There's nothing particularly subtle about the Hidden Door, starting with its name and continuing the moment you walk inside to a room of aging gay men kissing and joking like long-lost soul mates. The Hidden Bar is a gay bar in both senses of the word: On a Sunday afternoon when an overflow crowd spills out into the patio, it may be the happiest place in Dallas. This is not your trendy gay bar; no SMU girls just looking to dance, no young, trim gay men looking to impress. It's just a loud, chatty crowd of regulars, like the kind you might find in a working-class bar in Staten Island, only with a whole bunch of gay men, some of whom are inexplicably shirtless. In its own way, the Hidden Door attracts a mixed crowd, from straight-looking office worker types to middle-aged men who make Elton John look like Steve McQueen. Best of all, the Oak Lawn Avenue joint can boast some of the best bartenders in town, who remember the familiar faces and warm up to the new ones.