Golden Lantern   

At first glance, the Golden Lantern is an unassuming spot, indistinguishable from countless other neighborhood bars in a city defined by its neighborhood provinciality. However, the drag queen totems on the wall indicate the storied history of this tiny little gay bar, the second oldest in the city -- for 35 years this watering hole has served as the spiritual home of Southern Decadence, now one of the planet's largest gay outings. Although it's considered one of the ''grandma'' drag bars in the city, it actually sports quite a varied clientele the rest of the year; leather, Levi's, businessmen, transgendered, you name it. Though Southern Decadence actually began at a home down the street, it soon moved to the more convivial public atmosphere of the Lantern, and since the mid-'70s the Lantern has been the starting point for the (in)famous drag parade that tops off the SD festivities. Like other neighborhood bars in the Crescent City, however, it never loses its low-key charm. -- Robert Fontenot, Jr.