The ownership behind Thee Parkside may have a new “womxn and femme-centered queer bar” on tap in January, apparently in the 16th Street spot currently occupied by Bond Bar, which is the former Esta Noche.
The SF Standard has an announcement on a new Mission District bar just published on Tuesday, and it will be music to the ears of anyone who misses the old Lexington Club. “The mothership will be landing soon if the team behind Mother Bar — which describes itself as 'a little womxn and femme-centered queer bar' — opens on schedule,” the SF Standard says. "The new watering hole is expected to open at 16th and Valencia streets in mid-January."
While the SF Standard notes that this new Mother Bar will be owned by Thee Parkside owner Malia Spanyol, it does not say where on 16th and Valencia this new bar will be. But there is some ownership shuffling in the works at multiple 16th Street bars, and digging through the details, there are some clues.
Mission Local reported last week that the punk-rock and pool bar Kilowatt is on the selling block, and that “A new group of bartenders from the popular Potrero Hill music venues Bottom of the Hill and Thee Parkside have already applied for ownership.” So we do have a Thee Parkside connection there. But that same report also notes that “If the sale goes through, [Kilowatt owner Peter] Athanas said, the new owners will probably keep the name, but are likely to bring back the live music that he gave up on decades ago."
So if they’re keeping the name at Kilowatt, they’re not renaming the place Mother Bar. (And Mother Bar should not be confused with Mothership, a new-ish bar in the former Virgil’s Sea Room space, or Mother, the longtime drag extravaganza from Heklina that replaced Trannyshack, which ended its SF run in 2019 when Heklina moved out of town.)
Meanwhile, a separate Mission Local report from Monday notes that across from Kilowatt, Gestalt is also up for sale. But that report contains another detail: “Also five days ago, Bond Bar, located hardly more than a block away, 3079 16th St., announced on Instagram a change in ownership after an eight-year run.”
That Instagram post is seen above, “We’re happy to report that we’re passing the torch to new ownership starting January 1, 2023,” the post says. “Our wonderful staff are staying on with the new bar, so you’ll still get your fix of fun hospitality and comedy, just in a new environment.”
And further in the Mission Local piece on Gestalt being for sale, the site notes that Bond Bar owner Andrea Minoo “said she’s transferring ownership on Jan. 1, 2023, the owner of Thee Parkside bar, Malia Spanyol. Though Bond Bar will be renamed, the staff is staying, Minoo said.”
So the new owner being Malia Spanyol, plus the name change and January 1 transfer date, it sure appears Bond Bar will be this new “womxn and femme-centered queer bar.” And Bond Bar is in the former Esta Noche space, so there is some rich LGBTQ history there.
But the state and the SF Board of Supervisors have a say over liquor license transfers, so we’ll toast to everyone's best luck with those bureaucratic processes.
Related: This Is What's Happened Inside The Former Lexington Club, Now Known As Wildhawk [SFist]
Image: Kevin Y. via Yelp