The Palm Baits Gays With Softer Image

Grub Street Aug 24 07

The Palm

the palm West: Totally a gay hotspot.Photo: Melissa Hom

Since 1926, the Palm restaurant chain has been feeding its mostly male clientele big steaks, big lobsters, and the big heads of famous people with those scribbly caricatures on the wall. But with the current steakhouse boom and more competition the owners of the palm are trying to move the restaurant away from being an “old boys' club.” On August 27, the palm plans to introduce a multi-pronged marketing strategy to freshen up its image: That means targeting women (via salads with enticing, exotic-sounding names like Tequila Shrimp or Raspberry Lobster Tempura) and a younger set (look for bigger bars and ads on VH1).

Plus, they want to attract more gays and lesbians. Just how, exactly, does the palm plan to sell a porterhouse as gay? “Too premature to comment on that,” the palm rep says. Scott Long, director of the Lesbian and Gay Right's Project at Human Rights Watch, finds the idea a bit baffling. “It's interesting that they assume that gays and lesbians aren't eating steaks already,” he says. “Gays eat steak too!” Geoffrey Gray