Get Out! GAY Magazine – Issue 507

Why do you feel that patrons frequent
your bar rather than other bars?
To be honest, I’m not sure that people
frequent Rise and the Spot more than other
local LGBTQ+ bars. But I do think one
thing that sets us apart is how much pride
we take in having friendly staff and going
above and beyond to accommodate our
customers, their needs, and their wishes.
We really go out of our way to ensure that
our patrons have a safe and welcoming
environment whenever they’re inside our
walls.
Is there a favorite night or event for you,
and why?
I love our drag brunches. They’re fairly new,
but the positive customer response to them
has been overwhelming! Seeing how much
people enjoy these shows and receiving
their glowing feedback is so encouraging
and makes me really happy.
What advice would you give to those
who dream of having a career like yours?
Get ready to be on call 24/7, and know that
sometimes stress from your job will keep
you up at night. It’s a big sacrifice, so you
have to be sure you really love what you do
if you’re going to make that commitment.
A lot of people see owners and managers
hosting or giving out drink tickets, and
they think based on this that the job is
easy and mostly fun. But what you see in
those moments is just the tiny tip of a huge
iceberg. That “front-of-house” aspect of the
job only accounts for a minority of
what we do. The behind-the-scenes
logistics of running a business are
a lot less glamorous and a lot more
tedious and time-consuming!
Could you give us an overview
of your weekly entertainment
lineup and happy hour specials
and hours?
Our happy hour special is halfprice
drinks, and it runs daily from
opening until 9 P.M. Our weekends
are packed with shows! Brunch happens
on both Saturday and Sunday, with two
seatings each day. Izzy Uncut and Skye
Walker host the Saturday brunch, while
Holly Box-Springs and Egypt do Sundays.
Then, on Sunday night, we have Playground
Sundays with Chicky Gorgina and Jacklynn
Hyde.
Our Monday night event is called Messy
Mondays, and it’s hosted by Pissi Myles and
Jasmine Rice LaBeija. Tuesdays, we have
Cut Throat Karaoke with Emily McNamara,
and our Legend Wednesdays star Marti
Gould Cummings, Pattaya Hart, Lexington
Banks, and Bootsie LeFaris. But that’s
not all we have—for a complete list of our
weekly shows, check out risebarnyc.com!
You and your co-owners have also
recently added a sister bar to the Hell’s
Kitchen community. Would you like to
speak about it and add anything else that
we didn’t cover?
If you haven’t yet checked out our sister bar,
the Spot, please do so! It has a lot of special
things in common with Rise, including a
huge stage and amazing sound system.
The Spot is not yet allowed to stay open
until 4 A.M.. on weekends, but we recently
received approval for a license change that
includes those later operating hours. That
change will most likely enter into force in
spring 2023. Once that happens, we will
hold a relaunch of our weekend events and
start some exciting new things as well.
PHOTO CREDIT: WILSONMODELS