First Out

first out has now closed down :(

Discrete, mixed gay café/​bar bang next to Centrepoint.
Its a must for after theatre drinks esp on Women only
nights, & so much more fun than its camper, more
pretentious, Candy Bar in Soho. I like the fact that they
have regular art exhibitions too.

‘Tis a lovely lesbian bar just below Centre Point. It’ll survive the Crossrail debacle and hopefully thrive in the future. Have been coming here since I came to London. You can pop in for a drink, scan the message board for gigs or rooms, dance to the DJ in the basement late nights and w/​e, or just come in for a coffee to catch up on the free gay periodicals. Either way it offers a great veggie menu (the potato is legendary globally, trust me) and scrumptious desserts. Also a gallery! So there’s something for everyone…

So, I didn’t know that First Out was an LGBTQ venue.
I just saw ‘vegetarian’ café and decided I needed to visit. I didn’t really even catch on to its homo undercurrent until I’d sat down to wait for my food. All I saw was ‘soup and salad’, and all I thought about was how charming and welcoming the staff behind the counter had been. In a city that is not known for its helpful service industry, First Out’s staff had me enchanted from ‘What can I get for you?‘
I loved First Out for this. Yeah, so it’s a café that’s out and proud; it is outwardly queer in its marketing paraphernalia. But it’s welcoming to all. Being a queer vegetarian restaurant, it has the capacity to make one feel doubly unwelcome. I mean, I was a heterosexual woman walking in wearing leather shoes! But homosexual or heterosexual, vegetarian or omnivore, you don’t have to worry about measuring up to anyone else’s pretensions.
Oh yeah, and about the food… My courgette and tarragon soup and small plate of mixed prepared salads were inventive and delicious. I mean, how often do you find ‘courgette and tarragon’ soup? And who would have thought to pair beet and green apple in a single salad? Not me. But perhaps it was a bit overpriced at £6.95.

I really love this café, for smoothies, for food, for drinks, you name it. It’s a staple for the Geys and Lezbots who want a vegetarian nosh upstairs or a drink at the bar downstairs. Although, I’ve seen a cute little straight family come in and fit right in, so don’t be afraid to come on in, heteros! It’s a great place to take a first date.
It’s usually not super busy during the day, and the offer an excellent array of quiches, salads, curries and desserts. I personally love the Peach-​Mango-​Raspberry smoothies and the new potato salad.
The bar has reasonably priced cocktails, especially during happy hour. A pitcher of Sangria, Sex on the Beach, Long Island Iced Tea, etc. is only £11 and serves about 4. Only open until 11, it’s a nice place to pregame on Fridays and Saturdays or have an after-​work drink.
Fridays are Girl Fridays in the basement, and it’s nice that there’s a place that has a designated space for lesbians to come and meet. Highly recommend for this fact.

First Out is the perfect place to go if you want to be around fellow gayers, but don’t quite fancy being immersed in lights drama and action of ‘the real soho’. During the morning of London’s Pride march, they do a pleasant champagne breakfast, which is always worth bearing in mind during the balmy summer months. I should also add this is a vegetarian place, so no swanning in and ordering a steak medium rare. It’s good stuff, won’t quite set the world on fire like, say Mildred’s; where veggie fare is concerened, but you get good value, and I’ll always come back. Most people Come here on Friday nights as a ‘first stop’ to get tanked on their superultracheap booze. I am always surprised that they do table service when I do go there, simply because it looks a little simple, minimalist and pared down to have people waiting at your back and call. But they do. And it’s lovely; in fact being served by someone in First Out is like having your mate cook you breakfast after a big night out and bring it to you on the sofa, rather than having formal, stiff looking waitresses in starch ironed uniforms.

It’s good to have a gay venue where you can eat at audible levels (god do I sound like grandma!) and drink at inaudible levels, with a dodgy PA system. First Out is a gay institution in London, and is one of the more friendlier haunts in the area that is open for gays and their pals alike. Their food is average though, although perhaps veggies may be more keen than me? I had a mushroom lasagne with salad, and a fairly potent dressing. Couldn’t live without it, but no need to frequent more than once a blue moon.

First Out is an unpretentious café mostly for gays and lesbians. I generally find that gay men and women tend to stick to different venues but First Out manages to somehow keep a good balance going. It’s a relaxed and friendly place and situated conveniently around the corner of the busy high street so as not to frighten the homophobes.
The upstairs is more of a café area that serves some really good vegetarian food. The menu changes daily. There’s also a selection of cakes although, strangely I’ve never been tempted to try.
The downstairs area is where the bar is so it’s a bit more lively. Before the smoking ban, it was incredibly unpleasant as it can be a bit dingy but now that the skies have cleared all is forgiven.

I did not think this was a gay bar as I worked in Centre Point and got dragged for lunch there!
Mixed crowd, mixed ethos with a fantastic atmosphere. I got dragged there on a Friday night once but got swiftly turned away as it was ‘women only’, well I didn’t moan as there’s not too much for lesbians around London!
Great prices and I shall be returning!

I cannot agree more with the othe two reviewers — First Out is an institution and one that I didn’t know about until I hooked up with my now Civil Partner.
It really is tucked out of the way but if you are in the area and you fancy a coffee then you should hunt it out.
Nice relaxing and well priced.

First Out is something of an institution on the London lesbian and gay scene. This friendly, gay-​run (actually mainly lesbian-​run) venue is now over twenty years old, and was the first ‘gay’ venue to be visited by many a lesbian or gay man on their coming-​out voyage of discovery.
In all that time, the formula hasn’t changed: entirely vegetarian, it serves huge and fresh salads, quiches, casseroles, pasta dishes, soups, veggie burgers, nachos and the like. The quality is generally very good, and main meals are under £7, and cheaper snacks are available. They also do a good range of yummy cakes, patisserie and puddings. There’s no table service — you queue at the counter and take food to your own table.
They do a great range of drinks too, including fresh juices, fair trade tea and coffee, and even milkshakes. The small upstairs area is often very crowded, but the downstairs area, although a little cellar-​like (no natural light), is quieter, and also has a licensed bar, with cocktails as well as the usual choice of alcoholic beverages (no real ale though — still, you can’t have everything). Toilets are downstairs (NB via steep steps).
There are regular art exhibitions (most works are for sale), special nights, and Fridays 19−23h is women’s night, with a regular DJ — men are allowed in only as guests of women customers. Details are provided on their excellent web-​site.
The only downside is that service can be a little slow, as the counter atrea is rather cramped, but there are plenty of leaflets and reading material to browse and take away — the café acts as a sort of informal LGBT information centre in that regard.

Das First Out ist ein kleines schwullesbisches Café, in der Nähe der Tottenham Court Road, in dem tagsüber sehr leckeres, ausschließlich vegetarisches Essen, serviert wird. Noch dazu zu günstigen Preisen (für Londoner Verhältnisse).
Da es bereits um 11:00 öffnet, ist es ein idealer Ausgangspunkt, wenn man die Szene erkunden will. Denn dort kann man sich erst mal mit den nötigen Infos/​Zeitschriften versorgen, bevor man sich auf den weiteren Streifzug begibt.
Abends/​am Wochenende ist im Keller die Bar/​Tanzfläche geöffnet. Das Publikum ist entspannt, die Musik (elektro)rockt. Sehr empfehlenswert.

Gay café and bar, tucked away behind the Centrepoint building. It’s mixed but, for once, mostly lesbian, with a straight crowd of local workers coming in at lunchtime to take advantage of the delicious vegetarian food. It’s not badly priced for it’s location, the menu varies daily but there’s always great quiche and cakes.
The venue is split into two, with the upstairs the more relaxed café area and the bar in the basement. The bar fills up at weekends with a friendly pre-​club crowd. Friday nights are women only and a good alternative for those who would rather have teeth pulled than visit the Candy Bar.