500 Castro Street
San Francisco, Califonia 94114
(415) 431-4278
Harveyssf.com

Status: LGBT Restaurant/Bar

Previously: The Elephant Walk

In Their Own Words: The man known as “The Mayor of Castro Street” wasn’t only the first “out” American Politician but he was also a merchant. His humble camera shop on Castro Street was known for good service and fair prices. Harvey also made it a point to get to know his customers, and that’s the way we do it at Harvey’s. Every member of our team believes that they are a steward of Harvey’s legacy. We’re all proud to work under the awning that bears his name. When we come to work each day we remember the role we play in our community by providing you with a place you can come to get a drink or meal, and a smile. We also understand the importance of getting involved. Harvey’s has helped over a hundred organizations raise money for worthy causes.

History

Summary

Name	Dates of Operation
Harvey’s	1996 – 2023
The Elephant Walk	1974 – 1996

Recent News

On Sunday, January 22, 2023, Harvey’s posted a sign abruptly announcing that it was their last day in business after 27 years.

The sign read, “This is our last day being open. What is next? We don’t know, but we know we will miss all of you.”

Although the owner does not appear to have given interviews to the press as yet, Harvey’s manager David Facer told the San Francisco Chronicle, “Covid kicked us in the butt. We see it all across the Bay Area,” as reported in Hoodline. 

The owner, Paul Langley, also owns The Powerhouse in the SOMA neighborhood, which is reportedly unaffected by Harvey’s closure.

Details

The intersection of Castro and 18th Street in San Francisco is the epicenter of gay San Francisco, and arguably the world. On the southwest corner sits Harvey’s, one of the largest gay bar/restaurants in the neighborhood, named in memory of Supervisor Harvey Milk.

In 1974, Paul Langley purchased Anderson’s Pharmacy at 500 Castro Street and remodeled it to be a bar/restaurant. He leased it to Fred Rogers and David Manducca, who opened it on November 27, 1974 as the Elephant Walk, named after the Elizabeth Taylor movie.

Fred Rogers, one of the original owners, had wanted an attractive establishment where gays and lesbians could mix. Most gay bars at the time were dark, shuttered taverns, and most were strictly segregated between gay men and lesbians. Following the lead of Twin Peaks, the Elephant Walk was one of the first gay bars in the country to have plate glass windows. At the time, most gay bars covered up their windows to provide privacy for their patrons and to give bouncers a chance to alert patrons when the police were raiding.

Sylvester, a disco superstar famous for songs like “Mighty Real,” used to perform there on a regular basis, performing on Sunday afternoons with his backup singers, Two Tons of Fun (now named the Weathergirls).

In November of 1977, neighborhood activist Harvey Milk was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the first openly gay elected official in the City, and one of the first in the country. A year later, on the day that the Elephant Walk was preparing to celebrate its fourth anniversary, fellow Supervisor and former police officer Dan White, who had resigned as Supervisor and failed to get reappointed to his old seat, assassinated Milk and progressive Mayor George Moscone.

White was arrested for the murders and put on trial. On May 21, 1979, the day before what would have been Milk’s 49th birthday, White was convicted of lesser charges, two counts of voluntary manslaughter, for which he was sentenced to seven years and eight months time in prison. With time off for good behavior, he could be out in five years.

The gays of the City erupted in outrage. Some protested at City Hall, and the protests turned violent in what was later called the White Night Riots. Stones were thrown, breaking windows at City Hall, and the front doors were stormed. Police cars were set on fire. The rioters dispersed around midnight.

Hours later, police officers converged on the Castro. A police captain reportedly told journalist Warren Hinkle, as recounted in The Mayor of Castro Street, “We lost the battle at City Hall. We’re not going to lose the battle here.” Two dozen officers stormed the glass windows of the Elephant Walk around 1:00 a.m., shattering its ornately engraved glass, in an unauthorized raid. In the end, no one was prosecuted for either the City Hall riots or the illegal police raid on the Elephant Walk.

On the eve of going to trial, The City finally settled with the Elephant Walk in May of 1984 to cover its damages, but for a relative pittance, only $139,500.

In June of 1985, co-owner Fred Rogers sold his interests in the bar. Paul Langley, the owner of the building, tried to block the sale to take over the bar himself. Rogers won in court and sold his interests to Michael Verdone, owner of B-Street, a gay bar in San Mateo.

On December 2, 1988, a fire nearly destroyed the Elephant Walk and its entire building, including the office space above. The bar was closed for a year and it took nearly four years for the full restorations to be complete.

In the fall of 1995, the lease expired and Langley refused to renew it. In 1996, he reopened the bar as Harvey’s in memory of the assassinated Supervisor, and decorated it with historical memorabilia and photographs provided by the GLBT Historical Society. It has been listed as a historical monument. Another fire temporarily closed the establishment in 2002, destroying some of the memorabilia that the bar displayed (including a Milk campaign poster, one of Sylvester’s gold records, and a pair of Greg Louganis’ Speedos).

The bar was formerly home to Cookie Dough’s biweekly drag show, the Monster Show (currently at The Edge), has hosted countless fundraisers for over a hundred different organizations, and was more recently home to Harvey’s Funny Tuesdays comedy night on Tuesday nights and BeBe Sweetbriar’s “Play with BeBe” trivia night on Wednesdays.

Related

• Posts about the Elephant Walk
• Posts about Harvey’s

Sources

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

Davis, Kevin, “Harvey’s marks 10 years,” Bay Area Reporter, March 9, 2006.

“The Elephant Walk,” Uncle Donald’s Castro Street

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

Flanagan, Michael, “It’s a Raid! Historic Bar Sites From San Francisco’s Darker Past,” Bay Area Reporter, June 26, 2014.

Gamson, Joshua, The Fabulous Sylvester, Henry Holt and Company, LLC, 2005.

Harvey’s website, accessed June 11, 2014.

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.

Rogers, Fred, “Fred Rogers, owner of the Elephant Walk, talks about the aftermath of the riots from his perspective,” Uncle Donald’s Castro Street.

Shilts, Randy, The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk, St. Martin’s Press, 1982.

Uncle Donald’s Castro Street, accessed June 11, 2014.

Location

500 Castro Street, San Francisco