How Gabé Doppelt Went From Fashion Glossies to L.A.’s Ultimate Gatekeeper

For W’s annual The Originals portfolio, we asked stars of film, fashion, art, music, and more to share their insights on staying true to themselves. See this year’s full class of creatives here.

You were a high-profile magazine editor for several decades, working at titles like Vogue and Mademoiselle, not to mention W. Seven years ago, you surprised everyone by ditching publishing to take a job as ­maître d’–in-training at Tower Bar, in Los ­Angeles, replacing the veteran ­Dimitri Dimitrov.

I was freelancing and running out of money! The timing was perfect, because Jeff Klein had just bought the San Vicente Bungalows and was thinking about what to do with Tower Bar.

Did you get snarky comments from your former colleagues when they first saw you at the hostess podium?

It was thinly veiled snark. People would say, “Oh! This is what you’re doing now?” Then, within about 18 months, I started getting phone calls from some of them, asking if we were hiring. Dimitri trained me from the lowest rung on the ladder, so for the first few weeks I was in the dish pit, polishing silverware. He kept saying to me, “You know nothing!” And in some ways, he was right. But my background in publishing and covering Hollywood was very helpful in understanding the ecosystem of a restaurant like Tower Bar. You know, tables matter. Where people sit matters.

Recently, Jeff promoted you to global membership director at San Vicente Bungalows in L.A. And this fall, you’re moving to New York to oversee the opening of the new Manhattan outpost. Will this job turn you into the world’s snootiest gatekeeper?

Someone I respect tremendously said to me, “Don’t be afraid to be a cunt—you have to be!” But I try not to be too cunty. My job is to curate the membership mix to make sure that it’s diverse, including across age groups and industries. There must be a fair amount of thought and compassion that goes into the decision-making process.

Do you and Jeff always agree on who should be allowed in?

Not always! We also have a membership committee, and we trust them and don’t like to overrule them. The meetings are loud and raucous and opinionated, but ultimately we reach a consensus.

The club is known for being extremely strict about secrecy: Members can’t take photos at the club or post about it on social media. I’ve heard that a few members have gotten themselves suspended. What were their misdeeds?

Breaking the no-photos rule is the most common offense. There just has to be a selfie-free zone somewhere in the world. But people often sneak pictures and post them—and somehow Jeff always finds them, even if the account is private. Also, when a member is rude to staff, that’s gross and says a lot about that person. Insecure? Micro-penis?

When a member gets kicked out, are you the one who bounces them?

Yes, and I enjoy it tremendously. The first time I suspended someone, I was terrified, but then it only took about two or three more, and now I get such joy out of it. In a normal restaurant, you don’t always have the power to get rid of someone. It does keep people in line.

Which types of members are the biggest divas? You have many of the top movie stars, studio heads, tech moguls, and fashion designers.

Strangely, it’s the average people who act the most entitled. I’ve found that, at the club, the big stars just want to be treated like real people. They want to blend in because they draw so much attention everywhere else.

How will the membership mix in New York be different from L.A.?

It will be heavily fashion, with a big presence from the art world, and, personally, I want as many writers as possible. As with our first club in L.A., we’re letting in only a couple hundred to start. We’re being incredibly selective. All new members have to be nominated by existing members. Some people are applying for L.A. memberships so that they can get into New York through the back door.

What kinds of desperate measures do people resort to while trying to make their applications stand out?

Oh, appalling things. Some people will include a picture of themselves on their Peloton in their private jet. But money is not going to buy your way in. Just showing that you go to fancy restaurants in Europe all summer and have six houses and collect private clubs for a hobby, that’s not appealing to us.

Which members or guests can still make you starstruck?

Any sports star. And Mick Jagger.

You joke about the challenges of being a 64-year-old in a job that requires late nights and long hours walking around in heels. But in what ways are your age and wisdom an advantage?

The more rings around the trunk, the better equipped you are to handle basically anything. My skin is thick now. If I were younger, I think I’d be offended much more easily, but now everything just rolls off my back. I handle it like the elderly person that I am.

Hair and Makeup by Sara Denman for Charlotte Tilbury at Celestine Agency; Photo Assistant: Mike López; Retouching: Danny Peña; Fashion Assistant: Kat Cook.