Harvey’s, the restaurant/bar at the corner of 18th and Castro, abruptly closed last week after 27 years in business.

Although rumors had been swirling the day before, the announcement was officially made on Sunday, January 22, 2023 with a sign that read, “This is our last day being open. What is next? We don’t know, but we know we will miss all of you.”

The other side of the sign read, “Let’s give it one last hurrah!”

In 1974, Paul Langley purchased the building at 500 Castro Street which at the time was home to Anderson’s Pharmacy. After remodeling it to become a restaurant/bar establishment, he leased it to Fred Rogers and David Manducca, who opened it in November 1974 as the Elephant Walk. The business, which was named after the 1954 film starring Elizabeth Taylor, was the second gay bar in the Castro (after Twin Peaks) and perhaps the entire country to have plate glass windows. At the time, most gay bars shuttered their windows to give semi-closeted patrons privacy from coworkers, family, and friends who might be shocked to see them in a gay establishment. Clear windows reflected the changing times, with a newfound openness following the Stonewall Riots and progress made by the gay liberation movement.

The bar was one-time home to disco superstar Sylvester, famous for hits like “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)” and “Dance (Disco Heat),” who would perform there on Sunday afternoons with his backup singers, Two Tons o’ Fun. Those backup singers, Martha Wash and Izora Armstead, later had their own success, renaming themselves the Weather Girls following their first hit, “It’s Raining Men.”

In May of 1979, the Elephant Walk was the epicenter of police retaliation following the White Night Riots at City Hall. Former Supervisor Dan White had assassinated Mayor George Moscone and gay Supervisor Harvey Milk in November 1978. On May 21, 1979 — the day before what would have been Milk’s 49th birthday — an all-straight jury failed to convict White of first degree murder and instead convicted him of voluntary manslaughter, which led to a prison sentence of just under eight years. A conviction of first degree murder under special circumstances — political assassination — could have resulted in the death penalty. (White served five years in prison and later committed suicide about 18 months after his release.)

Enraged by the lenient conviction, gays and allies began rioting at City Hall, smashing windows and burning police cars. Later that evening, police officers with badges covered stormed into the Castro, smashing the windows of the Elephant Walk. In the end, no officers were ever arrested for the damage caused to the Elephant Walk, and the City settled with the business for a mere $139,500.

In 1994, building owner Paul Langley refused to extend the lease of the Elephant Walk (now under new ownership), and reopened the business in 1995 as Harvey’s.

The history of the Elephant Walk and Harvey’s is described in more detail on our profile of 500 Castro Street.

San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman told the Bay Area Reporter that he’s reaching out to the building’s owners to help them find a new tenant. We will update this story as more becomes known.

More About the Closure

Bracco, Steven, ” End of an era: Castro restaurant & bar Harvey’s closes after 27 years,” Hoodline, January 23, 2023.

Ferrannini, John, “‘Heartbroken’: Harvey’s closes after 27 years in apparent sign of the times,” Bay Area Reporter, January 23, 2023.

Mishanec, Nora and J.D. Morris, “Harvey’s, gay bar at the heart of S.F.’s Castro district, closes,” San Francisco Chronicle, January 22, 2023.

Profile of Harvey’s/500 Castro Street on SF Gay History.