For years, people have mourned the slow death of the lesbian bar. Only three are left in New York City, according to the Lesbian Bar Project, and fewer than two dozen total in the United States.
The pandemic’s toll on the service industry has not helped. Many L.G.B.T.Q. institutions closed to patrons in the spring of 2020; some never reopened.
But as full service has resumed at bars and nightlife has made a comeback, new pop-up sites have sought to fill the void and reimagine what lesbian spaces are for.
Dave’s Lesbian Bar, a monthly pop-up in Queens, is among them. For its February event — a Valentine’s Day-themed Heartbreaker’s Ball on Feb.