Gay club madison wi
Madison’s Best Queer-Friendly Spaces
Whether you’re looking for meals, adventure, or more places to support, Madison has a lot of LGBTQ+-friendly establishments from which to pick. These are some of our favorites.
For Food and Drink
WOOF’S
Located on King Road, WOOF’S is a popular gay block in Madison. With different specials every day, this is a quirky detect to grab a drink with your friends.
Herbiery Brewing
Herbiery is your next cease for a brewski — and you have 10 other options. Made without hops, the flavors are nothing love you have ever had before. The founder of Herbiery Nia is transitioned and uses they/them pronouns, and they believe that beer without hops is an extension of their queer identity.
Dyke Dive
There’s an unfortunate shortage of womxn loving womxn bars in Madison, and this pop up is looking to change that. We spoke to co-organizer Sara Akawa about their lineup this year.
Have an Adventure
Betty Lou Cruises
What better way to enjoy the warmer weather than enjoying the shore? There are public and private booking options available, six days a week through Oct. 20.
FIVE Nightclub
If dancing is what you crave, stare no further. Featuring
The Club 5 Complex was opened by Ed Grunewald as a replacement for his 'Manoeuvres' block, which needed more room for expansion. He created a huge complex of several separate serving bars, a restaurant, and outside space for volleyball etc. From the beginning, the business had three separate identities within the building, specifically:
Club 5 restaurant and Bar: The major portion of the space was a DJ area and large dance floor area with a couple of bars. The "full service restaurant... serves lunch, dinner and Fri./Sat. after hours".
Barracks: Men's bar, rustic setting. A place for the Levi/Leather community, Unicorns of Madison meetings and club nights, exceptional events, etc. Always had many guys in jeans and t-shirts, or often shirtless. At times showed X-rated/ 'Adult' movies.
Planet Q Video Dance Bar: with pool tables, dart boards, etc.
Early ads also mentioned a "Q Present Shop". And in April 1999, Ed added The Fox Hole womyn's bar to the building.
Club 5 came about largely to fulfill a desperate need. During the 1980s and the first half of the 1990s, the main LGBTQ bars in the Madison area were Rod's (levi/ leather bar), the New Bar (dance ba
Rod's bar became a gay icon and legend among same-sex attracted men in the 1980's and 1990's Madison. Opened by entrepreneur Rodney Scheel and located in the lower level (basement) of the Hotel Washington building just west of downtown Madison (which Rodney owned with his brother Greg), the bar had a decidedly leather/levi type ambiance. Initial on, "Rod's" took on a "tradition" of the bartenders holding surprise "spot checks" for men wearing underwear- which, if found, were promptly removed (cut off) and hung over the pipes on the ceiling of the lock. In no occasion the pipes running in the main bar room were draped with countless cut-off underwear. The bar became an extremely popular destination for men throughout Wisconsin and even from northern Illinois.
Over time, the lock opened additional rooms in the endorse, one of which showed adult male (i.e. gay porn) videos. (On the seedier side, Rod's "men's room" had its own small tradition: on occasion one might detect, along the walls holding the urinals, someone kneeling: aficionados of "water sports" were to be found that night!)
An outdoor patio was a very well-liked addition. Opened outside/ upstairs, the patio was popular spring, summer and plunge eveni
30+ LGBTQ+ Owned Businesses in Madison
LGBTQ+ pride is a year-round thing in Madison.
Opting for openness over “us vs. them” and kindness over competition, we’re a metropolis known for its progressiveness. We’re proud that Diverse owned-and-operated businesses (and Homosexual friendly businesses) continue to flourish here.
Though the huge pride event in Madison isn’t until August, we’ve got more than 30 LGBTQ+ businesses to endorse while you’re eating, drinking and traveling your way through Madison.
From coffee shops to brunch, take a day (or two! or more!) to check these spots out. Looking for more LGBTQ+ culture in Madison? Check out what our friends Joey Amato from Pride Journeys and Maartje Hensen said about their visits to Madison.
Jump around to find LGBTQ+ owned businesses by category:
Coffee and Cafes
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Restaurants and Bars
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Clubs and Lounges
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Shops and Bookstores
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Breweries and Wine
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Attractions and Nonprofits
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Find other LGBTQ+ friendly businesses in Destination Ma