Best Gay Bars & Bathhouses In El Monte
El Monte has no dedicated gay bars or bathhouses within its city limits. That is completely normal for a San Gabriel Valley suburb — the LGBTQ+ nightlife scene here is regional, built around Los Angeles proper, with most residents making a 25-to-45-minute drive west toward West Hollywood, Silver Lake, Downtown LA, or the North Hollywood corridor. The venues below are where El Monte locals actually go.
The El Monte LGBTQ+ Scene
Los Angeles has one of the largest and most diverse LGBTQ+ bar scenes in the world, and it is not all in one place. West Hollywood's Santa Monica Boulevard strip has the highest concentration, but some of the city's best queer nightlife lives in Silver Lake, Downtown LA, and Long Beach. For an El Monte resident, the most practical anchor is West Hollywood, the heart of LA's queer scene along Santa Monica Blvd, busy every night and wild on weekends. Silver Lake is a closer geographic option for some SGV drivers and offers a distinctly different, more alternative vibe. West Hollywood has an LGBTQ+ population of over 40%, and LA's queer history predates Stonewall by decades — the Mattachine Society was founded in Silver Lake in 1950, and the world's first permitted Pride parade happened in LA in 1970. There is no single gayborhood on the east side of town, but the drive in is well-established and most regulars pick one cluster and stay in it for the night.
Top Gay Bars & Bathhouses for El Monte Locals
The Abbey Food & Bar
Type: Gay bar / Restaurant / Drag venue
Location: 692 N Robertson Blvd, West Hollywood, CA — approx. 35 min from El Monte
Features: The most recognizable gay bar in LA and ground zero for all things WeHo nightlife, with four separate bars, a gigantic front patio, and a multi-tiered dance floor. Visitors enjoy a mix of DJ sets, drag shows, and relaxed patio seating.
Website: https://theabbeyweho.com
Micky's
Type: Gay club / Drag venue
Location: 8857 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood, CA — approx. 35 min from El Monte
Features: A quintessential West Hollywood destination for high-energy entertainment, with dynamic performances, professional DJs, and a dance floor that draws in locals and visitors alike. It offers two levels: a pulsating dance floor and a rooftop patio, and is popular for its go-go dancers and drag performances every night of the week.
Akbar
Type: Gay bar / Mixed queer bar
Location: 4356 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA (Silver Lake) — approx. 25 min from El Monte
Features: Since 1996, Akbar has been an oasis for the Silver Lake queer community and a grungier, more laid-back counterweight to West Hollywood's rowdy nightlife scene; in recent years the crowd has become more mixed, with people coming from Echo Park, Highland Park, and Northeast LA to dance in the backroom or have a drink in the comfortable front room.
Website: https://akbarsilverlake.com
The Eagle LA
Type: Leather / Bear bar
Location: 4219 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA (Silver Lake) — approx. 25 min from El Monte
Features: The scene at The Eagle is more for bears and the leather community, with highlights including the popular Sunday Beer Bust starting at 2pm, B Bar on Thursday nights, and Gear Night on the 3rd Friday of every month where leather/fetish dress code is strongly encouraged.
New Jalisco Bar
Type: Gay dive bar / Drag venue
Location: 245 S Main St, Los Angeles, CA (Downtown) — approx. 20 min from El Monte
Features: A gay dive bar with a goal of providing the Latinx LGBTQ+ community with a place to party, open for over 30 years and hosting regular drag performances with plenty of seating. Given El Monte's strong Latino community, this one resonates for many locals.
North Hollywood Spa
Type: Bathhouse / Gay sauna
Location: Vineland Ave, North Hollywood, CA — approx. 30 min from El Monte
Features: A 24-hour gay sauna and bathhouse in the Valley with sauna, steam rooms, cruising areas, garden sun deck, café, locker rooms, and dark rooms; it spans roughly 12,000 sq ft across two floors and houses over 100 private rooms.
Website: https://www.northhollywoodspa.com
Flex Spas Los Angeles
Type: Bathhouse / Gay sauna
Location: 4424 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA — approx. 30 min from El Monte
Features: