The Raven, the iconic LGBT club and restaurant in New Hope, was recently bought by a new owner — who plans to ramp up the venue’s musical offerings, while keeping it true to its status as an icon of the New Hope nightlife scene.
Steven Lau purchased the property this summer from former owner Scott DeWitt. Lau’s background is in the music industry — he owned a record label with Warner Brothers and later Sony — as well as hospitality.
He is a Pennsylvania native who lived part-time in Bucks County and New York City for a number of years, before moving full-time three years ago to just outside New Hope.
Lau, 47, said he was exploring how to reboot the LGBT-centric town’s club scene when an opportunity at The Raven arose.
“In its heyday, New Hope had three big clubs and I felt like the time was right to explore doing something like that again. I had been to The Raven many times over the years but didn’t know it was for sale; it was just one of those things where the timing was right,” Lau said, noting that, while The Raven wasn’t officially on the market, DeWitt was willing to sell “to the right person who understood the community and could be true to The Raven’s history. So it was a match made in heaven.”
The Raven opened its doors in 1979 and ever since has served as a hub of LGBT nightlife.
“I’m very sensitive to its history,” Lau said. “We’re going to keep a lot the same but enhance it a bit, without losing the heart of what this place is all about.”
His own experience in the music industry, he noted, will be helpful in raising The Raven’s profile as a music venue.
“I think my value add is my music connections and ability to book nationally touring acts. I want to bring some new life to The Raven in terms of musical talent, and make this a world-class live-music venue.”
That aim has already led to The Raven partnering with the Rrazz Room, which is staging its first show there next month.
Lau is also eager to up The Raven’s appeal as a dance club.
“We’re really concentrating on the dance experience,” he said. “We started Flashback Fridays where we play dance classics from the ’70s and ’80s because there’s this whole group of people in New Hope who used to go to places like Cartwheel and Prelude to dance, and they doesn’t exist anymore. And then for a younger group, a lot are really into the dance movement, so on Saturdays we have Evolution, which is house music. Every week we’ve been seeing more and more people and new faces, which is exactly what we want. We just want to get people out dancing.”
In terms of physical renovations, the DJ booth has been moved down onto the dance floor, and a new sound system and lighting have been brought in. Lau is planning some cosmetic upgrades to the bar and the pool room, which will include the addition of a fireplace.
The staff will remain largely unchanged, except for a few additions, Lau said.
“I was super-lucky to come in and have a really amazing staff; some of these folks have been here for 30 years. They are all great to work with, and I have the previous owner to thank for that; he ran a tight ship of really good people. It sounds cliché, but I’ve been amazed at how much it really is like a family.”
That congeniality, coupled with the drive for enhanced entertainment, will make The Raven a great getaway for Philly folks, Lau said.
“It’s a short drive from Philadelphia but you’re a world apart from Center City. I’ve traveled all over and Bucks County is one of my favorite places in the world; there’s really nowhere like it, and there’s nowhere like The Raven,” he said. “It’s a really unique place with a lot of history; there are very few gay bars that have been open since 1979. And it’s somewhere you can go to get it all: You can eat in the restaurant, stay in one of the 15 guest rooms and now we’re bringing in national talent. This is something that hasn’t existed in New Hope in a long time.”
For more information, visit theravennewhope.com.