The Blind Pig

The Blind Pig was a wizarding speakeasy and jazz club that operated during the 1920s in New York. Located in the neighbourhood of Harlem, it was owned by a goblin gangster, Gnarlack. The establishment was apparently frequented by prostitutes.

Newt Scamander visited the Blind Pig while looking for information in 1926.

Behind the scenes

 * "Blind pig" is an old American slang term for a speakeasy. The term derives from a practice that certain speakeasy operators used to circumvent prohibition, whereby they would charge customers an admission fee to view a curiousity (typically an animal), then serve them a complementary alcoholic beverage. This practice allowed them to serve alcohol while technically obeying the ban on its the sale.
 * Alcohol remained legal under the wizarding government of the United States during the period that the country's No-Maj government enforced prohibition in the 1920s and early 1930s. This raises the question of how a wizarding pub like the Blind Pig could be considered a "speakeasy" when alcohol was legal. Critics of the MACUSA's policy on alcohol argued that its legality made wizards and witches stand out in crowded cities where the majority of the population were No-Majs living under prohibition. Thus, it's possible that wizarding saloons could be considered "speakeasies" in the sense that they had to operate clandestinely, so as not to attract the attention of No-Maj authorities and reveal the existence of the wizarding world. It's also possible that some wizarding pubs were unlicensed because they were run and/or frequented by criminals. The Blind Pig, being run by a gangster and frequented by prostitutes, would seem to fit this bill.

Appearances

 * Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (film)