Tour of Homos: Krave OR How I Became Mortally Offended

I rarely go places that charge a cover. There is no room on this planet worth an entrance fee. After all, what's the main feature at a club? The dance floor. What is a dance floor? A big, empty space. Why should I pay good money for an empty space? This same logic was applied later in the trip when Edith and I forewent the Grand Canyon. But I found myself paying the $10 it cost to enter Krave with a k just off the Las Vegas Strip.


Earlier, Edith and I were trying to find the so-called Fruit Loop, a group of gay bars all near each other. I'd sort of heard of it from my previous trip four years ago and knew it's general location but not the specific bars. It had been recommended by the front desk girl at our hotel. Perhaps I should have been skeptical. I mean, the hotel only cost $9. How much could the advice possibly be worth? We asked our concierge for directions to the delightfully named Ramrod but she managed to talk us into trying the Fruit Loop. Armed with the vicinity as well as a few bar names, we boarded the bus. It was a surprisingly long trip made worse by the bus driver abusing the PA system and trying out his misogynistic comedy routine on his captive audience. He made such humorous observations as "women can't drive" and "you better get some food at 7Eleven because your wife won't have dinner ready for you." He was clearly a Second City alum.

Getting off -- the bus needing a two drink minimum more than ever -- we set out for the fruits. Upon discovering both Hamburger Mary's and Rainbow Bar and Grill to be shut down, we scoured for one of the others. And thus began the ill-advised trudge towards the Strip. Which only got better... oh, I'm sorry, I meant wetter when the rain began. Edith and her hooker heels made me promise to stop in the first place with alcohol. By happenstance, that place was a gay club... with a $10 cover: Krave with a k.

After we paid to enter, I was determined to get $10 worth of fun. The male go-go dancer was going to provide it about as much as his hair dye provided the illusion of him being blonde. The female go-go dancer, though oddly out of place, was a smidge better but still not worth $10. The other patrons weren't going to provide it either. The drunk girl trying to get everyone to dance was just annoying. The 4'10" lesbian and her Jew-haired friend stepped off the dance floor way too early and really only gave about $4 worth of entertainment. The old man recovering from knee surgery slowly sliding towards the obviously underage little bottom boy was just sad. And the crazy looking German girl cost me another $10 (Lesson: Never bet against Edith if she declares someone to be German). Our DJ for the evening must have gotten suckered in by a special TV offer and paid $9.99 plus S&H for the DVD instructional video "How to be a Gay DJ Stereotype." Was nobody going to give me a return on my investment?

And then on top of it all, Krave with a k offended my delicate sensibilities. Walking up to the shirtless bartender, I ordered gin on the rocks and requested the cheapest they had when asked (since I was essentially mugged at the entrance). He returned holding two bottles, his pecks flexing as he held out a plastic bottle of generic gin that not even I'd heard of and said, "8 dollars." Then some triceps did a little spasm as he held out a bottle of Tanqueray and said, "9 dollars."

"Excuse me?! Are you saying the difference between your well drinks and Tanqueray is one dollar?"

He was.

"Do you have any drink specials?"

He didn't.

"Well then I guess I'll get the Tanqueray." I was miffed but $9 for a drink in a place like this in a city like Vegas was alright, I supposed. And then... oh, this is the worst... and then! He pulled out a jigger and poured precisely one shot of gin and unceremoniously dumped it over a pile of ice cubes.

Really, Krave with a k? Really?! You're measuring your rocks drinks? Wow. What the fuck kind of gay bar is this? Are you expecting us to have sex with each other sober? My god, shirtless man, think of Old Man Gimp back there. Will his underage boy pussy really give it up because of how accurately you pour your overpriced liquor? If you are going to jigger it out then you charge no more than $4 for gin that comes in a plastic bottle. It's like you read the gay bar commandments, scoffed, and smashed the tablets with your Gucci sponsored muscles. You may as well have climbed over the bar and used the jigger to scoop my heart out and charge me $9 for the experience. I hate you, Krave with a k and I want my $10 back.