The best known gayborhood in the country is buzzing with feminine energy as bars frequented primarily by gay men are opening their doors and dance floors to queer women with ladies' nights popping up all over the Castro.

It's an explosion of female energy after many women-only venues have been pushed out of the Mission District – once considered the city's "lesbihood" – due to gentrification during the dot-com boom of the 1990s and the real estate boom of the early 2000s.

On virtually any night of the week queer women can be seen roaming the Castro, dining, drinking, and dancing the night away and having a good time.

"It's been a long time coming for the Castro," said Diane Felix, a.k.a. Chili D, a promoter and spinner for the Cafe's tea dance, Delicious, every third Saturday of the month. Felix estimated that she sees up to 400 queer women dancing at the Cafe between 3:30 and 10 p.m., she said.

But changes are in store at the bar. According to the Cafe's Web site, the club closed February 17 for a remodel; it's expected to reopen in May.

Lime, owned by Greg Bronstein, has also attracted women patrons.

"If you have a good amount of places with a good crowd, that's going to bring people to the area. So the more fun we can create in the Castro the more people will come to the Castro,Ó said Marianne, one of the managers of Lime. She declined to provide her last name.

She pointed out the ease of the Castro that allows people to go from one venue to another as she mentioned Lime's recent partnership with the new Bar on Church, also owned by Bronstein. Lime offers half off on supper and cocktails starting at 5 p.m. on Tuesdays, before women head over to the Womanizer ladies' night at the Bar on Church for drinking and dancing, she said.

Lord Martine, spokesman for the Bar on Church, estimated 250 queer women checked out the bar's Womanizer opening night last month.

"Women in our community have had limited choices, until now, because no one was taking the initiative to produce something new and exciting for them," said Martine about recognizing the desire and queer women's "loyalty to venues and promoters that serve them well."

"Our sisters deserve a myriad of nightlife options," Martine said. "They've been waiting for something special ... and venues, female DJs, and promoters are all too happy to respond."

James Schenk, owner of Pisco, an upscale Latin lounge across Market Street from the LGBT Community Center, agreed.

"It's nice to have a lot of different options," said Schenk, a gay man, who launched his Tuesday ladies' night at the beginning of the year.

He's received a positive response from many of the estimated 125 queer women from their mid-20s to mid-50s who come out weekly to enjoy food, cocktails, and dance to an in-house variation of Latin reggae and hip-hop, he said. And he has plans to maintain the spice: women can expect to find a varying selection of food and drink specials at Pisco and he is looking into adding a deejay to "make it more fun and festive," he said.

Girls just wanna have fun

Hard economic times aren't stopping women from partying, said bar and club owners and managers who have seen queer women pack their venues weekly. But several bars and clubs are taking the recession into account by adjusting prices and promoting special happy hours or drink and food menus to attract women to their parties, bar owners and club managers said.

"No matter what the financial situation is of the country, there is always room to party," said Luz Villa (a.k.a. Lady Luz ), who started the Rebel Girl club at the Rickshaw Stop with her partner, Elyssa Pond (a.k.a. China G), eight years ago. While briefly producing Les Ladies' Night with disc jockey Gray Hinojosa at the LookOut, she said she saw more than 230 women dancing the night away.

"I'm feeling inspired that queer women are starting new events," said Villa. "I think the more the better."

"Party on girls, party on!" said Chantal, producer of Mango, the monthly tea dance party at El Rio now in its 12th year. Chantal, who only wanted to use her first name, added, "We all work hard and I'm sure that a lot of people in this community are going through a lot. It's nice to go someplace and let loose and be yourself, let your hair down, and not have to worry about shit. I'm happy about it."

Bars

Local lesbihood bars aren't threatened by the options for queer women's entertainment, owners said. Rather, they embrace their place in the community as neighborhood bars.

"We are not a destination location. We are a neighborhood bar," said Karen Opp, owner of the Stray bar in Bernal Heights, one of the city's few lesbian bars. "People want to stay down in the Castro or downtown, which I understand ... [we are] small bars ... I would like to say 'every night is ladies' night,' but that's the Lexington's moto."

The Lexington Club is the city's best-known lesbian bar.

Opp laughed and said she is enjoying going to Les Ladies Night at the LookOut in the Castro and looks forward to checking out the new Ladies' Night at Orson downtown.

"Let's make the most of it," Opp said. "Enjoy these locations and support them. There's nothing wrong with competition, it means that you have more opportunities and more options."

"It's better for the whole scene and nightlife for women," agreed Lila Thirkield, owner of the Lexington Club in the Mission, about the surge of queer women's nightlife options.

Thirkield, who recently spoke on a panel about creating queer women's neighborhoods, said that she isn't threatened by the options in the neighboring Castro. She still views the Lexington Club as a destination spot and a safe haven for queer women to enjoy themselves, especially since she proactively removed some alleged gang elements that stirred up some trouble in 2007.

"I worked really hard," Thirkield said. "That situation was completely resolved [and] from the day it resolved it was the parting of the clouds and the sun [was] shining down. I feel really good about that."

The Lexington Club is going strong and there are many events scheduled in 2009, Thirkield added.