Sandy De Almeida
photo by Eye Weekly
Favourite Room at the Gladstone: OFFSET 411
The Mayor of Queer West
Every neighbourhood has an unofficial mayor and on the strip from Dovercourt to Brock known as Queer West, Sandy De Almeida holds the post. You know her, even if you don’t: Joey Ramone tossed in the dryer on high, a smear of emerald eyeshadow to match the ever-present green toque and a spontaneous, snaggl-toothed smile. Adorable, basically.
Sandy began serving and bartending at the Gladstone Hotel in 2002, a few years before the renovations made it a hotbed of artistic and social culture. People assumed she and then girlfriend May, who worked alongside her, were siblings. Initially they did nothing to disabuse the long-standing regulars of this notion. It wasn’t a good time to be a lesbian in the neighbourhood — Sandy remembers being walked to cabs when she finished her shift.
“She’s like a tourist attraction in this community,” says comedian Dawn Whitwell. “If you see her, you know you’re in the right place.”
Favourite Band that has played at the Gladstone: Lullabye Arkestra
