It doesn’t take long to see that Guerneville, a quaint town on California’s Russian River, is in transition. One passes four different real estate agent storefronts within three blocks while walking downtown, and the pros and cons of all new Airbnb rentals are a constant topic of conversation.
Originally a forest outpost, Guerneville became a major holiday destination for LGBTQ people in the 1970s and 1980s. The region’s first gay resort was opened in 1978 – and the riverside town is known as “gay riviera” from.
Today, Guerneville is known for hosting Sloth Bear Week and Russian River Women’s Weekendas well as other major events in the Northern California LGBTQ community.
But like many California vacation destinations, rising housing prices threaten Guernville’s unique way of life. The median cost of a house in Guerneville is now $654,849, according to Zillowa 100% increase since 2013. These skyrocketing housing costs—due to short-term rentals, a more affluent tourist class (including wealthy LGBTQ vacationers), and relocated remote workers—present changing and challenges.
The surrounding community of Guerneville, located along the Russian River, is seen from the air in August 2014.
George Rose/Getty ImagesThe desire to embrace these changes – without losing what makes Guerneville unique – reaches its climax at El Barrio, a tequila and mezcal bar serving craft cocktails in the heart of downtown.
“People are afraid of losing the LGBT aspect. And some people worry about gentrification, that [Guerneville] is going to become like Healdsburg,” said El Barrio owner Jimmy Kansau, referring to another Sonoma County town known for extremely wealthy tourists.
El Barrio was originally created by celebrity chef Crista Luedtke, which operates several high-end properties in Guerneville. Luedtke’s projects in Guerneville are so ubiquitous that she is often referred to as the town’s unofficial mayor. Kansau bought and took over El Barrio de Luedtke about a year ago – partly to keep it from becoming a sports bar – and made some changes, while trying to maintain what made the bar a favorite with foreigners and residents look alike.
The bar, which offers a number of premium tequilas and mezcals at El Barrio in Guerneville, California
Gabe Lehman/SFGATEThe canteen offers more than a dozen specialty cocktails, mezcal tastings, and beer and wine on tap in a small but strikingly decorated bar. Kansau created much of the art that adorns the bar’s walls himself, and the bathroom — which features a hand-painted black-and-white toilet — lives up to its must-have reputation.
The bathroom, with a hand-painted toilet, at El Barrio in Guerneville, California.
Gabe Lehman/SFGATEThe bar offers traditional drinks like Moscow Mules and Manhattans, but mixologist Jodi Harwood is working on revamping the cocktail menu. She’s particularly proud of a creation called El Nopal, a spin on a Mezcal margarita with Prickly Pear, Gran Marnier, agave and topped with a rim of habanero black salt. The El Patron, a kind of Old Fashioned with mezcal, is another favorite.
El Nopal from El Barrio, which is a twist on a mezcal margarita and topped with a rim of habanero black salt.
The neighborhoodEl Barrio is gearing up to launch a new drink that will feature watermelon and habanero-infused tequila, though Harwood cautions that the habanero flavor isn’t just a frill. The drink is legitimately spicy, and not for the faint-hearted.
A menu of Latin-influenced bar snacks, including fries, guacamole, and tacos, complements the craft cocktails. Everything is tasty, but the cod ceviche alone is worth the trip.
Chips and ceviche at El Barrio in Guerneville, CA.
Gabe Lehman/SFGATEA small town in the redwoods, about 2,600 miles north of Oaxaca, might not seem like a natural fit for a mezcal bar. But Guerneville’s resort atmosphere plays into the mind’s growing popularity.
“I think people equate mezcal and tequila and all those drinks with a vacation,” Kansau said. This is to the benefit of the bar, as no business in Guerneville could survive without the region’s tourist industry.
But El Barrio staff are making a concerted effort to reach locals as well. They began instituting Locals Nights and offering friend and family discounts for other service industry professionals. The program obviously works, with many servers and bartenders from nearby restaurants coming to El Barrio after their shifts.
In one case, the manager of another local establishment came to El Barrio after his mother died. Kansau closed the bar to let the man cry in peace.
On that note, Harwood, the mixologist, noted that she often feels like a therapist when tending to the bar in El Barrio.
“Everyone likes to go wild when they come to the bar and have a drink, then they have another drink, and then they really let you know what’s going on in their life,” Harwood said.
The camaraderie between establishments resonated with the neighboring Rainbow Cattle Company.
“Oh, we love them! What a beautiful space,” said Rainbow Cattle Company regular Tom (he didn’t want to include his last name), when asked about El Barrio. Rainbow Cattle Company, which is just three doors down, is a historic gay dive bar that was established in 1979. While there were once 15 gay bars in the Guerneville area, the Rainbow, as it is known , is one of the remaining three.
The exterior of the Rainbow Cattle Company in Guerneville, California.
YAPAlthough he is thrilled with El Barrio, Tom mentioned how accommodation has become an issue, and some point to the types of tourists El Barrio caters to as the reason for soaring accommodation costs.
“Actually, we need social housing or we can’t have workers. But we don’t need homeless people,” said Tom. As in the Bay Area, soaring housing prices, coupled with the opioid crisis, have increased the homeless population in Guerneville.
The increase in short-term rentals is also affecting people who are lucky enough to own a home.
“I hear people say that on weekends they want to chill, but they have an Airbnb brotherhood on both sides,” said Lee Liverock, a Rainbow regular who has lived in Guerneville since 1986. no way to Direct.”
El Barrio and Rainbow Cattle Company are on the north side of Guerneville’s main street, River Road, and if you don’t think the side of the street matters, you haven’t spent much time in Guerneville. McT’s Bullpen, a saloon on the south side of River Road, serves a noticeably different clientele.
“There is a big joke in Guerneville if you are from the area. You are currently on the side of Guern-Tucky. The other side is Guern-Vegas. Guern-Vegas is all about glitz and fun. And then you have this side of town. said McT boss Jennifer Laducca, who has lived in town since the mid-2000s.
That’s not to say the McT’s crowd has anything against gay culture across town: the bar proudly waves a rainbow flag outside its entrance. But there’s no denying the palpable difference crossing the River Road makes.
Crista Luedtke after the reopening of her Boon restaurant in Guerneville in August 2020.
San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst N/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty ImagesThe influx of new money and new people, and the way those people tend to gravitate towards places like El Barrio, has rubbed some McT’s residents the wrong way.
Laducca said she had served as general manager and bartender at another restaurant in town, but was unable to follow up on offers from El Barrio. She added that Luedtke’s “unofficial mayor” moniker bothered some locals because another person held that title before Luedtke came to town.
Despite these frustrations, everyone in Guerneville I spoke to agreed that in the face of the recent influx of money and new people, Guerneville remains an incredibly supportive place that hasn’t lost its small-town vibe.
“People still look at each other like it’s a real community,” Rainbow’s Tom said, before pausing to reconsider his wording. “And it’s really [a community] – it’s not “as if”.
If that support is shown with a mezcal margarita on Locals Night, then good for El Barrio.
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