Pony (Seattle)
{{Short description|Gay bar in Seattle, Washington, U.S.}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox venue
| name = Pony
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| logo_image = File:Pony (Seattle) logo.png
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| image = Late March 2024 in Seattle - 04 (cropped).jpg
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| caption = The bar's exterior in 2024
| pushpin_map = Washington
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| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Washington
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| address = 1221 E. Madison Street
| location = Seattle, Washington, U.S.
| coordinates = {{Coord|47.61309|-122.31575|type:landmark_region:US-WA|display=inline,title}}
| type = Gay bar
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| website = {{URL|ponyseattle.com}}
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Pony is a gay bar in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, in the U.S. state of Washington.
Description and history
File:Pony, Seattle, 2018 - 4.jpg
Pony is an LGBT-owned{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2021-06-01 |title=LGBTQ-Owned Businesses & Restaurants in Seattle You Can Support Right Now |url=https://seattlerefined.com/lifestyle/lgbtq-owned-businesses-restaurants-in-seattle-you-can-support-right-now |access-date=2024-05-16 |website=Seattle Refined |language=en}} bar located at 1221 E Madison Street in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood. It is housed in a 1930s building that served as a gas station. Seattle Weekly described Pony as a "one-of-a-kind bar that pays tribute to New York's Castro and West Village bars of the 1970s".{{cite web|title=Best Gay Bars in Seattle|url=http://seattle.cbslocal.com/top-lists/best-gay-bars-in-seattle/|publisher=CBS|accessdate=January 4, 2016|date=January 9, 2014|archive-date=November 30, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151130105524/http://seattle.cbslocal.com/top-lists/best-gay-bars-in-seattle/|url-status=live}}
In 2014, in response to the neighborhood's changing demographics, the bar's manager displayed a sign which read, "Attention: This is a gay bar. A very gay bar. If you aren't queer (or a respectful ally), get lost. This isn't a zoo and we're not your pets."{{cite web|last=Reynolds|first=Ross|title=Why Is Capitol Hill No Longer the Gay Epicenter of Seattle?|url=http://kuow.org/post/why-capitol-hill-no-longer-gay-epicenter-seattle|publisher=KUOW|accessdate=January 4, 2016|archive-date=December 31, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151231020358/http://kuow.org/post/why-capitol-hill-no-longer-gay-epicenter-seattle|url-status=live}}
Reception
In 2013, Seattle Weekly readers voted for Pony as the best gay bar in Seattle. The paper's Zach Geballe said of the bar and its clientele:
Let's be blatantly clear: Pony is not a bar for those who only dabble in gay culture. While other Capitol Hill bars try to appeal to both a gay and straight clientele, Pony is unabashedly aimed at gay males. If you were unsure of this upon entering, the gay pornography plastered on almost every inch of the space will reassure you very quickly that you are in fact in a gay bar. Because it doesn't pander to a straight crowd, it remains relevant to several generations of gay guys in Seattle without going too far down the nightclub rabbit hole. Drinks are affordable and (pun intended) stiff, and I'm led to believe that it still serves as one of the city's better meat markets. Oh, and there's a gloryhole in the bathroom, if that's your thing.{{cite news|last1=Geballe|first1=Zach|title=Best Gay Bar: Pony|url=http://www.seattleweekly.com/bestof/948058-129/gay-bar-pony-straight-1221-324-2854|accessdate=January 4, 2016|work=Seattle Weekly|date=August 6, 2013|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304094938/http://www.seattleweekly.com/bestof/948058-129/gay-bar-pony-straight-1221-324-2854|url-status=live}}The Stranger quipped, "The gays know how to have fun: They know it, you know it, I know it, and Pony is more fun per inch than anywhere in town, if not the world."{{cite news|title=Pony|url=http://www.thestranger.com/locations/274521/pony|accessdate=January 4, 2016|work=The Stranger|archive-date=February 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160213125147/http://www.thestranger.com/locations/274521/pony|url-status=live}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Portal|LGBTQ|United States}}
- {{Commons category-inline|Pony (Seattle)}}
- {{Official website|http://www.ponyseattle.com}}
{{Capitol Hill, Seattle}}
{{LGBTQ culture in Seattle}}
Category:Capitol Hill, Seattle
Category:Gay culture in Washington (state)
Category:LGBTQ drinking establishments in Washington (state)