Almodovar

About this place Almodovar

Almodovar takes its name from the Spanish filmmaker and inhabits the spirit implied by that choice: colourful, theatrical, explicitly queer and slightly cinematic. It sits in Isola — Milan's creative-class neighbourhood north of Garibaldi station — rather than Porta Venezia, which gives it a different clientele and atmosphere. Isola attracts designers, artists, musicians and the creative-tech crowd that has colonised the neighbourhood's redeveloped spaces; Almodovar's LGBTQ+ identity anchors a queer presence in an otherwise straight-but-welcoming environment. The aperitivo is strong. Queer cinema screening nights happen monthly. Drag shows run on selected Fridays. The bar attracts a wider spectrum of the LGBTQ+ community than the Porta Venezia mainstream — more genderqueer, more arts-identified — and is particularly welcoming to queer women and non-binary visitors who might find Porta Venezia's more male-dominated bars less comfortable.