The Abbey Food & Bar in West Hollywood is owned by Tristan Schukraft, a technology entrepreneur who bought the venue from founder David Cooley in a sale that closed on April 22, 2024. The deal also included the neighboring venue, The Chapel, and ended more than three decades of Cooley’s stewardship over one of the most recognized LGBTQ+ bars in the world.
Who Tristan Schukraft Is
Schukraft founded MISTR, a telemedicine startup that provides online PrEP and HIV care. He also owns the Circo nightclub and the Tryst Hotel in Puerto Rico. His background is in technology and LGBTQ+-focused hospitality, and he had no prior connection to The Abbey before the purchase. That makes him the first owner of the business who is neither its founder nor a corporate partner of its founder.
The broader pattern across his holdings is a portfolio of LGBTQ+-focused brands. Between MISTR’s health services, the Puerto Rico properties, and the two West Hollywood venues, Schukraft is assembling businesses that serve different parts of the same community.
What the Sale Covered
The agreement was announced in November 2023 and closed on April 22, 2024. It covered both The Abbey and The Chapel, which shares operational resources with the main bar. Reports initially placed the sale price at $27 million for the business operations, with an updated figure of $45 million once the real estate component was included. In California commercial transactions of this kind, the business and the physical property are commonly handled as separate concurrent deals.
The purchase transferred the business operations, brand name, intellectual property, and trade secrets associated with both venues. Schukraft now controls merchandising, event programming, and service standards. The deal also required reassignment of the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control licenses needed to serve alcohol at both locations.
Cooley marked the handover with a short statement: “Now, it’s time for someone new to lead.” He did not announce specific plans for what comes next.
David Cooley’s 33 Years at The Abbey
Cooley opened The Abbey in 1991 as a small coffeehouse in a former dry cleaners on Robertson Boulevard. He wanted a visible gathering place for the gay community at a time when most LGBTQ+ nightlife happened behind unmarked doors. The business moved across the street three years later and grew through a series of expansions into an 18,000-square-foot complex with four bars, two dance floors, a restaurant, and a large outdoor patio. He built it without outside investors.
That changed in 2006, when SBE Entertainment Group, led by Sam Nazarian, bought a 75 percent stake for close to $10 million. Cooley stayed on to run day-to-day operations, but final say over business decisions now rested with a hospitality conglomerate. By the mid-2010s, Nazarian was pivoting SBE toward its hotel brands and shedding nightlife properties, which opened the door for Cooley to buy back full ownership.
Cooley announced the reacquisition at his birthday party in August 2015. Negotiations had taken roughly six weeks and were, by both sides’ accounts, amicable. He ran the business as sole owner for another eight years, interrupted only by the COVID-19 pandemic closure, before entering the sale agreement with Schukraft in late 2023.
What’s Changed Since the Handover
Schukraft has leaned on his technology background in reshaping the guest experience. Early changes include a new mobile app, contactless ordering and payment, digital menu boards, upgraded sound and lighting controlled through digital interfaces, and RFID-based guest management for entry and VIP services. The venue has also announced a dance floor renovation, with the bar staying open during construction.
Whether a multi-property, tech-forward approach works better than Cooley’s single-venue focus is the open question of this new era for The Abbey.