GrayGay.com - the place for mature gay men, their admirers and the GrayGay Guide

California 2

San Diego

Bars/Clubs
The Caliph
3102 5th Avenue
298 9495
The place in San Diego for mature gay men and admirers. It's definitely a party: Drinks flow freely, the conversation is loud and rowdy, and in an enclosed padded deejay booth in one corner someone, accompanied by a piano and dressed the way a performer should be, belts out the sort of show stoppers that half the crowd can't resist singing along with.
Gray 50%, Admirer 50%, Rent 0%, Music 5, Cruise factor 6, Elegance 5

Bourbon Street
4612 Park Boulevard
San Diego CA 92116
Tel: 619-291-0173
One of the truly fabulous gay bars in San Diego. Inside it’s all woodsy and dark; in the spacious courtyard out back it’s all very New Orleans, with its brick, and greenery, and the wrought- iron railings on the balcony of the second store of this old San Diego structure. An entire, freshly-painted old-style house sits back there, porch and all, doing much to enhance the Southern coziness of this enclave. (Plans are underway to open this house up, no doubt affording customers new places to hang out in this multi-cornered spread.) A separate outdoor bar in this area gives one even less reason to ever want to leave. In the main indoor bar, a piano on a small stage in one corner plays host, almost-nightly, to some of the best, campiest singers this side of Broadway. Throw in “happy hour” drink prices (every day until 8pm) at “What the hell, bring me two!” prices, and you have a place that would make even the straightest of the straights want to stand up, throw their arms wide, and give that Judy Garland a run for her money.

Top of the Park
Park Manor Suites Hotel
3167 Fifth Avenue
San Diego, CA 92103. TEL: 619-296-0057.
As you're strolling by Fifth Avenue in Hillcrest on a Friday evening, the sounds of celebratory male voices radiate from on high throughout the neighborhood. What is this, a Kiwanis convention? Not quite. It's the Top of the Park's weekly happy hour (which also happens to a lesser degree on Tuesdays). Mostly older gay men convene here on the seventh floor of this fabulous 1926 apartment building-turned-hotel to enjoy sweeping views of the city from the balcony, or mingle inside under the amazing kidney-shaped acoustic ceilings. From the Inn at the Park restaurant and piano bar below, an intimate lounge with mellow pianists Wednesday through Sunday, also geared towards Hillcrest's male crowd, a friendly elevator attendant with dollar bills stuffed down her shirt takes you up to the scene upstairs.

Restaurants
The Inn at the Park.
The menu is good. I had a salmon salad that was great. The atmosphere is more upscale but not too pretentious. The clientele is almost exclusively silver haired and clean cut. I can't wait to have dinner there again. I would give the restaurant a 9 only because I can't give everything a 10.
I was seated in at a table that wasn't close enough to some of the other clientele and the waiter had me at another table in about 30 seconds. That level of hospitality is hard to come by. You really have to be observant to see my disappointment since I didn't think I was showing any. The Inn is a good complement to the Caliph which is a bar and has a bar atmosphere. While the Inn has a bar, which is full of beautiful older gents, it is a more congenial and pleasant atmosphere. A good place to catch your breath before the high stress of a bar atmosphere like the Caliph. Of course, if the Inn doesn't provide you with a dinner companion, the Caliph is less than a block away.
Groups/Organizations

Fellowship of Older Gays (FOG)
P.O. Box 4271
San Diego, CA 92164
Email: fogsandiego@hotmail.com
Tel: 619-702-4586
A social activities organization for gay men 40 and over. A fun-filled calendar of daily activities awaits all who qualify to join the fun
Prime Timers of San Diego
P. O. Box 633005
San Diego, CA 92163-3005 U. S. A.
Phone: (619) 291 7122 (between 8am and 9pm, daily)
Email: jaypinsd@aol.com
The purpose of Prime Timers is to provide mature Gay men and their admirers with opportunities to come together in a supportive atmosphere in order to enrich their lives with social, educational and recreational activities. Meets at David's Coffee Shop (on 5th Avenue, between Pensylvania Ave and Robinson) every Saturday at 10:00 for coffee and conversation.
Sage of California
3138 Fifth Ave.,
San Diego
CA 92103-5839
Tel: 619-298-9900
SAGE of California provides a place for Gay men to meet and socialize.
SRO
1807 5th Avenue
Tel: 332 1886
Seniors With A Purpose (SWAP)
3909 Centre St.
San Diego
CA 92103
Tel: 619-692-2077
SWAP's mission is to enrich the lives of the Gay Senior Community by providing and facilitating a variety of programs. SWAP offers referrals to a wide variety of agencies and service providers, and functions as an umbrella for senior organizations.
Saunas/Baths
Vulcan Steam and Sauna
805 West Cedar Street
San Diego, CA 92101
Tel: (619) 238-1980
Open 24 hours every day of the year. Special rates on Mondays and Wednesdays. On Monday and Wednesday afternoons, 40-50% of the men will be over 40 years of age. A good place to meet and play with mature men.
It's a very friendly place. Lockers are cheap on Wed. You can get a locker and a temporary membership for around 8 bucks. There is a regular clientelle on wed. The Vulcan caters to older men and the people who like them. There is a shortage of tops at the Vulcan, so if that is your persuasion, you'll have no trouble having fun.
There is also a large hispanic clientelle, most of them are also there for the older men. There are two porno rooms, with different levels of steps, people hang out there, wave their baton, and set up tricks. There is a very nice hot tub, an outdoor patio, sauna, and steam room. The steam room is only so-so. There is a large room with a big screen tv that shows mainstream movies. If a good film is on the cable, there may be 10-20 guys in there. There is also a bunk room, which is designed for people to take a nap.(but little napping goes on in there ;-) Also, if you have a locker and you find the right guy, there are four rooms that are available for trists.
Hotels/Accomodation
Banker Hill B&B
Cleanliness 10
Hospitality 10
Breakfast 5 (heavy continental and self serve)
Location: Excellent, only blocks away from Caliph, etc. and in a great neighborhood that is safe to walk around in
Would you stay there again? I plan to as soon as I make it back to SD.
Facilities: Hot tub which is clothing optional and which feeds a dipping pool. The dipping pool is too small to do any swimming but is designed to cool off as you sunbathe.
Rooms--4 one or two of which have private baths. There are ample shared shower facilities to accommodate the rest of the rooms. The second floor is also clothing optional.
Common rooms: Living room with couches and plenty of board
games, dining room which houses the pool table, and a den which has a couple
couches and a TV. There is also a small fireplace to lounge around in a small room off the den. The first floor is treated like any other house and is not clothing optional.
Innkeeprs: The owner James and his business partner Tom Hooker. James and Tom are great hosts and provide great insider information about SD.
Park Manor Suites
525 Spruce Street
San Diego California
92103
Tel: 1 800 874-2649
An old but elegent hotel with large suites with full kitchens, dining rooms
and large walk in closets.
Location was great accoss from the park and from the Caliph Bar
Located in Hillcrest with gay management and staff, but a few straight couples were there. 60% of the guests were older gay men.
The highlight of my stay centered around the famous "Top of park" lounge at
the upper floor and roof. On friday nights it's the biggest gay spot in town
with well over 200 men there to cruse and party. Only 10% however were over 45. It's still fun to see so many gay men in one place.
The same lounge made a nice place to gather for the free breakfeasts in mornings.
No Pool
Tony's San Diego Beach House Rentals
Mission Beach (Central San Diego)
Tel: 619-231-0436
Older Men: Varies Elegance Factor: 1
Owners Comments: Visiting San Diego? Stay at the Beach! Why settle for a boring hotel room, when for a comparable price you can enjoy the best San Diego has to offer.....steps from the sand and surf!
Organiszations
Prime Timers of N. San Diego County
1291 E. Vista Way #146
Vista
CA 92084
(619) 770-3005
Publications
BUZZ San Diego
Buzz Magazine is the only San Diego publication to include a section for the Gay Senior Community. Plus, Buzz Magazine has the oldest columnist, David Kulman, who writes the Senior Ramblings part of the senior section.

Santa Monica

Golden Bull
170 W. Channel road Santa Monica, California..
Tel:310-230-0402
Late afternoon to 2:00am
Older Men 90%, Admirers 10%, Rent/Hustlers 0%, Music 2, Cruise 2, Elegance 5
Comments: The establishment is a nice restaurant that has a very high gay, and gray, clientele. I met many wonderful gray gents and had a great time. However, most everyone came in as a couple. I was hoping for more on a Saturday night. However, I was told by the host, and the bartender, that the dinner crowd is what the place is about. Once the dinner crowd peaks, the place slows to a crawl. I really had a great time looking at the "talent" that came into the bar. However, it is a dinner establishment with really good food.
During happy hour on fridays there are quite a few local gay men at the front
bar, that never seem to miss a Friday.
A few were couples just there to eat dinner but a few older single men as
well. It's so small and with so few freindly folks that your amost always
invited to join in the conversation.
Gaslight
2030 Wilshire Blvd
Santa Monica, CA 90403
This is a great bar if you want a drink and don't want to fight a crowd. Although it draws a friendly, local group of people (from college to an older demographic) it never seems too full and is completely without attitude. The kind of place, actually, you might find outside of Los Angeles. Luckily for us, though, its only a few minutes from the beach. Theres live music Thurs-Sat and a mix of karaoke and recorded music the rest of the week.

Sacramento

Mercantile Saloon
1928 L St at 20th
Tel:916-440792

San Fernando Valley

San Fernando Valley Primetimers

11333 Moorpark Street Suite 471
Studio City CA 91602
Telephone 818 508 4926
email ptsfv@hotmail.com
Offering a variety of social activities for senior gays and their admirers A free copy of current newsletter can be requested from above addresses

San Francisco

Aunt Charlie's
133 Turk Street at Taylor Street
Tel: 415-441-2922
Open: 6 am - 2 am every day.
This small bar has Drag Show and a Jukebox. Clientele is mainly a local older crowd 35 - 60
Daddy's
440 Castro Street
Tel: 415 621 8732
The "Bears" bar in the Castro. Mixed ages but not many older guys.
The Edge
4149 18th St (one block up from Castro)
Tel: 415-863-4027
Clientele includes a collection of former Emperors and Empresses of SF. A bit of an older crowd; 40+.
The Gangway
841 Larkin Street
6pm - 2am
Tel: 885 4441
Oldie music.Opera on Sunday. Oldest Gay bar in San Francisco
Lone Star Saloon
Harrison street.
A Bear Bar, but lots of Daddies attend the weekend bashes there for romance (!) and a.quick drink.
Lush Lounge
1092 Post St.
San Francisco, CA 94109
Tel: 415-771-2022
Friendly bar that plays show tunes. The crowd is fairly local, mid-30s and older, with the occasional visitor from the more rambunctious Polk Street scene.
Martuni's
4 Valencia St./Market
Tel: 415-241-0205.
San Francisco's newest piano bar is a welcome addition to the meager San Francisco lounge scene. The front bar is friendly and comfortable while the crowd in the piano lounge is always in a very good mood singing show tunes and other favorites.
Very popular piano bar with occasional jazz. Upscale. Older, elegant crowd. Cruise factor is quite high, hustler factor very low. Parking is difficult, so advise taking a cab. Very busy on Friday and Saturday.
Moby Dick
4049 18th St
This old-time Castro hangout attracts a more mature crowd. It's generally a bunch of regulars getting together for pinball or pool - or gazing at the aquarium over the bar. The windows are big, so you can keep track of what's going down on the street. The music is largely 1980s retro that sets a fun-loving tone.
Tango Tango
1550 California St
San Francisco, CA 94109
Tel 415-775-0442
Karaoke bar that has weekly bingo in summer. Attracts an older crowd.
Twin Peaks Tavern
401 Castro Street at 17th
Tel:415-864-9470
Relaxed bar with large windows onto the street. Mixed ages but a number of older guys. The regulers tend to collect here in the afternoons.
Gray-55%, Admirer-10%, Rent-0%, Music Level 5/10, Cruise Factor 4/10, Elegance 4/10
Cinemas
Circle J
369 Ellis
415/474-6995
Adult gay movies, three screens
Gray 70% Admirer 30%?, Tues Fri - underwear Sat/sun clothing optional
Organizations

San Francisco Prime Timers
PO Box 426741
San Francisco, CA 94142-6741 U. S. A.
Phone: (415) 648-8678
Email: sfprimetimers@earthlink.net
Social organization for mature gay men and their admirers over 21, and we meet on the first and third Sundays of every month. Travelers to San Francisco as well as Bay Area residents are invited to come visit us.
MAX
San Francisco Bay Area social club for gay men.
Organises "TGIF" cocktail parties each week in downtown SF and in the Bay Area
TGIFs are probably MAX's most popular events, drawing 200+ members and 200+ guests. TGIF events are free for members. There is a $5 guest fee for non-members. There is a cash bar, where you can buy drink tickets.
Editor's note: I have been to the popular downtown MAX SF events in the financial district where there were quite a number of suits and older guys.
25% gray, 25% admirer, Elegance 9, Cruise 6, Music 6
TGIF San Francisco
On the 1st and 3rd Friday of every month the San Francisco TGIF is held at the elegant City Club. You'll find more details at San Francisco TGIF.
MAXSouth TGIF
On the 2nd Friday of every month, a MAX TGIF is held at the Sunnyvale Hilton. The MAXSouth committee coordinates this TGIF as well as other MAX events in the Southbay, to which every MAX member is invited. You'll find more details at MAXSouth.
MAXEast TGIF
On the 4th Friday of every month, a MAX TGIF is held at the Walnut Creek Marriott. It's coordinated by the MAXEast committee, which produces many other fun MAX events in the Eastbay. You'll find more details at MAXEast

San Jose

Sauna/Baths
Watergarden
1010 The Almeda/Atlas
Tel:275-1242
Large clean bathouse complex with outdoor whirlpool bath, steam rooms, weights room, TV-room, porno cinema, pool tables, lounging areas, snacks, cabins. Photo ID required for entry.
Gray-20%, Admirer-10%, Rent-0%, Music Level 3, Cruise Factor 9, Elegance 7

Groups/Organizations
Vintage Men of San Jose
P. O. Box 6611
Santa Clara, CA 95056 U. S. A.
Phone: (408) 356-2011
Email: bschweic@sirius.com

Valejo

Bars
Nobody's Place
437 Virginia St
Vallejo, CA 94590-6017
(707) 645-7298
Cross Street: Marin Street

This small downtown dance bar is little more than a quiet watering hole for older gays and local lesbians during the week. On weekends, the dance floor fills and the place takes on the atmosphere of a gay block party, where friends and neighbors mingle without attitude. This is the default destination for residents who don't want to cross a bridge into San Francisco. Sundays are football and video nights; Tuesdays draw crowds for karaoke. Drag shows are also a staple on the event calendar.