Mix Drinkery, a gay bar, opened at 9208 Detroit Avenue in 1991. Co-owners Gary Wilson and Marty Leppla opened Mix Drinkery to provide local LGBT+ community members with a “relaxed neighborhood bar.” Gay co-owners Wilson and Leppla named the bar Mix Drinkery to indicate to potential patrons that “everyone was welcome.” The owners’ desire to provide a social atmosphere welcoming to both gays and lesbians was somewhat unique during a time when many LGBT+ bars and social spaces were segregated along gendered lines. Though a group of lesbians that had stopped by the bar soon after its opening reportedly found it “hard to believe that male owners would welcome them,” they were soon “pleasantly surprised” by the bar’s gender-inclusive inclusive atmosphere. Mix Drinkery’s “relaxed neighborhood bar” feel was complimented by a “spacious room, satellite TV, bowling, and video games” available to patrons. Mix Drinkery hosted a variety of community benefits, fundraisers, and events, including the annual Miss Mix Drinkery pageant. Mix Drinkery closed in 1994. The bar subsequently reopened as Rockies.
Additional information coming soon.
Resources
- Beaney, Kevin. “Mix Drinkery Open on Detroit, Was Welcomed By Neighbors.” Gay People’s Chronicle. April 1991. Page 6.
- Jimmie. “Pageants Galore and More.” Gay People’s Chronicle. May 6, 1994. Page 20.