The Eagle (gay bars)
Naming shared by multiple unaffiliated gay bars
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The Eagle is a shared unofficial naming convention adopted by multiple gay bars. It is not a franchise or chain of gay bars, but rather a common name inspired by The Eagle's Nest, an original leather bar in New York City. Bars that operate under the "Eagle" name typically cater to a clientele of gay men in leather and other kink subcultures. As of 2017, over 30 gay bars in locations around the world operated under the name "Eagle".[1]
History
The first gay bar to operate under the name "The Eagle" was The Eagle's Nest (now named Eagle NYC), located in New York City.[1] The bar originally operated as a tavern for longshoremen that opened in 1931 under the name Eagle Open Kitchen.[2] Prompted by the Stonewall riots in 1969 and subsequent growth of the city's gay culture, the tavern's owners converted the establishment into a gay bar in 1970.[1] The Eagle's Nest became a popular gathering point for the city's gay leather subculture, biker groups, and sports clubs, and subsequently inspired the creation of similarly named gay bars across the United States and internationally.[1] Beginning around 1977, the name "Eagle" got adopted by several bars in Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and then nationwide; their respective owners, being otherwise unrelated, unofficially agreed to share the naming convention so long as the venues remained centered around leather aesthetic associated with a gay male identity.[3]
At their peak popularity, over 50 bars around the world operated under the name "Eagle".[4] In 2017, there were 30 Eagle bars, in countries including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand.[1] The decline in the number of LGBTQ+ establishments, including the "Eagle" bars, is attributed to the takeover by geo-locating dating apps in gay hookup culture.[5]
Naming and theme focus
Gay bars that use the name "Eagle" operate as independent businesses, and are not managed by a single corporate entity like a franchise or chain.[1] Rather, Eagle bars typically share the trait of catering to a clientele of masculine-presenting gay men, with specific emphasis on the kink and leather subcultures.[1] The diffuse nature of the ownership of the name "Eagle" resulted in a conflict in 2007 between two gay bar owners in Portland, Oregon who both sought to use the name for their respective bars.[6] The similar situation occurred in Chicago, with two bars using this naming convention simultaneously as of 2026.[7] Many Eagle bars hold (or held) annual leather competitions, some of which serve as feeder competitions for larger regional or international competitions such as International Mr. Leather.[8][9][10]
Not all Eagle bars conform to these characteristics; for example, Eagle London began as a leather bar before shifting towards a general LGBT clientele,[11] while Eagle Tokyo bills itself as a "Brooklyn-style" bar targeted towards bears.[12] Some Eagle locations historically enforced strict dress codes obligating patrons to wear leather garments, though these standards have largely been relaxed due to "both societal changes and business realities".[1]
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