Gay Travel Buddy

Puccini and Pinetti – San Francisco

Sure… it is located in a busy section of touristy Union Square. Yes, it is located within a hotel, and yes, it is part of a large restaurant company (The Puccini Group)…but there is something that keeps us coming back week after week to Puccini and Pinetti.

Maybe it’s the fact that they offer a great happy hour every day from 3pm until 6pm with such items as their signature meatballs ($5.00), crab cakes ($7.00), Fritto Misto (Fried calamari & rock shrimp for $6.00) and personal sized artisan pizzas that change seasonally in true California style ($5.00), in addition to a number of other options, all well within a happy budget. The food is hearty and tasty and sure to satisfy.

And let’s not forget about the fabulous drink specials. For a mere $3.00 you can get a glass of red, white or sparkling wine, or a glass of beer, with a healthy selection to choose from. For the wine drinkers, here’s a tip: ask for the bottle for $12.00, which actually gives you a little extra, and you don’t have to wait for your next glass!

As if those weren’t reasons enough to head to P&P (as the locals call it), on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, they extend the Happy Hour ALL-NIGHT!  Happy hour goes from 3pm – 10pm, and trust me, this little piece of info has not gone unnoticed by the gay workers and shoppers in the area that have recently been flocking to the establishment.  On any given night we have seen a number of the LGBT community enjoying drinks with friends and co-workers at Puccini and Pinetti.

Only side note; make sure that you sit within the ‘bar area’ to take advantage of the happy hour, and be prepared to wait during the 5:00-6:00 time frame as word gets out.

Puccini & Pinetti
Italian Bar & Grill
129 Ellis Street
San Francisco, CA
94102

Folsom Street Fair

San Francisco is well known for its Folsom Street Fair, as you may have guessed its located on Folsom St. which is located in SOMA (South Of Market Area).  This street fair is not just for gay men, this is one of the largest Leather Fettish fairs in the world.  The city of San Francisco shuts down a very large portion of Folsom St and several streets leading up to the fair.  If you are not aware San Francisco is a very difficult place to find parking at any time, day or night.  This fair causes massive traffic problems getting in and out of the city.

If you are flying in to SFO and want the fastest route in during the fair, take BART.  BART is our Bay Area Transit System, trains depart directly from the international terminal at SFO.  Cabs are plentiful, however if you take one be prepaired for a VERY expensive trip.  BTW, if you hate bad drivers stay away from the cabs, NYC cab drivers are tame compared to the lunatics that drive in SF.  When you get to the BART station, which is interconnected via the airport tram.  Just head to the International terminal which also says BART, there are 2 stops, pay attention or you will get off on at the wrong station.  The train fair is about $10, which has doubled due to our lovely Union operated train system which is already poorly maintained.  You would figured at the prices they charged they could at least have a cleaning crew through the day.  Watch where you sit or you could be sitting on gum, or who knows what else?  Although if you are easily grossed out, I would suggest avoiding this fair.

Just a few years back the city health department shut down one of the most disgusting parts of the fair down.  The worlds largest cum rag, I am not joking.  Down one of the side streets, guys would do their thing from the balconies above on a giant cloth.

As a reference, different colored leather or vinyl means different fetishes.  Red, which I didn’t know any better means you like to get fisted!  I will never do that again.  Yellow, you can probably guess means you are into water sports or for the folks who do not know means you like to get urinated on and or urinate on other people.  Trust me, straights are into this as well.  Golden Showers are another commonly used term for this is Golden Showers.  I just got a little queazy writing that.  But wait, Brown means well you either like to receive or give a number 2 or take a dump on someone, otherwise known as SCAT.  I am grasping to not loose my lunch to finish this.  I know there are other colors, however I really just don’t want to know about it.  If you come unprepared and want to dress up, the largest leather store in the city is Mr S leather, located just a few blocks south on 8th St on the left hand side.  They can outfit you with a custom harness, you better not be shy about someone grabbing your privates in order to size it around your loved ones.

For the GLBT community, please patronize the businesses that have spent serious money to put up booths.  NONE of the food is operated by gay companies, many gay owned businesses in SF and around the bay area donate part of their proceeds to very important charities that help disabled people and those who are living with HIV or advanced AIDS.  The pharmaceuticals are getting rich on the medications.  For example one medication called costs about $1,500 a month without insurance.  I have personally paid for several desperate young men’s prescriptions, I was horrified.  Unlike most gay men in San Francisco, I think of others before myself and unless they are Meth addicts I will help them.  Meth addicts will lie and use the money for more Meth and not the drugs that will keep them alive.  Don’t let any of them fool you.  A close personal friend of mine, John McLaughlin an openly recovered meth addict and a gay actor in Hollywood.  He opened my eyes to what the drug does to people, he has a film about his struggles with it and I am SO genuinely proud of him and what he has done for the gay community.  The group GLAAD (Gay and Lesbians Against Anti-Defimation), which I used to donate to on a regular basis until they treated me like SHIT as a volunteer who donated many thousands of dollars to them.  But their management is to blind and full of themselves to see who really makes a difference in our community.

Enough of me bitching about the empowered gay’s and how poorly they work well together.

Folsom has many closed booth’s where they demonstrate different fetishes, including whips and other instruments of pain for pleasure.  I have met many of my straight friends in the fair, their curiosity to what goes on in this fair.  So if you are straight and are interested in seeing whats going on, don’t be affraid.  No one will push you to do anything you don’t want to do.

Most of the gay bars within the confines of the street fair cater to the “Daddy/Leather/Bear” segment of the gay community.  I have attended at least 6 of these street fairs over the years and have always found those bars are packed to the gills.  The whole smelling like a poorly maintained high school locker room is revolting to me, however I will not criticize any part of the community.San Francisco for the most part is safe, but if you have not been here before.  It’s important to know that there are some not so great areas and getting mugged is a possibility especially late at night.  Always watch where you are walking, don’t play with you phone while walking.  Especially if you have an iphone, I have heard countless times from friends that they where mugged and stole their phones.  Just stay aware, I have personally NEVER had a problem that I couldn’t get away from, and have lived in the city many years.  I pay attention, that’s the only difference.

If you are staying in Union Square, you can walk to the fair in 10-15 minutes.  I would suggest walking, taking a cab can be a fruitless effort with all of the traffic.  There is always crazy traffic during the fair.  Just walk down 5th St and you will run right into it, the fair ends at 12th st.  It’s a huge event, many thousands of people will go through it.

Folsom St. between 5th and 12th St.

Gay Spots in SOMA - All links are to Google Maps, the exact location of each Business.

Gay Sex Clubs

The city of San Francisco requires all sex clubs to provide condoms and require their staff to look to make sure you are using them.  There is no private rooms of any sorts, to find that you will need to go over the bridge to Berkeley to Steam Works.

Blow Buddies - 933 Harrison St.  Just a short walk away.

Shops

Mr S. Leather – By far the largest leather & fetish shop in the city, also very close. 385 8th St.

Restaurants

Mars, a good 15 minute walk is worth the walk and has many gay events. Mars has a broad menu, American Fair at high quality, great brunch with outdoor seating  798 Brannan.

Basil Canteen is an amazing Thai Restaurant, if you like Thai food, make sure to try them. 1489 Folsom St.

Custom Burger is an amazing burger with the finest selection of meats and vegetarian options.  121 7th St.

Gay Friendly Cities

I and many of our amazing contributors have been all over the US and over the world.  I am adding this page to try and help you determine if a city is friendly enough to visit.  Some places can be down right dangerous, for example its illegal to be gay in Jamaica, I have heard many horror stories.

But Moving on to my current home to start.

Austin - Is a very gay friendly town, a very large selection of Gay Bars, very gay friendly hotels like the W.  The new W is actually just around the block from Oil Can Harry’s.  Great restaurants as well, Santa Rita, Kerbey Lane Café and South Congress Cafe too name a few.  It’s sorta like San Francisco in a strange way, and a big music town.

Denver – Is an amazing, mostly gay friendly city. This city also has its share of religious nut cases who cause some trouble from time to time. From what I know of, there isn’t a specific gay hotel in Denver. However you have many options
downtown, including the Westin and Sheraton, which are both gay friendly. The mile high city also gets more sunny days than any other major city in the US. The Westin actually has this fairly strange indoor-outdoor pool, its rather unique as well as a gym. The famous Palms steak house is attached and is very good. Personally I prefer to patronize gay owned restaurants, so I wind up at Hamburger Marry’s a very large gay bar/restaurant/drag show.  You can find a good selection of Denver’s Gay Bars.

Las Vegas – This one is really on the fence for a full recommendation. If you have other options, I think you should consider them. Even with such a huge service industry, overall Las Vegas is not all that gay friendly. Promoters like J.Son are
trying to change that; he was able to convince the Luxor to host the only weekly gay pool party throughout the summer season. In the 90’s their spa became a little hot spot for gay men, however the Luxor had security in they’re at all hours throwing them out. This is a big change in direction. On the other hand you have hotels like the Encore who have pages promoted online about being gay friendly. They forgot to tell their staff about that. Even the high priced hookers wouldn’t leave me alone; she couldn’t believe I was gay.

Las Vegas has only 1 all gay hotel that is clothing optional called Blue Moon Resort, located just West of the North end of the strip. On the strip there is one gay nightclub called Krave. It is not open every night, there is always a high priced
cover and the drinks though strong are very expensive. It’s on the south side of Planet Hollywood off Harmon. Just east on Harmon a few blocks and a right turn on Paradise will get you into what’s known as the fruit loop. You have multiple
bar options here, 8 ½ and Piranha are connected, and this is a higher end bar/dance club. As well as Gipsy, which is just next-door. Across the street you will find Buffalo, a mixed crowd with pool tables. Just to the right of Buffalo is an adult video and toy store. Across from The Buffalo is Free Zone, make sure you check out their calendar before going, they host many ladies nights as well.  There are quite a few more gay bars, my personal favorite is Charlies which is located West of the strip off Tropicana and on Arville in what looks like an industrial business building.  Starwood has one hotel just east of the strip on Flamingo, its a Westin, has a small casino as well.

San Diego - My home town, most of the gay activity is centralized in one area called Hillcrest.  You will find a nice selection of gay bars, restaurants of all types, gay gyms like 24 hour fitness, and shopping galore.  However, like San Francisco there are few hotel options.  There are tons of gay friendly hotels in down town San Diego near the Gas Lamp District that has great restaurants, shopping and gay bars.  San Diego offers lots of beach options, however I believe all of the beaches are now alcohol free and the police will check coolers.  San Diego does not have a very user friendly public transportation system, so consider renting a car.

San Francisco - Ok yeah, duh San Francisco is a very gay friendly town.  You might be surprised to know that its not the highest population of Gay people, Dallas I believe is number 1 then Los Angeles and then NYC.  San Francisco is very diverse, although the Castro is the heart of anything Gay, you can find gay establishments all over the city.  The city is broken into many districts, The Castro, The Haight, Lower Haight, Nob Hill, Lower Nob Hill, Union Square, Fisherman’s Wharf is a huge tourist trap, avoid at all cost.  The older gayborhood was on Polk St. so you can find a few bars in that area as well.  I can’t think of any major hotel in the city not being friendly, now some of the smaller cheap “weekly” rate type places.  The largest concentration of Gay Bars is in The Castro, then in SOMA there are some of the more leather, daddy type places.  My current favorite bar in The Castro is Blackbird, a laid back gay bar with an awesome staff.  My other favorite is a wine bar called Blush, amazing wine, food and people!  San Francisco also throws and incredible pride event every year, you just missed it this year but if you have the chance you must see it.  The Castro has very few options when it comes to lodging, I would suggest trying Union Square.  Most of the best shopping is in Union Square.  There are also several options for gay gyms in The Castro, 24 Hour Fitness and Gold’s Gym to name a few.

Seattle – Other than the lack of warm days, Seattle is extremely gay friendly with the majority of activities, including bars and restaurants are located in Capitol Hill. Very close to down town, it’s a bit of a hike if you choose to walk it. The hills are nowhere as steep as San Francisco but if its cold enough you will regret not taking a cab or driving. Be very mindful of the parking signs, they have some of the strangest parking restrictions I have ever seen in the US. They do not color the curbs either, my first visit I wound up getting a nice fine, nowhere near a fire hydrant.

Like Portland, there is a large hipster community, however not as intrusive. Washington State also has the highest taxes on alcohol so when you walk into a dive bar and get charged $10 for something most other places would be $4-5.  Gay Bars and Night Clubs list.

As any big city, Seattle has tons of hotel options. My personal favorites are Starwood properties. The Westin is one of the largest and is not owned by Starwood, it is a franchise. They are undergoing renovations; their new rooms are very nice if you can get one. Some of their older rooms do show their age, ask if you can get a remodeled room.  We have a short list of gay friendly hotels in Seattle.

This article is a work in progress and not close to being done.

San Francisco Gay Pride Circuit Parties

Gus Presents is the largest Gay Circuit Party promoter in San Francisco, the first major event is called Colossus.  It’s very popular, all events are no where near the Castro.  So make sure you know where you are going.  It’s at the Factory this year, 525 Harris, which is in SOMA.  I suggest buying tickets in advance, they are $50 just in advance and $70 at the door if they are not sold out.

Underworld SF Pride 2011

By far my favorite Circuit Party is Underworld, everyone takes every thing off except the shoes and undies and has a great time.  Yes there are some dark areas where, well you can just imagine.  This event is $30 at the door and $20 in advance, I have seen it sell out.  When the crowd is hot, OMG, its like nothing you have ever seen.

Sunday – Sanctuary

Sanctuary is the last major pride circuit party, it tends to be the daddy crowd.  That may be what you want, but its not my thing.  The card says its $40 at the door and $20 in advance, seems like a big discount.

Enjoy yourself, but always make sure that no one is trying to slip G into your drink.  You could have a very bad night.  Be safe, think!

W Hotel San Francisco – Gay Friendly Hotel

If you are a fan of modern hotels, the W in San Francisco is a great option and one of my personal favorites.  The location is hard to beat, it’s located in SOMA “South of Market area” near the Moscone convention center and close to all of the great shopping in Union Square.  It’s just a few blocks walk to Market St and another block to the left will put you at Stockton where there is an entrance to the MUNI station, specifically the Powell St. station.  Which is also a BART station, be sure not to confuse the two or you might end up in Oakland rather than the Castro.

The W has a very popular bar in the lobby, as with most W hotels they call it XYZ.  As with most hotels in SF the elevators are coded with your door key to keep the unwanted out.  This W also has a great indoor pool, which is a rare thing in SF, you can also find one at the sports club LA located on Market St.  I do not believe you can get a daily pass there, but its worth checking.  The W also has a work out room, they call it “Sweat”.

This W as most has valet parking, if you are driving in your own car and care about it, be very careful to watch them mark down scratches.  I speck of dust is a scratch to them, I have a distinct feeling they have severely damaged many cars and use the overly marked up tickets to get out of it.  I happened to drive my brand new car, not even 24 hours old in and they marked down that every panel had scratches and dents on it.  If you drive around the alley located on Minna St between the museum and St. Regis Hotel you will find a city park.  You can access this alley via 3rd st, the address is 147 Minna Street.  Do yourself a favor and park your car yourself!  Trust me!!

I have stayed at this W 5 times and love this property, however the standard rooms are very small.  If you can get a high floor room you will love the view.  The North East corner will give you a great view of the bridge behind the sky line, its quite something to see on a clear day or night.

The front desk staff is friendly, even under the pressure of long lines of people they seem to hold together and try to help.  Even if you are a Starwood Gold or Platinum member, upgrades are difficult to obtain especially if you are staying more than one night.  Flirting helps, but not a guarantee of anything.  Acting like a NYC pompous ass, will get you a crap room next to the dumpster.  The disabled room trick also applies here, the rooms are slightly larger.

The typical rates are about $200 a night, but if they are busy or have a conference it can be $400.  Try and book early if you can, be aware their super special rates are non refundable.  It may not be clear on the website, trust me I have had to argue my way into getting a credit.  If you are planning on earning a stay towards your Starwood status, do not book the room on any of those travel sites like Expedia as that will not go towards your status, no matter how much you pay.  Just having Gold will get you slightly better rooms and the ability to get as late as a 4pm check out.  Which after a wild night can really be a nice feature.

Another tip, if you fly United and have status it may be possible to get Gold via a promotion for members.  Check out their website to see if they have anything going on.

As all Starwood Properties the W is one of the most gay friendly hotels in San Francisco.  I see lots of gay men every time I am in the building.

If you are a beer fan, across the street is a place called Thirsty Bear Brewing Company.  They have some great micro brew’s to try and the food is great.

If you are a Starwood point collector or just collecting stays, you need to book on Starwood.com.  The link below will take you directly to this hotel on their site.

The W on Starwoods site

If you are looking for the best rate, I suggest hotels.com.  They do not make it easy to find a specific hotel with their search, so I have done the work for you.  Link just below.

See the W’s rates on hotels.com
The W is at 181 3rd St, (415) 777-5300 – Don’t confuse it with 3rd Ave as that is in the opposite side of town.

Every Friday night at The Cafe is an event called Boy Bar in the Castro.  This event is hosted by Gus Presents a talented promoter.  You can be sure that this event will be pretty packed.  Basically you are paying for the dancers in their underwear.  Sometimes the dancers are hot, they are always in good shape but based on what I am attracted to they are never as hot as the guys in the ad like the one above.  I have never seen this guy at this event, I would shove a $20 down his shorts if I saw that one.  There is a cover charge, I do not recall what it is.  The Cafe is pretty big and is commonly the favorite for the bridge and tunnel crowd, this should be pretty easy to figure out.  Boy Bar is across the street from both Catch and Trigger another gay bar that the bridge and tunnel crowd likes, they just charge more for entry.

2369 Market St @ Castro (415) 834-5840

San Francisco is fairly well known for the gay circuit parties and Underworld is no exception, this is one of the most fun events here.  I wish I was in better shape right now, I would not dare walk around in my underwear.  Even when I was not in this bad of a shape it took half a dozen shots when I got in before I felt comfortable enough just being there.  This event like most in the city is put together by Gus Presents and is well done.

Underworld only happens twice a year, one is always during pride and the website shows the next event is September 4th 2010.  This event is usually held at 550 Barnfeld, which is a bit out in the middle of nowhere in the warehouse district.  Take a cab!  It is possible there might be a few cop cars waiting for drunks or people on other stuff trying to drive home.  California law requires that bars and clubs stop serving by 2am, so most places stop at 1:30 since no one can have a drink in their hand at 2.

When you enter you are given a bag to put your clothes in, just keep your cash in your socks and don’t bother taking your cell phone as you will likely loose it.

There is a dark room up the stairs where you can guess what goes on.  If you have any brains don’t do anything un-protected!

If you plan on going during Pride, buy your tickets in advance as this event commonly sell’s out.

550 Barneveld.

A great restaurant in the Castro is known as 22 23, for its location 2223 Market St.  They have a great menu and offer a nice brunch and dinner menu.  They have a full bar with a great staff which is very friendly and quick.  I have always received great service from them.  They are located between 16th st and Dirty Sanchez or just Sanchez st.  This restaurant is not far from the Church St Muni Station and near LIME another restaurant and gay bar as well as Sweet Inspiration and Peet’s Coffee.

2223 Market St, 415-431-0692

The Castro is well known for its selection of Gay Bars and the Cafe is one of the largest.  This is a multi level club with dancing and pool tables.  Throughout the week they have different events that cater to different crowds, so make sure to check out their website before heading there.  Some of the crowds are not that appealing to me, some nights can be more bridge and tunnel than I care for.  To elaborate, the bridge and tunnel crowds tend to be guys that do not like living in San Francisco so they tend to rub me the wrong way.  They are not all bad.

The Cafe has been recently renovated, I have not been there since they re-opened.  They are located on Market St. just steps from the Castro MUNI station.  They are located near BLUE a great restaurant and just across the street from Catch my favorite seafood restaurant.  They are also just across from Trigger another large multi level bar, so if you are not happy you can always just cross the street and try something different.

2367 Market St.

I have only been to the Twin Peaks bar once and I felt so uncomfortable with the stairs of lust from the older gentlemen who hang out here.  This bar is also known to the younger crowd as the Glass Coffin, with all the big windows and the average age over 50.  I don’t know a lot about this bar, its right next to the Castro Theater.

401 Castro St, 415-864-9470