A Big Night Out: Angela Dimayuga’s New Gay Bar Opened Last Night at the East Village Standard

A Big Night Out: Angela Dimayuga’s New Gay Bar Opened Last Night at the East Village Standard

Angela Dimayuga might have gotten her start at Mission Chinese, but since she parted ways with the restaurant in 2017, she’s embarked on a number of multidisciplinary projects that have allowed her to stretch her culinary skills: She collaborated with artist Meriem Bennani on a Geneva Biennale dinner that drew inspiration from immigration and futurism; she’s hosted parties with Opening Ceremony; and she started her own nightlife series, GUSH, with curator Pati Hertling, which centers on lesbians, femmes, and non-binary people. (Which their door policy makes abundantly clear: it’s $5 for femmes and $75 for straight men.)

Since the spring of last year, though, Dimayuga has served as the creative director of food and culture at the Standard, and last night was perhaps her biggest moment in that role yet. Dimayuga opened No Bar, the East Village Standard’s new gay bar, with a party featuring DJ sets by Oscar Nñ of Papi Juice, Bebe, and a performance by non-binary artist Zah. While the party was hosted by Hannah Black, Leilah Weinraub, and Jenna Wortham, to name a few, lots of GUSH regulars came out in support, too, sitting in the bar’s custom-made cowhide-print booths, drinking CBD-infused cocktails or snacking on Dimayuga’s menu, which unsurprisingly puts a hip spin on bar food (there’s schmaltz popcorn and onion dip with brined potato chips). The bar will host drag nights, dance parties in collaboration with Brooklyn queer underground mainstays like Papi Juice and Bubble_T, and will serve as a venue for art, too. If you need any more reason to check it out, the bar shares a birthday with Rihanna, which was acknowledged last night when Dimayuga blew out the candles on a massive cake. Happy birthday to No Bar (and Rihanna, of course).