Wynwood is finally getting a gay bar.
Not a bar that occasionally throws gay parties on weeknights. Not a restaurant that hosts bachelorette-packed drag brunches. (Though those are all great, too).
Willy's is the full-fledged, no-frills LGBTQ+ bar that's long been missing in the bustling mainland neighborhood known for its colorful street art and nightlife. Though Miami has an estimated 190,000 LGBTQ+ residents, the metro area has only a handful of gay clubs and bars, and most of them are across the bridge in Miami Beach.
"We want this bar to feel like it's been in the neighborhood for decades, and that the current Wynwood, with all its growth and gentrification, has been built around it," says Willy's cofounder, José Atencio.
Atencio, Jor-El Garcia and Scott Bernardez are helping to recenter Miami's gay community, placing a stronger emphasis on locals. Six years ago this June, in tandem with World Pride Month, they launched Wynwood Pride. In that span, the grassroots fest has grown from a weekend-long party to a full month of Pride events across the city. (Previously, Miami's only Pride festivities played out during Miami Beach Pride, an annual celebration happening now, in the relatively cooler month of April.)
This weekend's grand opening of Willy's Neighborhood Bar reinforces their original mission to carve out more space for those who call Miami home. "This has been a dream of ours since we started producing LGBTQ+ events in Miami," says Atencio. After years of being asked to do gay nights at straight bars on the least desirable days of the week, it became apparent that the community needed its own, full-time LGBTQ venue. "We strategically turned them down because the offers didn't feel authentic or fair."
Then they came across the space that would become Willy's. Located in an intimate, indoor section of the now-shuttered Shots Bar, the team envisioned a small, magical space where everyone is welcomed. The 75-person bar is cozy, camp, cheerful and, in this economy, affordable. "We took the features we love most from our favorite gay bars around the world and brought them to Willy’s," Atencio says. "Because no one is more deserving of the best than this Miami community."
We took the features we love most from our favorite gay bars around the world and brought them to Willy’s.
Expect specialty cocktails created by beverage and operations director Roger Lords priced from $11 to $13 and beers and seltzers starting at $7. Happy hours will be offered from 5 to 7pm on Thursday and Friday, with $8 cocktails and $2 off bar bites. Atencio's family-run shop, Milly's Empanadas, is on snack duty, serving up convenient handhelds like tequeños, mini empanadas and pastelitos for $8.
As for Willy's programming, the team is drawing on their years of experience running the neighborhood Pride festival to platform a stellar lineup of local queer talent. Guests can look forward to dance parties, themed nights, RuPaul watch parties and album release nights. And, save the occasional special event, there won't ever be a cover charge.
Atencio says, "Our hope is that people new to the neighborhood will walk by and say to themselves, 'Cool! Wynwood has a gay neighborhood bar!?'"
The Basics
Willy's Neighborhood Bar is located at 356 Northwest 24th Street, Miami, FL 33127. The Grand Opening is this weekend, during Miami Beach Pride. Regular hours are Thursday through Sunday from 5pm to 3am.