Home Sweet Home (Almost): Astoria to Welcome Queen’s Only Lesbian Bar

Queens is arguably one of the most diverse places on Earth, with a wide array of people, culture, languages, and cuisine represented and celebrated. With that being said, how is it even  remotely possible that Queens doesn’t have a lesbian bar?!

Enter: Kristin “Dave” Dausch; a powerhouse performer and aspiring entrepreneur changing exactly that.

Originally from Indiana, they’ve lived in Astoria for over a decade and have been heavily involved in both the Astoria community as well as queer community. Dausch has been hosting a predominantly queer open-mic night for the past three years, which is currently held every Sunday at These Are The Good Old Days, and that’s where they realized the neighborhood’s need for a space for Astoria’s LGBTQ+ community: “People [need] a space to be vulnerable, make music and be together…[there] needs to be more hubs where we can make a difference in real time in our communities.” Although Astoria is already home to a handful of queer bars and businesses, Dave’s Lesbian Bar is hoping to add to that family and be the third lesbian bar in all of New York City, joining Cubbyhole and Henrietta Hudson which are both in Manhattan.

In late June, they launched their fundraising platform which has already made headlines across New York City. Not only have they received over $21,000 in donations through their GoFundMe, but they’ve had incredible turnout and support at their monthly pop-ups, geared towards bringing the community together and highlighting queer-led businesses. “People are coming out of everywhere and offering up their skills because it takes a village,” shared Dausch. The first pop-up in late July outside Heart of Gold welcomed over 700 people throughout the day (on the open streets as remaining covid-conscious is key) where guests could get undercuts and tattoos while enjoying live music. “It blew me away. It was the best day of my life so far until our next pop-up! It’s scary to take a leap like this and us seeing the community on that day was enough for us to [know] it’s worth every risk.”

They just hosted their second pop-up on Saturday, August 28, outside Diamond Dogs in which Dausch added more elements to the lineup including comedians, a queer craft fair as well as a back-to-school fundraiser drive in collaboration with Astoria Mutual Aid. In order to attend, people were encouraged to bring in school supplies such as backpacks and three-ring binders. Dausch shares that, “It’s not really about raising money for the bar; we’re investing in the community. Buy your stuff from queers and bring something to help the kids go back to school in Astoria, in our community.” It’s evident that what sets Dave’s Lesbian Bar is their genuine commitment to the community as well as weaving the mutual aid component into all facets of the initiative. “If you have a skill that you want to share, come talk to us. Slide into our DMs, we want to hear from our community about what they need.”

Although covid brings a level of uncertainty as to the debut date of the bar, Dausch is exhilarated about the future and what this community can achieve together. When asked why the bar will be in Astoria, “I’m not going to be behind the bar where I couldn’t tell you where to go get good food afterwards! This is home, this is where I became the queer adult that I am today.” They’ll continue hosting monthly pop-ups until the bar opens, with the next one on Sunday, September 26 (location TBD). Check out @daveslesbianbar for the latest info and don’t hesitate to reach out to [email protected] for any and all inquiries!

You can also donate and help fuel their cause at gofundme.com/f/daves-lesbian-bar.com