Part of the Gay Richmond Guide — bars, events & things to do.
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond's downtown LGBTQ+ nightclub with DJs, drag, and dancing
Barcode is a downtown Richmond gay bar and restaurant on East Grace Street, open since 2001 and one of the longest-running gay-owned-and-operated businesses in the city. There's real meaning behind the name on the paperwork: the venue operates under Matthew Enterprises, named in remembrance of Matthew Shepard. Inside it's a comfortable neighborhood bar with an outdoor patio and a kitchen that serves late, built around Richmond's LGBTQ+ community and its friends. The week has its rituals. Sundays bring Broadway at Barcode, with show tunes on the big screen in the early evening followed by karaoke, and the regular calendar folds in drag, themed nights, and daily happy hour. It's less a high-gloss dance club than a dependable local, the kind of place that has outlasted most of its peers by being genuinely welcoming. An easy anchor for a night in downtown Richmond, a short walk from Godfrey's on the same street.
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