Gym Buddies
The staff of Gym Sportsbar looks back on 10 years of dudes, brews, and Balls.
March 17, 2015
This month, Gym Sportsbar celebrates 10 years of beers, boys, and ball games. When Gym opened in 2005, some were skeptical of the idea of a gay sports bar. Ten years later, the Eighth Avenue hot spot is packed every night of the week with men who love its relaxed atmosphere. “Making 10 years when no one said we would make one feels amazing,” says owner Rick Schmutzler. “We’ve been here longer than Twitter has been around and plan to outlive them.” Schmutzler and co. will celebrate their first decade March 27 at Gym’s upcoming anniversary party, with celebrity guests and a silent auction. In anticipation of the bash, we asked some of Gym’s longtime staff to share their take on 10 years behind the bar, and just like any good game, the results were fun, sexy, and a little dangerous.
ERICH
“Something exciting happens every weekend. Occasionally we’ll get someone famous in. Lady Gaga has been here a couple of times. A couple of bar employees danced for her, so they’ve snuck her in, before she was as famous as she is now. She fit in great with the clientele—no one knew who she was!”
JUAN
“At one of our anniversary parties, when we were doing an hour-long open bar, people went crazy. Within four minutes a bottle broke and cut my finger, and I’m gushing blood everywhere. It wasn’t pretty. We’ve got everything here—sex, violence, fingers in people’s drinks.”
KEIRAN
“We get very rowdy customers. Even some of our regulars, the guys who come here three, four days a week. After nine years working here, some of the customers have become really good friends of mine—but that hasn’t stopped me from having to come out from behind the bar and put them into their coats when they were too drunk to do it themselves.”
SERGE
“I was attacked by a patron once. The guy got a little crazy. He got into a fight with another customer, I grabbed him and carried him outside, and while I was carrying him, he bit my finger. So I dropped him and the door guy grabbed him and the guy bit a huge chunk out of his cheek!”
STEVE
“When we first opened, 20 percent of the bar watched sports and the other 80 percent watched the guys who were watching. Over eight years, the dynamic has shifted. Now, 75 percent are actually watching the games—pretty amazing for a gay bar.”
Gym Sportsbar’s 10th Anniversary Party, March 27 at Gym Sportsbar, 167 Eighth Ave (btwn 18th/19th Sts), at 6pm; free. Visit gymsportsbar.com for more info.
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