There is something sexy in San Francisco for everyone, whether you're at a bachelorette party looking to get a little bubble-gum wild, or you're in search of the perfect gender-bending, polyamorously perverse social club or sex party. No matter how bland or bizarre your tastes, we guarantee there's a support group and well-stocked video shelf for you somewhere, if you're patient enough to seek it out. Here are a few places to start looking.
Sex clubs
Eros "Your friendly neighborhood sex club" is a prized favorite of the gay and bisexual men's community – all men, all the time. The club takes pride in its clean and attractive amenities, including steam room, cedar sauna, showers, and of course, playroom space and lounging quarters. 2051 Market, S.F. (415) 864-3767, www.erossf.com.
Power Exchange This is an enormous play space of two clubs in one, including a stage, several prison cells, a full dungeon, and private tents in the "woods." Here, gay men are welcome at all times, and several nights a week, couples, women, and the transgendered can join in the fun. Exclusive nights just for couples and the popular Wet Wednesday women's-only event are regular happenings as well. 74 Otis, S.F. (415) 487-9944, www.powerexchange.com.
Pleasure Zone Run by women with a straight- and bi-girl focus, Pleasure Zone is a series of parties more about tickling your eroticism than the hands-on raunch of a pure sex club. Women are encouraged to don their sexiest threads, and men are encouraged to dress and behave well. These events are dance-floor focused with no sex play allowed on the premises. Event themes and locations vary. www.pleasurezone69.com.
Blowbuddies For gay men who like their play rough and no-frills, this fine establishment has been giving them pleasure for more than 15 years. In addition to glory holes, slings, prison cells, and other hot spaces and themes, it also offers on-site free HIV testing. It opens early on Fridays – 3 p.m. – for those who can't wait for the weekend. 933 Harrison, S.F. (415) 777-HEAD, www.blowbuddies.com.
Lush Couples and single women looking for a twist on the regular club scene are always welcome at these upper-crusty erotic evenings on the dance floor, and some may take advantage of the playrooms available upstairs. Reservations are required, and they must be made by women. A strict dress code is enforced, and partygoers only get location information once a reservation has been confirmed. (415) 923-1888, www.lush-sf.com.
Darkness Falls Imagine you and your date are in a pitch-black room with 40 other naked people. If this sounds appealing to you – and it does to many, because the events always sell out – then Darkness Falls at art space Spanganga might just be your cup of very dark, very strong tea. Consult the Web site for the next couples or all-women event. www.spanganga.com.
Performances
Theatre Rhinoceros This Mission District mainstay proudly proclaims itself the nation's longest-running queer theater, and every season spotlights a full season of sex and sexuality from all perspectives. Home to campy favorites like Christmas with the Crawfords, in-your-face comedians like Marga Gomez, and shows like Cocksucker: A Love Story, Theatre Rhinoceros is where sex not only titillates but (shudder!) also makes you think. 2926 16th St., S.F. (415) 861-5079, www.therhino.org.
Sex Worker Film and Video Festival The annual event brings together the creative juices of models, dancers, actors, prostitutes, and others in the sex industry as they turn their talents to the screen. Check the Web site for events. www.bayswan.org/swfest.html.
Exotic Erotic Ball This event has been called the straight, Republican version of the Folsom Street Fair. With high glamour, wild costumery, and more than one boob job in the house, this is an exhibitionist's dream that makes everyone feel freaky and titillated. This year's ball is scheduled for October at the Cow Palace. (415) 567-BALL, www.exoticeroticball.com.
PornOrchestra We'll let you decide where art begins and sexuality ends. But while you're thinking about it, take in an evening with the PornOrchestra, a group of quality musicians who perform both composed and improvised scores to accompany wide-screen pornographic films. www.thewrongelement.com/pornorchestra.
The Cantankerous Lollies Something about a trio of long-legged beauties in frilly panties undulating on the backs of chairs in unison is sort of, well, sexy. As much so now as it was in the burlesque-vaudeville houses of yore to which the Lollies pay homage. Jezebel, Margot Montmarte, and Delilah are pure heat in ostrich feathers. www.sfburlesque.com/performers.htm.
Big Burlesque Fat-Bottom Revue For those who dig a whole lot of women with a whole lot to offer, these performers will not disappoint. Launched by size activist Ms. DeMeanor, this burlesque group offers the most curves per inch. A rotating stable of performers dances, strips, teases, and turns you on. www.bigburlesque.com.
Harlem Shake S.F.'s famed Simone de la Ghetto has sashayed her booty across the stage with San Francisco's Famous Burlesque Revue and the Cantankerous Lollies. This latest effort has her at the center of the city's premier rump-and-pump troupe featuring nothing but lovely, luscious black women. www.sfburlesque.com/performers.htm.
Bunnybunns Do not confuse this nude cooking instructor and party chef with a certain bloke on the Food Network, as she is the real deal. She'll come to your party and prepare the entire gourmet, organic menu with nary an apron and a smile. (510) 499-1136, www.bunnybunns.net.
Gear and garb
Foxy Lady Boutique There's racy stuff, such as bejeweled brassieres, body stockings, bustiers, and some fetish wear, at this boutique, but what sets it apart is its upwardly mobile stock of sizes for every girl and drag queen with sex appeal. Shoppers can revel in sequin gowns and boa-trimmed dresses up to 8x, PVC and leather up to 4x, and thigh-high boots and green glitter pumps up to women's size 17. 2644 Mission, S.F. (415) 285-4980, foxylady.hypermart.net.
Mr. S Leather Company and Fetters USA In the world of leather, B&D, S-M, and kink, this is mecca. Collars, gags, straitjackets, hoods, handcuffs, and restraints of all fashion await your approval. Mr. S is best known for high-quality, durable products made in its own workshop in San Francisco. 310 Seventh St., S.F. (415) 863-7764, www.mr-s-leather-fetters.com.
Madame S The entrepreneurs of Mr. S recently opened this women's shop for the madame to find her own fetish fashions and gear. Meet with its team of stylists and consultants to custom construct the outfit of your fantasies. 321 Seventh St., S.F. (415) 863-WHIP, www.madame-s.com.
Stormy Leather This shop is best known for its women's fashions from corsetry to latex. While the clothes aren't cheap, neither is the quality of its merchandise. 1158 Howard, S.F. (415) 626-1672, www.stormyleather.com.
Dark Garden Corsetry If you've got the bucks for something truly luxurious, this is where you want to go for custom corsets for men and women, plus corset dresses and ready-to-wear, waist-cinching fashions, handmade wedding dresses, and detailed historical costumes. Dark Garden works with a multitude of fabrics, including satin, brocade, silk jacquard, and naturally, leather. 321 Linden, S.F. (415) 431-7684, www.darkgarden.net.
Good Vibrations The sexual can often be political, and such is the philosophy behind this worker- and women-owned retailer of toys, publisher of books, and producer of videos dedicated not only to heightened sexual pleasure but also to heightened awareness, enlightenment, and sexual education. 1210 Valencia, S.F. (415) 974-8980; 1620 Polk, S.F. (415) 345-0400; 2504 San Pablo, Berk. (510) 841-8987, www.goodvibes.com.
Magazine Remember how good old-style smut mags used to be? The Magazine remembers. This cluttered bookshop stocks an amazingly browsable collection of vintage porn mags (queer and straight), some dating back to the glamour pin-up era of the 1930s and 1950s, along with videos, paperbacks, and more recent publications. 920 Larkin, S.F. (415) 441-7737.
Foot Worship/Felicity's Fetiche Former erotic dancer Miss Felicity has opened up these two retail storefronts side by side to share her fine taste in bare-all fashion with the world. You'll find rack after rack of tiny shirts, clingy skirts, and short shorts, guaranteed to leave little to the imagination. 1214 Sutter, S.F. (415) 474-7874, www.felicitysfetiche.com/home.html.
Piedmont Boutique Whatever your gender or shape, you can shop here for a costume party as easily as you for your sex club uniform. You'll find hosiery, wigs, boas galore, and enough rhinestone, feather, and glitter accessories to make even Liberace say, "Whoa, fella." 1452 Haight, S.F. (415) 864-8075.
Cake Gallery Some people say they would hate to choose between food and sex. It's nice to know you don't always have to. Here, adult cake and candy never tasted so good. Get that genital-shaped dessert you've always dreamed of, with as much biological detail as you dare. 290 Ninth St., (415) 861-2253.
Blowfish Toys, videos, books, and supplies with a sexy, female-friendly bent, are available from this Web purveyor, known for a gorgeous and seductive collection of acrylic and glass toys. www.blowfish.com.
Sex classes
Quality SM Topping, bottoming, bondage, humiliation, and other psychological and technical aspects of sadomasochism are unpacked and explained in the classroom for those at all levels of expertise. Go to the Web site for a schedule. www.qualitysm.com.
Vulva University The woman who brought you the vulva puppet has so much more to offer. Private, thorough sex education courses are yours, dot-com style: $20 a year for all the online-only classes you wish to take. Subjects include lesbian sex, ob-gyn, tantra and erotic massage, kink, sexual spirituality, and sex for busy moms. www.houseochicks.com/vulvauniversity/index.html.
Erotic Dance Workshops and Classes With a background in belly dance, modern dance, and exotic movement, Catherine Rose teaches workshops and private lessons on the basics of sensual movement, performance dynamics, gyration, and stripping. www.erotic-dance-workshop.com.
Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality If a casual interest in the study of sexuality isn't enough, this independent educational institution offers degree programs in sexology, including master's and doctorate degrees in human sexuality, and certificate programs in sex ed and sexological instruction. 1523 Franklin, S.F. (415) 928-1133, www.iashs.edu.
Hotlines
San Francisco AIDS Hotline Since 1982, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Department of Public Health have offered this free, multilingual, volunteer-operated phone service to provide facts about the disease, referrals for the community, and a reliable resource for its estimated 70,000 annual callers. (415) 863-AIDS, www.aidshotline.org.
Gay Switchboard This national nonprofit organization runs a San Francisco office open Monday through Friday, 5 to 9 p.m. Operators are always available to answer your questions, refer you to a business or professional, and counsel you by a trained peer. All information is free and anonymous. (415) 355-0999.
San Francisco Sex Information SFSI is S.F.'s homegrown information and referral switchboard for people of all genders and sexual persuasions. Trained volunteers offer anonymous, accurate, nonjudgmental information about every aspect of sex and sexuality. Call Monday through Friday, 3 to 9 p.m., and Saturday, 3 to 6 p.m. (415) 989-SFSI, www.sfsi.org.
