Friend of Dorothy Bars: The lesbian-owned hospitality group bringing more queer spaces to Chicago - LGBTQ Nation

Whitney LaMora and Zoe Schor are creating Chicago’s first lesbian-owned hospitality group focused on opening more queer spaces. The group, Friend of Dorothy Bars, includes the lesbian cocktail lounge Dorothy Downstairs in West Town and the queer bar Fathom in Lakeview. The venture is backed by about 30 mostly local investors. LaMora says the goal is to show that the queer community wants and deserves high-quality spaces and that increased investment is changing access for women, queer people, people of color, and trans people. Schor says LGBTQ+ acceptance has grown, but queer-specific safe spaces remain necessary. The couple has faced failed initiatives and pandemic closures and is now prioritizing financial security and reducing employee burnout.

"“We are really showing that the queer community wants and deserves these beautiful spaces,” LaMora told the outlet. “Hopefully that is also translating to more investors taking what we're doing and our vision seriously. Because that's what holds so many women, queer people, people of color, and trans people back. They don't always have the resources or investment behind them, nor can they get it from banking institutions. I really do feel like that's changing.”"

"Schor added that despite increased LGBTQ+ acceptance, there absolutely remains a need for queer-specific safe spaces. As WBEZ pointed out, Chicago business owners are definitely recognizing that, as a slew of LGBTQ+ establishments have been opening around the city, including a luxury boutique hotel currently in development by Tryst Hospitality. “What's really interesting is, there have always been gay bars, right?” Schor said. “But what's a gay restaurant? What's a gay hotel? What's a queer neighborhood bar? How do we determine and define what these things are?”"

"Friend of Dorothy Bars, as the group is called, currently includes the lesbian cocktail lounge Dorothy Downstairs in the city's West Town neighborhood, as well as the queer bar Fathom in the Lakeview neighborhood. The couple is in the midst of building the city's first lesbian-owned hospitality group with an exclusive focus on opening more queer spaces. According to WBEZ Chicago, the group is backed by about 30 investors, mostly local."

"The couple has been through many ups and downs to get them to this point, including some failed initiatives and pandemic-fueled closures. Now, they are focused on financial security and creating environments that don't lead to employee burnout, which is what led them to purch"

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