Arson Suspected After San Diego Queer Women's Bar Set on Fire

LGBTQ Bar Pub Gossip Grill Fire Hillcrest San Diego

Video Footage via instagram @gossipgrill_

Damage was limited to the bar's front patios. The fire remains under investigation.

Trudy Ring

Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.

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Trudy Ring

October 20 2023 6:32 PM EST

October 23 2023 4:40 PM EST

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(Update: An arrest has been made in the case. Read more about the suspect here.)

The front patios at San Diego’s Gossip Grill, one of the few remaining lesbian-focused bars in the nation, were set on fire in an apparent arson attack about 12:30 a.m. Friday.

Damage was limited to the two patios, and no one was injured, Gossip Grill staffers said in social media posts. But the incident was extremely distressing, they said.

“It was intentional and was arson,” they wrote on Instagram and Facebook, adding, “Gossip Grill is one of the last remaining Queer Women’s bars in the country. It breaks my heart knowing that someone intentionally tried to burn it down.”

They thanked the San Diego Fire Department for its quick response and said anyone with information should reach out to the fire department and Gossip Grill. The department’s non-emergency number is (619) 531-2000. It is investigating the cause.

"Everyone is OK and damage was contained to the front patios. We do have cameras and am working with SDPD to find out who lit our Queer Home on fire," they wrote.

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San Diego Pride posted on Facebook, “We are devastated that San Diego's own Gossip Grill, one of our last remaining Queer Women’s bars in the US, was targeted in an apparent arson attack last night, shortly after midnight.” The group asked for the community to show support for LGBTQ+ businesses such as Gossip Grill, which will be open its regular hours Friday, 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. “We hope you will stop by for a meal or a round of drinks to show the staff your support,” the Pride group added.

There has been an outpouring of support for the bar. “Our hearts go out to the Gossip staff & all our community feeling the weight of what can only be seen as a hate crime against our community as a whole,” San Diego resident Celeste Barbier wrote on Facebook.

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