HOLLYWOOD STORY

With their new Montrose emporium, two entrepreneurs look for a happy ending in an uncertain economy for gay businesses

by Eric A.T. Dieckman

There’s an alarming trend in gay business, especially those that deal in books, videos, and sweets. The numbers are dropping. Studz, the adult-video store that had long been a naughty Montrose landmark, was the first to go. Oscar’s Creamery, the sweet little ice cream and fudge shop, is gone. Its neighbor, Crossroads Market, the bookstore/coffee house, is a vacant storefront. A Brother’s Touch, the only gay bookstore in Minneapolis, recently closed, as did the sole gay bookstore in Montreal. Late last year, Larry Lingle, who owns Lobo Bookshop here, planned to shutter the historic but money-losing Oscar Wilde Bookshop in Manhattan (before a last-minute rescue by the founder of D.C.-based Lambda Rising).

Will this vexing trend continue? More importantly, where can I get my candy and porn? I’m horny, and I need coffee.

In the face of such reduced prospects, Danny Denh and Jeff DeBord are building a first for Houston, an entirely gay-owned and -operated strip mall. Twenty years ago, Denh opened the first of his small chain of Hollywood Food stores, known for their notable selection of candy—and by nicotine addicts everywhere for their wide array of smokes. Denh, now in his 30s, wished to see a bolder statement of gay commerce here. “We want to show the straight community that our gay community is strong and successful,” Denh said in a recent interview at the still-under-construction place. His statement encompasses a bookstore and coffee shop, a hair-and-nail salon, an investment and real estate office, and a Vietnamese-Chinese restaurant. Most likely, the bookstore/coffeetorium will stay open after hours, he said, late enough for revelers wandering from the Pacific Street clubs to have another gay owned- and -run hangout for winding down before they go home.

Over the three years of Hollywood’s gestation, Denh and DeBord—partners for more than six years—endured the usual rigmarole of permit seeking through the city, revising plans here and there. “Our original plan, we had two stories,” Denh said. “Upstairs we had professional offices: doctor, lawyer, dentist, insurance, chiropractor, everything to cater to the community. But we had parking problems, so we cut the upstairs.” Undaunted, Denh intends to make the professional offices—at another locale—his next project. “When we have everything, it shows the strength and success of the community,” he said.

“This will be a good place where people can feel comfortable. They walk into our stores with their boyfriends [or girlfriends], they don’t have to worry about getting looks or if a manager will say something if they kiss,” added DeBord, a self-described fortysomething. “You’re here. This is Hollywood, right here in the heart of Montrose. You don’t have to have a gay ID card to come here. We’re straight-friendly, but people know they can be themselves in our stores.”

“We will have the first and only gay-owned Vietnamese and Chinese restaurant,” interjected Denh, excited about breaking new ground. “It’s all gay-owned and -operated, so the community will know that when you go to the Hollywood center, you are keeping your money in the family.”

The grand opening is planned for mid-April. At press time, Denh and DeBord were making arrangements for a premiere with all the pomp and circumstance merited by the show biz-inspired name. Speaking of which, 20 granite stars for a Hollywood walk of fame will be set into the sidewalk. Patrons will have the opportunity to vote on names to be inscribed on the stars.

Eric Dieckman, who frequently writes about food and restaurants for OutSmart, reported on Maria Selma in the February issue.

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