The Easy Bar

916 East Pike Street before it was The Easy Bar

The Easy Bar

Location: 916 East Pike Street, Seattle, Washington, USA

Opened: Around 1993

Closed: 1998

Here's the (undated) description of the The Easy from Clubplanet:


 

 

Easy, The - This lesbian bar expanded its clientele when it built a restaurant and large dance floor. All the action now takes place on the rustic, wooden dance floor dominated by loud house music and bright lights, but if you’re not the dancing type bring your date and treat her to dinner. You can even hang back at the bar where the party used to be.


 

According to this source, the Easy Bar went "tits up" (I ground my teeth when I read that choice of phrasing) in 1998.

By 1999, it was Spintron, a mostly gay male place. But notice in this review from March 1999 how The Easy's former lesbian clientele were still trying to hold onto the space, even in defeat:

SPINTRON 916 East Pike Street
Seattle's first bona-fide ARO.space clone turned out far better than I expected. But then again, I didn't expect much. Even with a fresh coat of paint, the specter of The Easy (R.I.P.) still lingers. And so do the lesbians. The space is still distinctly divided between lounge and dance floor, but now has windows through which you can ogle the dancers from the relative quiet of the bar. In an attempt to bolster their often pitiful attendance, they have dropped their egotistical and daunting $6 cover charge and opted to cash in on drinks instead. The dance floor is primarily dominated by shirtless Spintron employees who look either as if they are being attacked by gnats and roaches (swat, swat, stomp, stomp) or trying to channel Madonna in her dominatrix period. But all things considered, Spintron is the perfect medium between ARO.space and Neighbours, and could easily shape up to be one of the coolest clubs in town--and all the straight people who frequent ARO.space and Neighbours should definitely go to Spintron instead. Please! 
 
Crowd: Jaded gay men desperately seeking something new, and lesbians reclaiming old territory.
Ambience: If ARO.space and Neighbours had a lesbian daughter.
Hours: 4 pm-2 am
Phone: 568-6190
Helpful Hint: Hang out next to the rent-a-boys dancing on the boxes for a great contact high.



Lobby Bar interior

It is now the Lobby Bar, "A gentlemen-oriented cocktail lounge with fancy wallpaper where King Cobra (and Sugar, and The Easy, and etc.) used to be. "

As one commentator sadly summarized the situation, "The Easy was there for 5 years and then got an offer to sell and from that point forward it became a series of gay (boy) bars."

Unfortunately, this is a common tale in the death of womyn's space. It is also unfortunate that I can find no photos of this location when it existed as The Easy.