Every Friday evening, partygoers descend on Capitol Hill’s Queer bars for a night of dancing, drinks, and drag shows. To meet this consistent demand for a good time, each one prepares someone for the front lines who can mix a good cocktail, set the tone for the evening, watch out for the overly intoxicated, and juggle numerous customers at a time.

Have you ever squeezed your way toward a countertop on a packed Friday night, trying to get the bartender’s attention? If so, have you imagined the bartender’s perspective?

“It’s not for the weak,” Lauren, a veteran bartender at the Wildrose, said. “It’s high stress, high chaos, high volume. You’re essentially a babysitter for drunk adults... When I first turned 21, I would drive in from Maple Valley and visit this place all the time. [The Wildrose] has a special spot in my heart, and I want to keep it going for the next generation for the next generation of small-town girls.”

The SGN spoke with several bartenders about their love of the craft and their favorite drinks to make (many said those were whatever was the easiest to serve). Joshua E, who works at the Gay sports bar Madison Pub, told me their favorite was water: “I just think it’s good for you. Helps you live longer, exfoliates the skin.”

A commonality was the bartenders’ love for each of the bars and their ability to create community, connection, and peace of mind. Some felt their first tangible connection to the LGBT+ community under a Gay bar’s roof. For others, the bars were places to escape from stress and uncertainty, and over time, they just ended up staying.

Nick Panaikas is the bouncer and barback at Diesel, a Gay bear bar. With its red-hot masculine aesthetic and fearless sexuality, Nick recognizes that Diesel won’t appeal to everyone, but he takes pride in his work serving those who do, providing for people with his shared interests.

“I love our community and, you know, these are our safe spaces,” he said. “The more fun and more safe I can make things around here, the better I feel,” Panaikas said.

Further down Pike Street, Olivia serves coffee and cocktails at Gemini Room, a hip lounge with colorful lighting and plushy seating. Olivia’s a newer team member, but she has a half-decade history of serving drinks.

“I used to work at a club, and that’s a very different environment,” Olivia said. “We would put out a lot of fast, easy drinks, like vodka sodas, whereas here we’re making craft cocktails. We have more time, and we also close earlier than most bars. That means we have fewer people who are belligerent walking in. It’s just not that kind of place, and that brings less stress on us.”

While guiding a young gal in a bucket hat through the Wildrose’s stash of CBD drinks, Lauren reflected on some of her happier memories.

“Every year after we finish serving Pride, we always do a big, family-style dinner at Bang Bang Café, to celebrate ourselves for surviving another year,” she said. “This is my Wildrose family, and though I work at other bars, this is my happy place.”