvd., Echo Park, Los Angeles
Hours: Monday – Friday (4 PM – 2 AM); Saturday, Sunday (12 PM – 2 AM)

Sweet Water Saloon

Even though Long Beach isn’t technically in Los Angeles, it is a short distance away and has a large queer community. With that said, Sweet Water Saloon has a reputation as one of the go-to spots for Long Beach lesbians. It has that quintessential dive bar feel down to the pool tables, jukebox, and cheap drinks. Surrounded by other gay bars in the Broadway corridor, Sweet Water Saloon seems to have the small-town community feel that some other, newer bars often lack.

Note: Cash only.
Address: 1201 E. Broadway, Long Beach
Hours: Daily (12 PM – 2 AM)

The Black Cat

As the site of the first ever documented gay rights movements, The Black Cat is California’s only official historical LGBTQ+ landmark. In 1967, two years before Stonewall, patrons of The Black Cat led a protest against the police brutality that occurred when the establishment was raided and men were beaten and jailed for kissing. Now, the Silver Lake gastropub is a neighborhood favorite spot for drinks, a nice dinner, or a drag show on the back patio. Although the crowd doesn’t feel particularly queer to me on most nights, the history that is literally plastered on the walls serve as a reminder that all queers, including lesbians are welcome here.

Address: 3909 W Sunset Blvd., Silverlake, Los Angeles
Hours: Weekdays (4 PM – 2 AM); Saturday, Sunday (2 PM – 2 AM)

Akbar

Akbar is a little gay dive bar in Silver Lake that has been a self-proclaimed “neighborhood oasis” for the east side queer community for over 25 years. There are different queer events almost every day of the week, including lip sync competitions, trivia, and plenty of dance parties. While some of the long-time staff claim the clientele used to be about fifty percent sapphic, that number is closer to fifteen percent now. Despite the mostly gay male patrons, it is clearly very rooted in its inclusive queer history, so I find it incredibly welcoming.

Address: 4356 W Sunset Blvd., Silver Lake, Los Angeles
Hours: Daily (4 PM – 2 AM)

Bar Franca ★

Bar Franca is a European-inspired cocktail bar in the heart of downtown LA. It is queer woman owned and a self-proclaimed “welcoming space for anyone seeking uniqueness and quality.” They host great queer and lesbian parties throughout the month. Even though it seems to only happen on occasion now, I’ve heard a lot about their iconic lesbian party, DIVORCE. While we wait for the next one to pop up, check their Instagram for their other more sapphic-leaning parties.

Address: 438 S. Main St., Downtown, Los Angeles
Hours: Thursday – Saturday (8 PM – 2 AM)

Hi Tops Los Feliz

Despite locations in San Francisco and LA’s own West Hollywood, it feels that Hi Tops in Los Feliz sees the most lesbian activity. This gay sports bar hosts a monthly “dykeathlon” party every second Saturday called Personal Best that I am dying to check out, as well as other queer and lesbian events throughout the month. Check their Instagram to find out what they have going on.

Even outside of their lesbian parties, Hi Tops Los Feliz would still be the only sports bar close to making this list for sapphics. It has all the beer, wings, and flat screens you expect at other sports bars without any of the toxic masculinity.

When I’ve gone during happy hour, I’ve even seen people working casually on laptops while enjoying the games.

Address: 1714 N Vermont Ave., Los Feliz, Los Angeles
Hours: Monday – Wednesday (12 PM – 12 PM); Thursday – Saturday (12 PM – 2 AM); Sunday (10 AM – 10 PM)

Sorry Not Sorry ★

When it comes to queer culture, the westside of LA can feel a bit sparse. While the beer garden, Sorry Not Sorry in Sawtelle, is not explicitly a gay bar, it is one of the more sapphic-leaning spaces west of WeHo. The WOC-owned cocktail lounge is polished and bright and serves great food and drinks, too.

Sorry Not Sorry hosts drag shows and queer meetups, strengthening its queer-friendly reputation. I’ve also attended a few different organizations’ sapphic meetups in their large outdoor patio area.

PS: I love the delicious Chicken Mole Nachos here.

Address: 11520 W. Pico Blvd., Sawtelle, Los Angeles
Hours: Tuesday – Friday (5 PM – 12 AM); Saturday (12 PM – 12 AM); Sunday (12 PM – 6 PM)

Precinct

Precinct is self-proclaimed as “DTLA’s largest queer bar.” The dark and spacious interior allows them to host events like Queerchata, which is almost always dominated by sapphics. While Latin dance isn’t necessarily my thing, I’ve heard that it is really refreshing to learn a traditionally gendered dance style in a format that is more inclusive of queer sexual and gender identities. I’ve also heard from lesbians that you have not properly watched RuPaul’s Drag Race until you’ve done it at a Precinct viewing party. Check the calendar on their website for more of their variety of queer events like “gay ass” bingo and trivia, as well as drag brunches and underwear parties.

Address: 357 S Broadway, Downtown, Los Angeles
Hours: Tuesday – Saturday (6 PM – 2 AM); Sunday (11:30 AM – 2 AM)

Executive Suite

Executive Suite is a three-story LGBTQ+ nightclub in Long Beach. This huge space allows for plenty to do, with each floor dedicated to something different. The top floor is used for dancing and drag shoes. While the bottom floor is for private events and the middle floor houses the karaoke lounge, pool tables, and video games. My Long Beach lesbian friends flock to Executive Suite regularly for their weekly Sugar Saturdays, which they self-proclaim as the “Best Lesbian Night in Long Beach!”.

Note: Be sure to bring cash to tip the go-go dancers.
Address: 3428 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach
Hours: Tuesday – Saturday (7 PM – 2 AM)

The Firsts and Lasts of the LA Lesbian Bar Scene

Established around 1947, If Club, also known as If Cafe, is credited as the earliest known lesbian bar in LA. It catered to working-class lesbians, servicing white, black, and Latino customers. If Club also had a reputation as a safe space for butch lesbians in particular. Located on 8th and Vermont, in what is now known as Koreatown, the bar was the first of many to pop up around this time period.

The Open Door was established right across the street from the If Club in the 1950’s. In South LA during that same time, the Star Room catered to a more “pink collar” crowd and was known for cruising. Between the 50s and 60s, openly lesbian singer, Beverly Shaw, bought the upscale gay bar Club Laurel. Like many other lesbian spaces around this time, none of those bars lasted past the 70’s. There were a few, however, like Plush Pony, which started in El Sereno in the 60s and survived until around 2008, and Redz, which catered to Latinas starting in the 50’s and lasting until 2015.

Throughout these years, many lesbian-centric spaces, from bars to coffee shops, came and went. The final lesbian bar standing in 2017 was The Oxwood Inn. The windowless dive in Van Nuys opened in 1972 as a more grounded sapphic safe haven away from the hustle of Hollywood or even the chaos of WeHo, especially for trans women. At the time of its closing, The Oxwood Inn was one of the longest-running lesbian bars in the United States, a title now held by Wild Side West in San Francisco.

Now, thanks to The Ruby Fruit and Honey’s, Los Angeles is home to two of America’s 34 official lesbian bars.

About the Author: Ciara Johnson

Ciara is a writer based in Los Angeles, CA. When she is not writing, she can be found perusing a local bookstore, maxing out her AMC A-List, and explaining niche pop culture controversy to her friends.

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