Pepes Bar

It has a new name (Envy Bar), but is still Derry’s only gay club (or at least the only one I was able to find in my week in Derry this September). I quite enjoyed the vibe there — a big dancefloor pumping pop/​dance music (Britney, Scissor Sisters, Rihanna, etc.), with most of the punters congregating in the outdoor patio in the back to talk.
As Derry’s only gay place, it had quite a mix of genders and ages (even one drag queen), but skewed toward a younger (university-​age or so) crowd than I expected.
The bartenders and door people were very friendly to this American tourist, and I didn’t balk at the 5-​quid door charge since the beers were less than 3 quid apiece. Saturday was fun, though I heard Sundays were a big night because of cheap drink specials.
I enjoyed Envy more than most of the gay bars I went to in Dublin, for the fun spirit and lack of pretension of the crowd. Derry is lucky to have it.