Club Café: A Boston Landmark and Favorite Queer Culture Venue
I came to Boston for college in 1996 to study music, and it didn’t take long for me to learn about some of the city’s best venues for musical artists. My background had been both in classical music and in musical theater, including the Great American Songbook classics. I always had a fondness, and still do, for jazz clubs and cabaret-style music. At Club Café, you arrive at a perfect setting where you can enjoy fine dining, cocktails, music from all genres, dancing and queer-friendly performances.
Boston has a long history of queer culture, especially in the nightlife scene. Jacques Cabaret, which opened in 1938, was considered a safe place to gather and perform, as was Playland Café. Since 1983, Club Café has continued to offer fabulous entertainment and cuisine and is still one of the city’s most popular and progressive venues.
Boston has a rich history with music and theater, reaching back at least 200 years to the city’s first playhouse in 1794. The Theater District in Boston encompasses several great theatrical halls: The Wang Theatre (formerly The Metropolitan Theatre), The Shubert Theatre, The Colonial Theater, andThe Boston Opera House, to name a few. The nightlife in Boston is bursting with activity, with other, more intimate clubs like Scullers Jazz Club, The Rockell, and City Bar rounding out the wealth of different options.
To me, what makes Club Café so special is that the venue is so completely welcoming to the entire community. For such a popular spot in an active part of the city, the establishment is in no way exclusive or trendy. It is one of only a few places in the city of Boston where you can enjoy a fine-dining experience, while watching a class-act cabaret performance, then head over to the bar for a cocktail before landing in the dance space in the back. It’s incredible that it offers so much all in one space.
The last time I was at Club Café, a dear friend of mine from my early performing days was the guest performer, and she sang and told stories from her life to a crowd of her closest friends and family. The website for the club has all the updated events where you can find the perfect kind of entertainment for your availability. I counted 19 individual events scheduled for this week alone. The weekend brunch on Saturdays and Sundays is amazing. Later in the day this Sunday, Sept. 1st there is the ABBA Tea Dance or, if you are more in the mood to take in a cabaret, the sweet-voiced Pamela Enders is performing at 6:00pm. Throughout the week you can choose from Drag Bingo, trivia, karaoke, several other cabaret acts and more dancing opportunities.
During my time in Boston while in college and for several years afterwards, I would periodically find myself drawn back to Club Café. Whether I was there to eat, drink, listen or dance (I don’t really “dance”), I always felt like I was surrounded by interesting, like-minded and friendly people. Sometimes certain establishments just understand what the community really needs, and at Club Café, you avoid all the stuffiness of an exclusive spot and in return you may feel right at home, in a place that will somehow always be there for you.