Rawhide was the most high-profile to go, closing in 2013, after 34 years in business, when its rent nearly doubled.
Welcome to one of the last remaining leather bars in Chelsea.īars similar to The Eagle, including The Lure, The Spike, and Rawhide dotted Chelsea in the 80’s and 90’s, but all have closed as the neighborhood has gone upscale. A single, dim, glowing red light shines in the doorway, which is cased over in plastic streamers reminiscent of a meat-packing plant. Unlike other gay bars in Chelsea that are adorned with bright, colorful lights, a rainbow flag, and made complete by the sounds of pop music rattling the sidewalk, The Eagle on West 28th Street, between 10th and 11th avenues, is dark and quiet. On a block that exemplifies the changing landscape of Chelsea – industrial buildings on one side and luxury apartment buildings on the other – a throwback of New York’s gay scene lives on.
