It\u2019s hard out here for your local queer watering hole. <\/p>\n
New York City gay bar owners have revealed that they are facing new financial hardships due to plunging drinking rates among younger customers, per a feature in Gay City News<\/a> (GCN).<\/p>\n \u201cThe younger generation doesn\u2019t like to drink, it seems,\u201d Kurt Kelly, one of the Stonewall Inn\u2019s owners, told GCN<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s hurting businesses \u2014 it\u2019s hurting ours, too,\u201d he added. \u201cWe\u2019re surviving.\u201d<\/p>\n Several bars have even admitted to having to close early due to low patronage. While bars are technically permitted to stay open until 4 a.m. in New York<\/a>, and have since the state liquor authority was established after Prohibition<\/a> in 1934, some management is choosing to close early to save money even if their license allows otherwise.<\/p>\n \u201cWe certainly saw a shift after the pandemic,\u201d Daniel Tobey, general manager of The Monster, told GCN<\/a>. \u201cThe late nights went from 4 a.m. to 2 a.m. For years and years, it didn\u2019t work that way. We were open no matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n The hit to gay bars\u2019 bottom lines comes amid a crisis of gay bars permanently shuttering their doors nationwide<\/a>. Threats to gay bars come from many angles, including rising operating costs, conflicts with landlords, and now, a turnaround in alcohol consumption habits. <\/p>\n Gallup<\/a> polling released in August shows that rates of drinking among Americans are at a record low, with only 54% of adults saying they drink alcohol. For only the second time since asking Americans whether drinking is bad for your health, a majority of respondents agreed that alcohol is not good for you, up from 27% in 2001. <\/p>\n In both 2023 and 2026, when Gallup took polls on drinking, drinking rates were lowest among 18-34 year olds. <\/p>\n In 2025, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy released a report linking even small amounts of alcohol consumption to several forms of cancer<\/a>, including breast cancer and colon cancer.<\/p>\n Researchers have noted a myriad of reasons for the downturn in American drinking habits, including the lasting fallout from the still ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. During that time, according to researchers<\/a>, drinking habits lost the social aspect and may have accrued a stigma due to the effects of drinking in isolation. <\/p>\n Reduced drinking habits have hit many others in the service industry, as well, including restaurants that rely on alcohol sales to meet their bottom line, per the New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n For queer establishments in particular, owners and managers say that a rise in THC products and online cruising through tools such as Grindr or Sniffies have both reduced foot traffic to bars. (Of course, much has been written<\/a> about the peculiar interplay<\/a> between the gay bar and the use of hookup apps, which is already on the decline<\/a> among gen Z, as well.) <\/p>\n Jason Carver, general manager of Nowhere Bar, told GCN that many patrons come to the bar to order water without spending money and that sales of non-alcoholic drinks have gone up, with many people avoiding pricey brands altogether. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m in the process of getting rid of high-end stuff \u2014 Grey Goose, Mezcal, high-end tequilas,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople just don\u2019t want to spend that much money on alcohol.\u201d<\/p>\n The Monster, too, has adapted with a non-alcoholic menu. <\/p>\n \u201cIt used to be that people would ask for something sparkly and juicy \u2014 whatever was behind bar,\u201d Tobey told GCN. \u201cThe trend now is to give people an experience. Literally, when you sell these drinks in a can, part of the marketing is to make it look like a cocktail because some people don\u2019t want it to be obvious they\u2019re not drinking.\u201d<\/p>\n Carver joked that one demographic is reliable when it comes to dropping dollars. <\/p>\n \u201cYou still get certain crowds that will spend money, like the bear crowd,\u201d Carver told GCN, joking that \u201cthe bear crowds are keeping bars afloat.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThese guys are not afraid of a few extra calories,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n