Industry Bar, or simply Industry, is a

gay bar A gay bar is a drinking establishment that caters to an exclusively or predominantly lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) clientele; the term ''gay'' is used as a broadly inclusive concept for LGBT communities. Gay bars once served as ...

and

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

in the

Hell's Kitchen Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, is a neighborhood on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is considered to be bordered by 34th Street (or 41st Street) to the south, 59th Street to the north, Eighth Avenue to the eas ...

neighborhood of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

in New York City. Owned by Bob Pontarelli, it is a sister establishment to

Barracuda A barracuda, or cuda for short, is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus ''Sphyraena'', the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was ...

, a gay bar, and Elmo, a restaurant. Industry opened in 2010 and caters primarily to a crowd of young gay men and tourists. Its musical selection is mostly pop, and its live entertainment consists of a number of weekly

drag show A drag show is a form of entertainment performed by drag artists impersonating men or women. Typically, a drag show involves performers singing or lip-synching to songs while performing a pre-planned pantomime or dancing. There might also be so ...

s, many of which are hosted by internationally recognized

drag queen A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have usually been gay men, and part o ...

s. New York City

nightlife Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, bars, nightclubs, parties, live music, concerts, cabarets, theatre, c ...

journalists frequently note Industry as one of the top gay venues in Manhattan.

Description

Industry occupies the ground-floor space of a

Bauhaus The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the Bauhaus (), was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., 200 ...

-style office building on West

52nd Street 52nd Street is a -long one-way street traveling west to east across Midtown Manhattan, New York City. A short section of it was known as the city's center of jazz performance from the 1930s to the 1950s. Jazz center Following the repeal of ...

. It is situated directly across the street from

Therapy A therapy or medical treatment (often abbreviated tx, Tx, or Tx) is the attempted remediation of a health problem, usually following a medical diagnosis. As a rule, each therapy has indications and contraindications. There are many different ...

, another gay bar. Industry's design is based loosely on that of

Berghain Berghain () is a nightclub in Berlin, Germany. It is named after its location near the border between Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain in Berlin, and is a short walk from Berlin Ostbahnhof main line railway station.

, a famous nightclub in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, and its layout is "a little bit like a

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

, with walls all around and pockets that break loose and allow for an easy flow". The venue's interior features theatre lights, leather couches,

oriental rug An oriental rug is a heavy textile made for a wide variety of utilitarian and symbolic purposes and produced in " Oriental countries" for home use, local sale, and export. Oriental carpets can be pile woven or flat woven without pile, using v ...

s, a

rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

billiards table, "1970s-era black globe lamps",

disco ball A disco ball (also known as a mirror ball or glitter ball) is a roughly sphere, spherical object that reflects light directed at it in many directions, producing a complex display. Its surface consists of hundreds or thousands of facets, nearl ...

s and a wooden bar. The stage, located in the rear, is used predominantly for

s. The club caters primarily to gay men in their 20s to 40s, and it is known to attract a large tourist crowd. In a 2015 ''

Time Out New York ''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 328 cities in 58 countries worldwide. In 2012, the London edition becam ...

'' piece, Ethan LaCroix wrote: "Industry is a sprawling, high-ceilinged space, featuring a long concrete bar (manned by hunky, often shirtless bartenders)." '' New York'' magazine describes the establishment as "a welcome blend of the three types of gay bars you've come to expect in

: the tight-shirt lounge, the tank-top megaclub, and the casual-plaid cruising spot". The club's listing in

The Infatuation The Infatuation (formerly known as Immaculate Infatuation) is an American New York-based restaurant recommendation website and messaging service, created by former music industry executives Chris Stang and Andrew Steinthal in 2009. They are most ...

reads: "If you find yourself asking why... they have both disco balls and

paper lantern A paper lantern is a lantern made of thin, brightly colored paper. Paper lanterns come in various shapes and sizes, as well as various methods of construction. In their simplest form, they are simply a paper bag with a candle placed inside, a ...

s, you're not understanding the true appeal of Industry Bar.... Saturdays are the right night to be here—it's a great, energetic crowd with very high odds of meeting someone new." Tim Murphy of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' characterized the bar's musical selection as "relentlessly gay-pop", listing

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...

and

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

as playlist staples. A piece in ''New York'' magazine stated: "Excellent DJs spin genre-spanning pop mash-ups of

Erasure Erasure () is an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1985, consisting of lead vocalist and songwriter Andy Bell with songwriter, producer and keyboardist Vince Clarke, previously known as co-founder of the band Depeche Mode and a membe ...

and

Ke$ha Kesha Rose Sebert (; born March 1, 1987), formerly stylized as Ke$ha, is an American singer and songwriter. In 2005, at age 18, Kesha was signed to Kemosabe Records. Her first major success came in early 2009 after she was featured on America ...

, DJ Earworm mastermixes, and hits from

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

to Kanye to Cher to

Robyn Robin Miriam Carlsson (born 12 June 1979), known as Robyn (), is a Swedish pop singer, songwriter, record producer, and DJ. She arrived on the music scene with her 1995 debut album, ''Robyn Is Here'', which produced two Billboard Hot 100, ''Bil ...

to Cher."

History

Business partners Bob Pontarelli and Stephen Heighton began operating New York City

venues in 1991, when they opened the now-defunct Crobar in Manhattan's East Village. Their second establishment, a gay

dive bar A dive bar is typically a small, unglamorous, eclectic, old-style drinking establishment with inexpensive drinks; it may feature dim lighting, shabby or dated decor, neon beer signs, packaged beer sales, cash-only service, and a local clientele ...

called

, opened in

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

in 1995. After establishing Elmo, a restaurant, the pair opened Industry in December 2010, in a 4,000-square-foot space previously used as a parking garage. Heighton died the following year. In Industry's early days,

Peppermint Peppermint (''Mentha'' × ''piperita'') is a hybrid species of mint, a cross between watermint and spearmint. Indigenous to Europe and the Middle East, the plant is now widely spread and cultivated in many regions of the world.Euro+Med Plantbas ...

and

Dallas DuBois Daniel Logan, better known by his stage name Dallas DuBois, is an American actor and drag queen. Early life Daniel Logan was born in Long Island, New York, on June 9, 1986. Career Logan first started doing drag in 2008. He had previously used t ...

hosted a weekly themed drag show called "Queen" there. "Queen" is still running, and as of 2018, its rotating cast of

s included

Chelsea Piers Chelsea Piers is a series of piers in Chelsea, on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Located to the west of the West Side Highway ( Eleventh Avenue) and Hudson River Park and to the east of the Hudson River, they were originally a pa ...

and Pattaya Hart. As of the same year, Industry's other weekly drag shows were hosted by performers including

Sherry Vine Keith Levy, known professionally as Sherry Vine, is an American actor, drag queen, and musician. Vine is the creator and host of '' She's Living for This'', a variety series on here TV. Vine works primarily in New York City and on Fire Island, L ...

Tina Burner Kristian Seeber (born November 10, 1980), known professionally as Tina Burner, is an American drag performer most known for appearing in '' Shade: Queens of NYC'' and on the thirteenth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race''. She was a part of a boy ba ...

, Kizha Carr,

Monét X Change Monét X Change (born February 19, 1990), stage name of Kevin A. Bertin, is an American drag queen, singer, podcaster, and reality television personality. She is known for competing on the RuPaul's Drag Race (season 10), tenth season of ''RuPaul' ...

and

Phi Phi O'Hara Jaremi Lee Carey (born Jeremy Lee Carey; October 10, 1985) is an American actor, streamer, singer, cosplay artist, and former drag performer who performed under the name Phi Phi O'Hara. In the O'Hara persona, Carey came to international attention ...

Bob the Drag Queen Christopher D. Caldwell, better known as Bob the Drag Queen and Caldwell Tidicue, is an American drag queen, comedian, actor, activist, musician, and reality television personality. He is best known for winning the eighth season of ''RuPaul's D ...

had a show at the bar prior to appearing on ''

RuPaul's Drag Race ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, VH1 (season 9–14) and, beginning with the f ...

''. Like all New York City nightlife venues, Industry was ordered to cease operation for several months in 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. In July 2020, Pontarelli stated to journalist

Michael Musto Michael Musto (born December 3, 1955) is an American journalist who has long been a prevalent presence in entertainment-related publications, as well as on websites and television shows. Musto is best known as a columnist for '' The Village Voi ...

that "Industry has a difficult

landlord A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, land, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant (also a ''lessee'' or ''renter''). When a juristic person is in this position, the ...

.... utwe have no intention of closing." Since reopening at full indoor capacity in May 2021, the club has required proof of vaccination against COVID-19 for entry.

Reception

''New York'' magazine rates Industry 68 out of 100, indicating "not terrible". The club ranked 17th on ''Time Out New York'' 2022 list of "the 24 best gay bars in NYC". GayCities.com calls it "a true Hell's Kitchen nightlife landmark", while ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' notes it as "one of the most popular and successful bars in the area".

Vice News Vice News (stylized as VICE News) is Vice Media's current affairs channel, producing daily documentary essays and video through its website and YouTube channel. It promotes itself on its coverage of "under-reported stories". Vice News was create ...

staff included Industry on a 2016 list of New York City's "hottest gay nightlife spots", and Jeffrey James Keyes of '' Metrosource'' labeled it one of the city's top 50 gay bars in 2018. In his 2015 compilation of "the best gay bars in Hell's Kitchen", Ethan LaCroix of ''Time Out New York'' described Industry as a "sultry midtown drinkery". ShermansTravel places Industry among "the best gay and queer bars in Manhattan", calling it "industrial-chic" and identifying it as the most spacious gay bar in Hell's Kitchen. In 2014, Michael Musto, writing for ''

Paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distributed ...

'', ranked the venue second on his list of "the 30 best gay bars in Manhattan". He remarked: "You can't be gay without going to Hell's Kitchen bars, and this one is the shiniest and most happening, with drag shows and more drag shows!" In a

NewNowNext Logo TV (often shortened to Logo, and stylized as Logo.) is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched in 2005, Logo was originally dedicated to lifestyle and entertainment progr ...

piece, Musto referred to Industry as "the reigning home for the city's most established drag entertainment".

Miz Cracker Miz Cracker (born April 19, 1984) is the stage name of Maxwell Elias Heller, an American drag queen and television personality. He is best known for placing fifth on the tenth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and for being a runner-up on the fi ...

, who appeared on season 11 of ''Drag Race'', said: "Everyone who's anyone goes to see 'Queen' on Thursdays at this giant lounge. The wildest queens in the, well, industry perform numbers on a theme for some of the poshest gays in Hell's Kitchen, and everyone has a blast."

References

External links

* {{LGBT in New York 2010 establishments in New York City Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the LGBT community LGBT drinking establishments in New York City LGBT nightclubs in New York (state) Nightclubs in Manhattan

Description

History

Reception

See also

References

External links