Dinner with Tristan, the CEO of Everything Gay

Last night, I sat at a dining room table placed almost exactly in the same spot I had stood in a week ago at the Red Carpet opening of The Tryst Hotel. It was so quiet and tranquil compared to the tremendous excitement of the grand opening.

My dinner companion, owner of the extravagantly gay hotel, Tristan Schukraft, arrived promptly at 8 pm with his phone glued to his ear. He sat across from me, looked around, and echoed my thoughts out loud. His first hotel in the Tryst chain had been open for exactly one week.

There are still many details to be worked out in the flagship hotel – like installing the second elevator and revamping the current one to bring it up to speed, so to speak. That work will have to wait until after Pride concludes; the container holding the elevator will feature heavily in the famous Olas Altas drag race. More details to follow as we get closer to the date.

Schukraft’s hero is Richard Branson, and he seems fully prepared to follow in those luxurious footsteps. The Tryst logo is a similar font to Branson’s singular Virgin brand and, with all the flying Tristan does, he may, one day, have his own jet.

Prior to the grand opening, the Wall Street Journal sent a crew down to Vallarta to interview Tristan mostly about his acquisition of the Pines commercial district on Fire Island. Tristan now owns the Whale bar where, 50 years ago this summer, a man in drag was refused service. That will never happen again under Tristan’s watch. He is determined to safeguard these places that figure prominently in gay culture; the history is critically important. And, as the CEO of everything gay, Tristan will also make these famous places more beautiful, environmentally sound, and user-friendly.

Look for Tryst-style Hotels coming soon to Mexico City, Ipanema Beach in Rio de Janeiro, and for major renovations for the first Tryst Hotel that started it all, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where Tristan makes his home.

Dinner was shared – vegetarian mushroom tacos and tres leches cake for dessert, all washed down with a signature lychee martini.

Afterward, we walked up to the second floor so Tristan could show me the new pool and jacuzzi with three massage rooms adjacent to the lounge chairs immersed in water. One can cool off by dipping your foot or trailing your fingers in the constantly circulating water.

Thank you, Tristan, for spending a couple of hours with me, again. I loved the Tryst-Pink goodie bag and will practice snapping my Tryst fan. See you soon during Pride.