That time iconic WeHo gay bar The Abbey tried to score with a raunchy reality show of its own
West Hollywood gay bar The Abbey was for sale, leaving the future of the historic hot spot up in the air.The Abbey Food & Bar has serving the community since it first opened its doors in 1991, quickly becoming a tentpole of the Los Angeles gayborhood.
And while we’re not too worried about its next chapter—seems likely another buyer will soon snatch the hot property up and keep the party going—the news reminded us of another time The Abbey was going through some big changes…Back in 2015, original founder Dave Cooley bought his bar back from entertainment company SBE Group (he sold a majority stake to them in ’06) with some ambitious plans.
The following year, he purchased the building next door, turning it into a conjoined cocktail-focused nightclub called The Chapel, expanding The Abbey’s footprint.That shift provided the backdrop for a short-lived reality series on E!
in 2017 called What Happens At The Abbey, a clear riff on the Vanderpump Rules formula. Of course, like Bravo’s Real Housewives spin-off, The Abbey’s show was much less about business machinations than it was the messy, messy sex and love lives of the bar and restaurant staff.(Notably, Lisa Vanderpump’s Pump Restaurant—a next-door neighbor to The Abbey in WeHo—shuttered earlier this month.)By focusing on one of the most famous gay bars in the world, you might think What Happens At The Abbey would be, well….
