Downtown LA gay bay Redline is shuttering its doors after nearly 10 years in operation. The cocktail bar and lounge opened in 2015 as a watering hole for queer and allied Angelenos. It also hosted some of the biggest names in the drag world, including Ongina and Cornbread (of RuPaul’s Drag Race fame).
Owner Oliver Alpuche traces the decision to close Redline back to the earliest days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when businesses across LA struggled to stay afloat amid the socioeconomic uncertainty. When he was finally able to open Redline’s doors back up, he expected a second coming of the Roaring ‘20s.
More: DTLA gay bar Redline faces nearly $500,000 in COVID debt
Instead, he says the pandemic hindered, in part, the spirit of the community, and points to smaller crowds who often drank less on any given night. It didn’t help that almost overnight, as Alpuche describes it, the prices of goods skyrocketed.
“It's weird because liquor costs aren't that bad, right? They stayed the same. But if you look at groceries and food and plastic goods, and everything else that it costs to run a bar — juices, pineapple, ice — everything has taken a minimum 20% increase.”
Alpuche says he opened the space with the intention of creating a Cheers-like environment, for members of the LGBTQ+ community from all corners of Southern California to come by and make friends. But after the shuttering of Bar Mattachine, a venue nearby that also catered to the queer community, Alpuche says traffic in the area decreased. Ultimately, after the pandemic, he says the damage was done.
“We need to start fresh. Many businesses have shuttered their doors because of COVID and the amount of debt they got into. We were one of the lucky ones to finish out our lease,” he explains. “We decided not to continue because we wanted to look at the bigger picture of growing the DTLA gay community and really position ourselves in a right location to support that.”
That bigger picture comes with a promise, however, due to a new center of queer nightlife sitting on the horizon. Alpuche is partnering up with Brad Nitz, a bartender at Redline, to open another venue in Downtown LA. The establishment, which is still under development, is called Kiso — and according to Alpuche, will be an even bigger space to dance, drink, and vibe the night away.
LA’s LGBTQ nightlife landscape has drastically shifted over the last few years. Notable institutions shuttered during the pandemic, including Rage, Gold Coast, Oil Can Harry’s, and Flaming Saddles.
Read more: As LA’s LGBTQ bars close, Redline and The Eagle fight to stay open
In a 2021 interview, Flaming Saddles co-owner Jacqui Squatriglia told KCRW that the pandemic would pass in a few weeks and would quickly bounce back.
“As the pandemic got worse, we were like, okay, as long as everyone just stays healthy, we can dig out later, it's just going to be a fiasco of a fiscal nightmare. But let's just stay healthy and dig out on the other side,” Squatriglia said.
LA, however, has welcomed new hubs of queer nightlife in the last few years, including Honey’s at Star Love, The Ruby Fruit, and Hi Tops Los Feliz.
Read more: LA finally has 2 new bars for the ‘sapphically inclined’
Over the last month, Redline has celebrated its “final stops” tour, ushering in new and returning talent from its near-decade in operation. The goodbyes will culminate on March 2 — the last night the Downtown LA gay bar will be open.
“It's bittersweet. I've heard so many lovely comments and appreciation for what Redline became. And, of course, I don't want to lose that. But it's not a goodbye, it’s [an] ‘I'll see you later,’” Alpuche says.
