Last night I went to The Town House in St. Paul.
I’d only been there once before, with Fly Girl, on a Tuesday night, and it was pretty much deserted (in spite of the ongoing karaoke contest). She told me that it’s a completely different place on a “normal” night (i.e., weekend) when it’s chock full o’ lesbians. And holy shit. The Town House was full of lesbians on a Saturday night. It was fascinating. But back to the lesbians in a minute.
There was some sort of drag queen event going on. But, no offense to anyone, it wasn’t that great. A bunch of badly made up transvestites doing karaoke. Not so much a full on show like La Femme Show Lounge at Gay 90s (the un-gayest gay bar in town), which is the only other drag show I’ve experienced. So the audience was also full of badly made up transvestites. Not transitioning TG folks, but guys that do this for fun on weekends. That may be a completely ignorant assessment, but that’s my observation. A lot of these ladies were chillin’ way back in the way back in the piano bar, where Lori Dokken was playing. Methinks the waiter back there hates girls. Service was terrible. But it was quieter.
We eventually got booted out of the piano bar. By then the karaoke was over, but the DJ stepped in and the ladies were rocking out. I’ll just say that stereotypes all have some basis in truth and every lesbian stereotype you can think of was well represented. I got jiggy with a pool table, got advice on where to score a decent straw cowboy hat, and laughed a lot. I was there with plenty of peeps, so it was fun.
I lamented the fact that I had come straight from work and thus was not dressed to impress. Jeans, a gay sweater, and hiking boots would not have been my first choice, had I been coming from home. Although in a lesbian bar, it’s nigh unto impossible to be underdressed, so that wasn’t so much the problem. I do not feel bad for not wearing a seashell necklace, a ringer t-shirt, a baseball cap, a hoodie, or a jersey or other team apparel. Not that there’s anything wrong with any of that.
There was a table set up with a large display of bumper stickers, a variety of incense, dragon- and lighthouse-themed candleholders, and some other gay paraphernilia. I didn’t see anybody buy anything for as long as I stood there. I can’t really figure out who would purchase such things at the bar. But then after staring at the bumper stickers for an hour, I was sort of tempted. I wondered whose traveling display that was and if they make much money on that.
I haven’t been out and about enough to recognize people yet. It’s definitely not the sort of scene FG is into, so I don’t think there’d be much overlap between the Town House crowd and any of the places I’ve gone with her. Diva Riot and Twilight seem to skew a little older.
Anyway, it was interesting. And now I can say I’ve experienced The Town House in all its glory.
