Jackie Ciliberti, known to many as Jackie Sugarlumps, wasn’t born and raised in San Francisco and no longer even lives in the Bay Area, but she still considers herself a San Franciscan. Mostly that’s because of the Make Out Room.
Ciliberti started as a vinyl DJ in her teens and cultivated a love of records. Once she arrived in the city in 2008, she was determined to find a place to DJ monthly. She eventually started a Thursday night show at the Make Out Room, tagging it Web of Sound. It continued for almost a decade.
The Make Out Room is a no-frills Mission bar, iconic in the local arts and culture scene, with legacy business status from the city. The space, which holds red booths, a long candlelit bar lit, silver streamers on the ceiling, and disco balls, became an integral part of Ciliberti’s 20s and 30s. She says her “most powerful” memories were at the Make Out Room, laughing with friends, crying over heartbreak and dancing her heart out.
So Ciliberti was gutted after finding out that the bar was on the market, along with longtime owner Martin Rapalski’s other bar up the block, the Latin American Club.
Rapalski said that while he’s accepting any offers, he’d love to see the Make Out Room continue. He has owned the two bars since the 1990s, and is looking to retire in Europe.
In the Make Out Room’s 30 years, it’s been host to musicians like Jonathan Richman and Tracy Chapman, along with local performers. It’s also known for hosting literary events, stand-up comedy and a monthly drag show.
Comedian Nato Green hosted two different shows at the Make Out Room during the 2000s. Green said the collaboration with literary events featuring writers and poets led to the development of his own comedic voice — “nerdy and wonky.”
He started performing at the Make Out Room after having unsuccessful runs at other bars — once getting pushed out for a Frank Sinatra-themed night, and one night waiting for a sports bar to turn the damn TVs off.
“Finding a venue where the owner will let you just run a regular show there for years and not worry about whether you’re making enough money for us?” Green said. “That they just trusted the artists to do something interesting is so invaluable.”
Ciara McAllister, the owner of McAllister Music Studio, said when she and her band, Hidden in the Sun, got onto the California Report’s list of best bands in the Bay 12 years ago, they celebrated at the Make Out Room. More recently, one of her employees, Anna Hillburg, had a record release party there. “Everyone just celebrates music, dances around, and it feels like family,” McAllister said.
When Charlie Jane Anders was ready to find a new venue for Writers with Drinks in 2003, she, too, landed on the Make Out Room.
Anders said literary events are often seen as needing “serious” locations, which was the exact opposite of what she wanted: a great sound system and the feeling of being in a nightclub. The Make Out Room was “perfect,” said Anders. “It was the best venue for something that was a little odd and kind of weird and challenging.”
Danielle Truppi is a co-host of another literary show, Happy Endings. She said the Make Out Room had a fairly hands-off approach, which she said was “generous” because it let artists do their thing.
“I feel like having our show at a bar makes it more open to a broader audience than an art space or something that seems more exclusive,” Truppi said.
Anders said that San Francisco has been a place where different arts and cultural scenes have converged, and the Make Out Room exemplified that. “San Francisco really needs to hold on to that part of its identity, that kind of feeling of being a place for artists and weirdos and people creating interesting culture,” Anders said.
Because the Make Out Room has meant so much to artists in the city, many are worried about what’s next. Jackie Ciliberti said that the worst-case scenario is already unfolding around the Mission: More bars look identical, and housing costs are driving out artists. But Ciliberti is optimistic that a new owner could continue the creative spirit of the Make Out Room.
“In a perfect world, nothing would change, right?” Ciliberti said. “But even if it’s going to be sold, try to sell to someone who’s intent on maintaining the heart and soul of the bar.”
Additional reporting by Oscar Palma.
