Discover Your City
New York’s legendary lesbian bar, Henrietta Hudson, has drawn queer women and their friends far and wide through its doors since 1991.
A new generation of queer women is up-leveling the traditional lesbian bar and bucking the trend of the closure of women-centric watering holes.
In the process, they are creating queer welcoming spaces everyone wants to hang out at and be seen.
When the global pandemic hit, fear gripped the world. Covid-19’s shelter-in-place orders shuttering businesses and closing places where people regularly gathered and mandating social distancing and masking sent shockwaves through small businesses. Entertainment venues, like bars, restaurants, and nightclubs were hit hard.
The Lesbian Bar Project
Queer women’s and gender-nonconforming spaces, were particularly threatened. Lesbian bars were closing at a rapid rate when the pandemic forced everyone to stay home. Only 21 lesbian bars existed throughout the United States in 2020, according to The Lesbian Bar Project.
The Lesbian Bar Project is an organization launched by lesbian filmmakers Erica Rose and Elina Street and award-winning star and comedian executive producer Lea DeLaria of Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.”
The women created a documentary about the loss of lesbian spaces and the meaning for those spaces to exist for queer communities in a short film released last year. Lesbian bars once thrived as community spaces for queer women and gender-nonconforming people topping at 200 in 1980, 40 years later they dwindled to a little more than two dozen. The women’s goal: Save lesbian bars.Fears of lesbian bars closing are being stymied by a surge of lesbian-owned bars opening. If anything, rather than evaporating the remaining bars the pandemic revived lesbian bars in the most unexpected way. The last lesbian bars standing are seeing a resurgence of patrons and lesbian-led queer-centric bars are opening around the world. Once again, these bars are creating space for a community thirsty and hungry to connect, live, and celebrate their lives together.
Moreso, these women-led queer bars are not your lesbian dive bars of yesteryear. They are hip, cool, sophisticated serving up craft brews to wicked elixirs and some are dishing out tasty plates of food to go with the drinks in stylin’ digs.
OUTvoices traveled to several of these bars to witness the revolution ourselves.
Elixir Mixology Bar, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Elixir Mixology Bar owners Laura Jaimes, left, and Elena Esquer Zolezzi, right, stand outside of their cocktail lounge in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Photo Credit: Heather Cassell
Puerto Vallarta’s newest swanky lounge, Elixir Mixology Bar, is the place to be in the trendy Zona Romantica. Opened by expert mixologists Elena Esquer Zolezzi; her wife, Sarah Rose; and best friend Laura Jaimes in January 2021, their electrifying style of high-end cocktails made in a stylish laidback lounge became an instant hit with locals and visitors.
The Mexican lesbians have 40 years of upscale mixology and hospitality experience combined working on cruise ships and cities around the world. That experience and their pride as queer women show in the hip setting that they’ve created and the rainbow flags waving proudly in the breeze from the fans blowing.
The lounge is another world the moment you step inside. Zolezzi, Rose, Jaimes, and their staff greet guests, warmly offering a seat at the bar or in the lounge. They want everyone who walks through their doors to get comfortable in the intimate space and enjoy the magic they create from their cocktails to the small bites from the menu.
Zolezzi and Jaimes are often found behind the bar chatting up guests as they mix their enchanting concoctions.
The women are proud to have a bar that is women-centric, proudly lesbian-owned, and is a place where everyone is welcome.
Cadadía Bar-Café, Merida, Mexico
Emma Molin holding her dog, Etta Francine, opened Cadadía Bar-Cafe to create a space to empower women and serve good food and drinks in the Yucatan’s capital city, Merida, in Mexico.
Photo Credit: Heather Cassell
Located in the Yucatan’s capital city, Merida, Cadadía Bar-Cafe, Emma Molin, a self-identified queer dyke American expatriate, opened her own women-centric bar. Her goal, empower women and provide a safe space for the city’s queer community in June 2021.
She created a comfortable stylish space for feminists, queer women, and others to enjoy as well as support artists from the artwork on the walls to hosting events in the space in the charming stylish bar.
By day, guests can grab their lattes and a pastry and relax by reading the morning paper or a book. On any given night, guests can enjoy beer, wine, and cocktails paired with a delightful selection from small bites to full meals from the menu.
Guests can even meet, Etta Francine, Molin’s dog, the unofficial “queen” of the bar, and her mother. Molin’s mother moved to Merida with her in 2015. She is often at the bar with her daughter.Nobody’s Darling, Chicago, USA
Nobody’s Darling owners Angela Barnes, front, and Renauda Riddle, back, opened their smooth bluesy funk Nina Simone-styled lounge in Chicago’s Andersonville neighborhood to bring people together in a comfortable cool space.
Photo Credit: Susanne Fairfax
An anthem for a post-pandemic and woke world, Nobody’s Darling is not your average neighborhood bar. It has a cool jazzy, funk vibe that exudes confidence and pride.
The bartenders shake, stir, and deliver high-end cocktails for the crowd that packs into the small space once known as the lesbian-owned wine bar, Joie De Vine, on the quiet treelined street in Chicago’s Andersonville.
The bar has a mission. It calls for its patrons to come as they are and be free. It beckons lesbians, queers, gender variant people, and other outsiders, misfits, and outcasts to walk through its doors, have a seat, enjoy a drink, and strike up a conversation with their neighbor in the intimate space.
That’s exactly what queer Black women activists and friends Angela Barnes and Renauda Riddle envisioned when they opened Chicago’s second only Black-owned queer bars, the South Shore’s Jeffery Pub, being the other. Barnes, general counsel and director of legal affairs and growth initiatives at City Tech Collaborative, and Riddle, a revenue auditor for Illinois, by day and event organizers by night imagined a Nina Simone-styled lounge that welcomed everyone. They ripped the bar’s namesake from Alice Walker’s poem, “Be Nobody’s Darling,” posting the poem on the bar’s wall to remind their patrons to bask in their otherness and order a high-end cocktail to celebrate being who they are.
Opened May 2021, Barnes and Riddle dare to deliver equality as a high-end cocktail bar for people on the fringe. It is the antithesis of the boys of Halsted’s “Boystown,” which is majority white gay men. For too long anyone who wasn’t white, male, and gay experienced an unstated, “you are not welcome here,” glance or gaze, a shift or movement of the body, lack of service, and sometimes even words. It is unclear if the neighborhood’s rebranding from “Boystown” to “Northalsted” in 2021 will reverse the decades-long discrimination rooted in the neighborhood before 2020’s summer of racial reckoning.
Nobody’s Darling is what the Washington Post called “Boystown’s lesbian foil.”The Sports Bra, Portland, OR USA
Jenny Nguyen’s Sports Bra Bar gives women’s sports and its fans their due in Portland, Oregon.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Dalila Brent
No longer an off-the-cuff joke between her girlfriend, Liz Leavens, and friends, chef and restaurateur Jenny Nguyen’s, The Sports Bra, tagline: “We support women,” is a reality. The nation’s first women’s sports bar focused on women in sports opened in Portland, Oregon April 1.
It will be game on all day, every day for women’s sports at The Sports Bra whether there’s a match or highlighting women athletes on Just Women’s Sports, which will stream on days there aren’t games on the numerous big-screen TVs around the bar.
The bar’s opening kicked off with the women’s March Madness Final Four, with the championship game and six National Women’s Soccer League games that followed over the weekend, reported Portland Magazine. The doors opened just as the National Women’s Soccer League, Women’s National Basketball Association, and other sporting events are underway for the 2022 season.
Guided by the #MeToo, #TimesUp, and the racial and social justice reckoning in 2020, Portlander Nguyen ditched years of frustration at the lack of attention paid to women’s sports and their fans to open the bar. She was tired of being disappointed and angered at having the channel changed by staff and other patrons in the middle of women’s sporting events back to male teams while her friends and she watched at local bars. She was also fed up with pay inequity in sports to the hospitality industry. She dreamed of a bar where women’s sports fans, like herself, could watch games uninterrupted and feel empowered. She playfully called her imaginary women’s sports bar, The Sports Bra.
Girl powered from the ground up, women’s sports fans of all ages can sit, sip, and dine on girl-created furniture, libations, and food. The bar’s furniture is made by girls at Girls Build, a carpentry and construction nonprofit organization that teaches girls how to build. The bar’s beers and spirits are crafted by women-owned breweries and distilleries and poured by women bartenders. Nguyen herself heads up the kitchen crafting sports bar standards – burgers, buffalo wings, and nachos – and not-so-standard Vietnamese-style baby back ribs and wings made from products produced by women farmers in the family-friendly bar.
Who knows, fans might catch sightings of the U.S. Women’s National Team defender and Portland Thorns Football Club’s openly lesbian team member Crystal Dunn and other women, professional athletes, at the lesbian-owned sports bar too.
As You Are Bar, Washington, D.C., USA
Rachel Pike, front, and Jo McDaniel, back, founders and owners of Capitol Hill’s new lesbian bar, As You Are Bar in Washington, D.C.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Zayn Thiam
Ripped from the famous Nirvana song, “Come As You Are,” the capital city’s newest lesbian hot spot for queer people and allies is As You Are Bar.
The bar is requeering the space formerly the home of D.C.’s historic lesbian bar, Phase 1, which closed in 2017. The building was occupied by a Black-owned District Soul Food, which closed during the pandemic, reported DCist.
The queer café and lounge in the Barracks Row neighborhood, is the vision of D.C.’s lesbian bar nightlife veterans, business owners, and newly engaged Jo McDaniel and Rachel Pike. The couple have more than 40 years’ experience working in and managing the capital city’s queer bar scene. They opened the Capital Hill bar on March 22, reported the Washington Blade.
They hope everyone – including diplomats and politicians – will find community and enjoy the bar, café, and lounge.
As You Are Bar already got its first political patrons, gay U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, and his husband, Chasten Buttigieg, reported the Blade. The political couple live in the neighborhood and dropped in for a drink to show their support for the bar the first day its doors opened.
McDaniel, who identifies as genderqueer, and Pike, a lesbian, more than 20 years’ experience combined in D.C.’s lesbian bar scene and nightlife saw the need for community as soon as the pandemic hit sending the queer community and everyone else into isolation. They responded by creating a space on Zoom hosting events, such as trivia contests, happy hours, and dance parties virtually for people 18-years and older. The virtual events attracted an estimated 500 people which gave birth to As You Are Bar as a space in real life for its virtual patrons and everyone else.
The location of As You Are was important to McDaniel and Pike. They wanted easy access to the café and lounge as well as be near Capitol Hill. They wanted a space that could be used for multiple purposes beyond a bar, a space that would be a hub for the community.
The bar will eventually have two distinct areas, one for the café – which will include workspace for telecommuters – and lounge and the other for the bar and dance boutique.
No Wave Coffee’s Reggie Elliot consulted on the coffee menu and Nina Love is crafting the menu and managing the kitchen, reported Washington City Paper.
As You Are Bar tapped DJ Mim to keep the music flowing at the lesbian bar and club.
McDaniel and Pike look forward to working with the community to create a welcoming space for everyone, they said.
Henrietta Hudson, New York, NY, USA
New York’s legendary lesbian bar, Henrietta Hudson, has drawn queer women and their friends far and wide through its doors since 1991.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Molly Adams
One of New York’s longest-running lesbian bars in New York, Henrietta Hudson, got a makeover in 2021 and she is looking good.
The West Village lesbian hot spot has been a destination for queer women from all over the world for more than 30-years since it opened in 1991. The bar is known for its wild parties in the dark interior, but she’s no longer that dark brooding girl. Henrietta or Hen, as regulars endearingly call her, reinvented herself during the global pandemic into a Holly Golightly-esque a la Audrey Hepburn for a new generation of loyal followers. While the party girl never really died, Hen has grown up and gotten a sleeker, more sophisticated look, what owners of the iconic bar Lisa Cannistraci and Minnie Rivera call a “cross between a living room and a petite café” all dressed up in a mid-20th century-modern circa Palm Springs featuring “comfy chairs, plush ottomans, work nooks, and a dining area.”
Cannistraci and Rivera took the opportunity the pandemic gave them to reimagine the Manhattan lesbian bar, what they call a “queer human space built by lesbians.” Hen still sports her disco ball that thousands have passed under at the entryway, but guests now step into a swanky bar where they can still enjoy Hen’s staples of gay TV watch parties, happy hours, and of course, themed nights with DJs.
The party girl isn’t too far away, but now she’s stylin’ in a whole new way. Guests can sit inside the bar or outside in the custom-designed parklet while they sip on their wine-and-cocktail bar offerings from femme-identifying and BIPOC (Black and indigenous people of color) winemakers and cocktail mixes by Brooklyn’s Wandering Barman. They can order charcuterie and cheese plates and vegan dips and chips from woman-owned, Cowgirl, down the street while they lounge.
Guests shouldn’t leave without their Henrietta circa 1980s-retro style merch from the lesbian bar. How Zizmorcore of Hen’s fans.😉
The Zizmorcore fashion trend is named after longtime subway advertiser Dr. Jonathan Zizmor, a dermatologist. His ads on New York subway cars were a staple for decades, reported the New York Times.El Rio, San Francisco, USA
One of San Francisco’s hottest and longest-running tea parties, Mango, at El Rio the city’s queer woman-owned dive bar for everyone.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of El Rio
El Rio, officially called El Rio, Your Dive, is the iconic queer woman-owned diver bar located on the edge of San Francisco’s Bernal Heights and Mission neighborhoods. An institution in the City by the Bay for 43-years, its known for its backyard, queer and trans staff, the bar’s signature drinks, and its commitment to social justice causes and the city’s LGBTQ community.
The bar is known for its legendary backyard where it hosts lesbian tea dance parties, Mango and Swagger Like Us, among other queer events. It's mostly queer and trans staff and bartenders shaking and mixing the bar’s signature drinks. Its progressive thinking (it had gender-neutral bathrooms long before anyone else). El Rio wouldn’t be an iconic queer woman-owned dive bar without its requisite pool and shuffleboard tables.
Owned by Dawn Huston, a queer woman, for decades, the onetime door person took over El Rio, once a leather Brazilian gay bar, from its founders and then-owners Malcolm Thornley and Robert Nett. Nett and Thornley opened El Rio in 1978. The two gay men retired in 1997 and passed the bar to Huston, reported the Bay Area Reporter.
The bar is so iconic San Francisco designated it as a legacy business in 2017. In 2019, the Mission Economic Development Agency bought the building that houses El Rio for $6.8 million.
When the pandemic hit and Huston was struggling like other small LGBTQ-owned businesses, the Human Rights Campaign and Showtime stepped in with its "Queer to Stay: An LGBTQ+ Business Preservation Initiative," reported the BAR. El Rio became one of California’s two queer businesses the partnership infused with cash to protect and preserve queer businesses through the initiative.
Showtime is the cable network that produces LGBTQ shows "The L Word" and "Queer as Folk."
HRC is a global LGBTQ advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C.Do you need to come out to your doctor?
Healthcare is a hot topic for many Americans. No matter your stance on it, most of us can agree that it’s not easy for everyone to access affordable medical care. If you’re in the LGBTQ+ community, you might face another obstacle – discrimination.
It can be hard to believe you would be discriminated against or even turned away based on your sexual identity, but it does happen like so many other injustices in this world. If you already have a healthcare provider you like and trust, you might be worried about coming out to them.
Will they treat you differently? Will your care be compromised?
Let’s cover some of the common barriers people within the community can face in the healthcare industry, why your doctor should know if you’re LGBTQ+, and what to look for in a provider that won’t discriminate.
What Challenges Do LGBTQ+ People Face in Healthcare?
There are a variety of underserved populations in healthcare, including minorities and those in traditionally underserved or poverty-stricken communities. Those in the LGBTQ+ population are often underserved because of discrimination. Think it doesn’t exist? Consider some of these staggering statistics from a 2017 national survey:
- 8% of respondents said a healthcare provider refused to see them because of their sexual orientation.
- 6% said a doctor refused to provide them with care.
- 9% said a healthcare provider used abusive or harsh language while treating them.
- 7% said they received unwanted physical contact from their healthcare provider.
It should come as no surprise, then, that fewer LGBTQ+ are getting the healthcare they deserve. These statistics are more than numbers. They are people. They are stories. If someone you know had a negative experience with their doctor and told you about it, you’d be less likely to go. Maybe you even had a bad experience yourself, and have never trusted the medical industry again.
Several things need to be done to serve the LGBTQ+ community better, including:
- Federal initiatives
- Smart devices that make it easier to access public health care
- Education on inclusivity within the medical field
Unfortunately, it will take time for this kind of reform and restructuring to happen within the healthcare industry. In the meantime, what can you do to get the care you deserve, whether it's from your current doctor or someone new?
Why You Should Talk to Your Doctor
Building up a trusting relationship with a healthcare provider can take some time. Maybe you’ve been working with your doctor for years, and you trust their medical knowledge and like their personality.
However, maybe they don’t know your gender identity or sexual orientation. Maybe you’ve thought about telling them in the past but have been worried about discrimination.
While it’s always a risk, it’s important to come out to your doctor for medical purposes, if nothing else. Certain health issues affect higher proportions of the LGBTQ+ community, including:
- STIs
- Mental health issues
- Sexual assault
HIV is still a problem among members of the community, too. According to a 2010 study by the CDC, 63% of new HIV infections impacted men who had sex with other men.
From a mental health standpoint, telling your doctor can be both freeing and can get you the help you need. It’s not uncommon for those in the community to experience extra stress, anxiety, and depression due to discrimination and constant worry. Because LGBTQ+ people are also at a greater risk of sexual violence, finding the right mental health treatment for the aftermath is crucial. Medical attention is needed to document evidence and identify any injuries or long-term risks, as well as to set up a mental health treatment plan that will help you process what happened.Finding the Right Healthcare Provider
Whether you’ve experienced discrimination from your doctor or you want a clean slate in a place that will give you the care you deserve, there are a few things to look for in an LGBTQ+-friendly healthcare environment.
- First, don’t be afraid to ask questions. Shop around, and set up consultations with providers you’re interested in. Ask them about their experience with the LGBTQ+ community. You’ll get a lot of information from that answer, and can probably trust your “gut” with whether they’re comfortable or not.
- You should also do your research. Seek both online and offline resources for LGBTQ+-friendly physicians in your area. Read reviews, look for doctors who offer a safe and inclusive practice for everyone, and consider asking your friends about their personal experiences and where they go. Thankfully, despite the obstacles you might face in finding a doctor, it’s not impossible. Even if you live in a rural area or far away from a doctor who is willing to give you proper care, nowadays, it’s easier than ever to connect with the right provider.
- If you can’t find someone nearby, consider choosing telehealth services for your general well-being and for regular checkups. While they can’t cover everything, it can help to have a physician in your corner who you trust, even if they’re hundreds of miles away. Don’t let discrimination in the healthcare industry get you down. With a little bit of time, research, and doctor-shopping, you can find a provider who will give you care without judgment.
Charcoal grilled hamburgers are the best.
The weather is warming up, and that means it’s grilling time. It's time to invite friends over and fire up the grill. If you are new to grilling, it's best to start with the basics, and a charcoal grill is a perfect place to start.
What You’ll Need
Before you get started, it's important to learn about the type of charcoal grill you have. Ensure everything is in working order and familiarize yourself with the air vents on the grill because these help you control the heat. If you are looking to buy one, you will need to consider which size is best for your needs. We recommend buying one with an ash container for easy cleanup. Charcoal grills come in different shapes and sizes, and the price range starts at around $100 and can go up from there.
Once you have your grill set up, you will need a couple of things.
- Charcoal
- Chimney starter (optional)
- Grilling tongs
- Pumice stone for cleaning the grill grate
- Heat resistant gloves
Choose Your Charcoal
Charcoal briquettes are the classic choice
Photo by Amin Hasani on UnsplashCharcoal grills, of course, use charcoal as fuel, and there are two types of charcoal you can use. Charcoal briquettes are the most affordable option. You can find them in any supermarket in a big bag. They create consistent heat and burn for an extended time. While they are inexpensive, they don't add much smoky flavor and the slow burn creates a lot of ash.
Hardwood charcoal is the more expensive option, but worth it if you love the smoky taste of grilled food. This type of charcoal burns quickly and leaves little ash for easy clean-up. If you want the best of both worlds, you can use both charcoals together.
Before you get started, you will want to make sure you have enough charcoal. The amount of charcoal needed depends on how much you are planning to cook and for how long. A rough estimate is if you are cooking hamburgers, hot dogs, and chicken for a group, 4.5 to 5 pounds of charcoal is best. If you are cooking for 2-3 people, then 2.5 pounds of charcoal should be enough. And, if you are grilling a long-cooking cut of meat or using your grill as a smoker with lower heat but for an extended time then 2 pounds of charcoal is fine.
Light the Grill
Waiting for the grill to heat up is hard when you are hungry.
Photo by Erwan Hesry on UnsplashThere are a few ways to get your grill fired up. The most traditional way is to arrange the charcoal in a small pile on the grill and spray some lighter fluid on the charcoal. Always read the instructions on the bottle for the exact amount of fluid to use. Using too much lighter fluid can affect the flavor of your food. Give the charcoal a minute to absorb the fluid, then light the charcoal with a utility lighter. Once the charcoal is lit, resist the temptation to add more lighter fluid, it's dangerous, and it will be difficult to control the flame.
If you prefer not to use lighter fluid, you can use a chimney starter. Chimney starters are available at any hardware store, and if you grill frequently, they are a great investment. Using a chimney starter is the fastest way to get your charcoal piping hot. Some starters have a place to add either newspaper or fire starter cubes. Follow the instructions, add the charcoal to the starter, and light from there. Once hot, pour onto the grill. Use heat-resistant gloves for safety.
For tech lovers, there is also an electric charcoal starter. Just place the charcoal on the grill and touch the electric starter to the charcoal until it lights.
Another option to light the charcoal is a strike-able fire starter. They are like a large match that you can place in the middle of the charcoal to get the coals going.
However, you get your charcoal started, you will need to wait for your grill to heat up before you start cooking. It can take around 15- 20 minutes to get hot enough to cook your food. Most charcoal grills have a built-in thermometer to help you know when it reaches grilling temperature which is anywhere between 350 to 450 F. While your grill is heating up, you can prepare the grill grate.
Prepare the Grill Grate
Oil up the grill grate to keep juices meats from sticking.
Photo by Andrik Langfield on UnsplashYou should always start with a clean grill. While you don't need to deep clean the entire grill after each use, you should clean the grill grate before and after each use. Use a pumice stone made for grills to clean your grill grates. There are wire brushes on the market for this, too, but there have been cases of metal bristles breaking off and getting stuck on the grill and then sticking to food, so stick with a pumice cleaner.
Once the grate is clean, brush some oil on the grate to keep food from sticking. Save your olive oil for your salad. Instead, use a high heat oil like vegetable or canola.
Arrange Coals for Effective Cooking
Sear some steaks for the perfect grill marks.
Photo by Paul Hermann on UnsplashOnce the charcoal has heated up, you can use your grilling tongs to arrange the coals. Charcoal placement is key to coking with charcoal. As a general rule, you will want to have two cooking areas on your grill—one for direct heat to sear and one for indirect heat for foods that require longer cooking time. Searing is good for steaks, while indirect heat is better for meat on the bone and roasts.
Another option is to use grilling planks on the charcoal grill. Grilling planks are pieces of wood like cedar or alder that you can cook food on rather than placing the food straight on the grill. Soaking the planks in water for an hour prior to grilling ensures they won't burn. Then, place meats, fish, or vegetables on the plank for a smoky dish.
Cleaning Up the Grill After Use
Properly caring for a charcoal grill extends its life.
Photo by Taylor Grote on UnsplashWhen your last burger has been flipped, and it's time to turn off the grill, just close the vents and put the lid on the grill. Without air to fuel the fire, it will gradually burn out. This can take up to 48 hours for it to completely cool and be safe enough to remove the coal and ashes.
If you are in a hurry you can use your tongs and pull out each charcoal brisket and place it in a metal bucket filled with water. Scoop the hot ash into a metal container to let it cool. Never pour water onto a charcoal grill as it can damage the grill and leave a sludge that you will have to clean later. Plus, water directly on hot coals creates dangerous steam that can burn anyone near the grill.
When your charcoal grill is cooled and cleaned, it's ready to be stored for next time. While charcoal grills are sturdy and can be left outside, if you live in a colder climate you will want to ensure it is protected from the elements to extend the life of the grill.
Tips and Tricks for Charcoal Grills
- Resist the temptation to flip your food too much
- Control the heat by using the vents and lid
- Keep the heat around 350° F for most foods or 450° F for searing
- Add a handful of wood chips like hickory or mesquite to the coals for more flavor
Get Creative with Grilled Food
Did you know you can grill more foods than just your standard hamburgers, hot dogs, and steaks? Try your hand at grilling different foods like:
- Pineapple rings
- Zucchini slices
- Pizza
- Eggplant slices
- Cabbage steaks
RV Camping checklist
Traveling and camping in an RV has many advantages and essentially allows you to have a home away from home, from county campgrounds to the remotest of locations. But those with RVs know that preparing for a trip can be quite stressful. There are countless items to remember to pack. That is why we have put together the perfect list of RVing essentials. Check out this list before your next adventure to make sure nothing gets left behind.
RV Specific Items
What you need for the RV
Photo by Kojiro Inui on Unsplash- Roadside emergency kit
- Sewer kit
- Extra motor oil and transmission fluids
- Surge protector
- Electrical adapters
- Water pressure regulator
- Drinking water hose
- Leveling blocks
- Tire pressure gauge
- Extension cords
- Wheel chocks
- Duct tape
- Battery jumper cables
- Fire extinguisher
- Toolbox
- Generator
- RV documents (registration, insurance, etc.)
Kitchen and Food
What to cook while RVing
Photo by Chinh Le Duc on Unsplash- Potable water
- Water bottles
- Food storage containers
- Food and beverages
- Cooler and extra ice
- Plates, cups, bowls
- Cooking utensils
- Eating utensils
- Dishtowels
- Potholders
- Paper Towels
- Trashbags
- Dish soap
- Sponge or scrubber
- Grill for outdoor cooking (optional)
- Can and bottle opener
- Pots and pans
- Coffee pot and/or tea kettle
Sleep Essentials
What blankets to bring while RVing
Photo by Jordan Bigelow on Unsplash- Sheets, blankets, and comforters
- Pillows and pillow cases
- Extra cots or air mattresses as needed
- Air pump if needed
Toiletries for the RV
Toiletry essentials for RVing
Photo by Tyler Nix on Unsplash- Soap (face and body)
- Hand soap
- Hand sanitizer
- Shampoo and conditioner
- Deodorant
- Toothbrush and toothpaste
- Hairbrush
- Tweezers
- Toilet paper
- First aid kit
- Tampons/sanitary products
- Bath towels
- Shoes to shower in (if using campground facilities)
- Solar shower (If RV doesn't have a shower/bath)
- Sunscreen
- Bug spray
- Lotion
- Lip-balm
Personal Items Needed While RVing
Taking your personal items on your RV adventure
Photo by Rainier Ridao on Unsplash- Medication
- Phone and phone charger
- Laptop or tablet and charger
- Wallet with ID and credit/debit cards
- Campsite reservation information
- Eyeglasses and sunglasses
Clothing and Footwear Needed for RVing
What clothes do you need when you go RVing?
Photo by Ali Kazal on Unsplash- Moisture-wicking shirts
- Moisture-wicking pants
- Underwear
- Long sleeve shirt
- Socks
- Down or fleece jacket
- Rain jacket
- Rain pants
- Hat
- Sleepwear
- Swimsuit
- Hiking boots or sneakers
- Sandals or flip flops
- Winter/snow gear depending on the season
Miscellaneous
What else will we need for Rving?
Photo by Alice Donovan Rouse on Unsplash- Headlamp
- Lantern
- Extra batteries
- Cleaning supplies
- Portable charging bank or solar charger
- Firewood and fire starter (If fires are permitted at your campsite)
- Books and/or games
- Dog gear if bringing your four-legged pals
- Dry bags or plastic bins to store items
- Backpack or hiking pack
- Hiking, fishing, kayaking, or other gear for activities
- Outdoor rug
- Patio furniture (chairs, tables, etc.)
- Pop-up tent (if RV doesn't have an awning)
Enjoy Your Trip
You've gone through your checklist and have inspected your RV to make sure everything is up to standard and in working order. Now it's time to decide where you are going to set up camp and hit the road! There are many more logistics to deal with when RV camping compared to car camping, but with the right preliminary preparation, you can relax knowing everything is in place for the perfect RVing experience.