Tuesday, September 1, 2009
The Rathskeller Bar - Royal Oak? Michigan (Gay Bar)
The Rathskeller bar was located at Main and 11 Mile Rd. Bob Damron's 1968 guide book says that is was a "Mixed crowd or tourists" and it was "Collegiate" If you know anything about this bar, please post! Photos also!
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Rathskeller in Royal Oak was a mixed crowd by age rather than gender.
ReplyDeleteThey had a large lunch and dinner business (fantastic burgers).
Local sports figures would often be there (Tigers & Red Wings).
No entertainment but lax ID checks attracting many high school girls
and was known as an excellent local pick up bar.
Never had a reputation as a gay bar.
Back in the days when there was no open gay life whatsoever in Oakland County, this place - which was really a sort of faux-German-decorated college sports and beer bar of its time - had a little cardigan sweater college boy pick up scene very quietly and unobtrusively going on at one end of its bar. A friend of mine from Oakland Cty., who at the time I wasn't sure was gay or not, took me here a couple of times to "hang out" at the end of the bar with him. Apparently this was supposed to signal his gayness to me, but being from the big bad city, with its big bad gay bars, adult theaters, adult bookstores, cruising spots, etc., the subtlety was completely lost on me.
ReplyDeleteThe second commenter, could you email me? detroitsocialclub@gmail.com
DeleteWhen I Worked in Royal Oak in the 80s, we refered to it as the "Rat Cellar."
ReplyDeleteWell in my day in the early 1970 it was a bar frequent by PO people in there early 20's. It was open at 7:00 am so when the midnight shift got off work we could stop in for a cold beer and the most fantastic cheese and crackers. The Orange door as we refered to it at luch time was just full of PO people. My question is does anyone have the recipe for the cheese and cracker someone must know or have it if you do people post.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyyed reading this
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