Queer Girl Brunch Guide: So Many Cities, So Many Brunches, So Little Time

Hold onto your eggs, we’re getting ready for Autostraddle’s International Brunch Weekend 8/23-24! Find a brunch meetup in your city or create your own by heading over to our events page. You can also load up on all things brunch by watching this space. From playlists to recommendations to personal essays, we’re writing all about the brunch experience. Get excited! BRUNCH.

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Oh hey were you wondering where to get brunch? Maybe like the weekend of the 23rd and 24th? Here are some ideas for you, sourced from whatever recommendations we could force our staff and close associates to provide. Feel free to irately list all the excellent places we missed in the comments!

Berkeley, CA

La Note
2377 Shattuck Ave
510-843-1535
La Note is a place I go with my friends when we are looking to treat ourselves. You drop a little more $ here, but the French-inspired cuisine is to die for: crepes, croquettes, grapefruit mimosas and Kir Royales, and coffee so strong you need to drink a gallon of water to recover!

Homemade Cafe
2454 Sacramento St
510-845-1940
Homemade has sassy waitresses, kale scrambles, and beautifully curated muffins! It’s a low-key brunch place that usually has a shorter wait time than your average place, seats about 20 people, and has less-expensive food options. You can even get a frequent-bruncher card that helps you work towards free food!

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Brooklyn, NY

Alchemy Brooklyn
56 Fifth Avenue (Park Slope)
718-636-4385
Grass-fed hanger steak & organic eggs, Sweet Guinness Pancakes, Brioche French Toast… are you in? It’s around the corner from Bergen Street Comics and Babeland. So you can brunch and then go purchase sex toys and Lumberjanes all in one shot!

Caracas Arepa Bar
291 Grand St (b/t Roebling St & Havemeyer St, Williamsburg)
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 218-6050
The $8.50 Hangover Relief Brunch involves fried eggs, ham, potato hash and avocado slices and will cure every problem you’ve ever had. The building itself is really cool and you should probs try an arepa, which I can’t describe so I’ll quote the website: “dense yet spongy corn-flour rounds, pitalike pockets, corn muffins, cake-swaddled mélange, white corn cakes, Latin sloppy Joe, sandwiches of a flat cornmeal patty, soft and smooth within, golden crispiness, tasty treats, burrito-killer, panini-killer, wheat-free, gluten-free crisp on the outside, steamy-soft in the middle…”

Cheryl’s Global Soul
236 Underhill Ave (Prospect Heights)
Brooklyn, NY 11238
(347) 529-2855
This place, overseen by Executive Chef Cheryl of Food Network’s “The Melting Pot” herself, has french toast with the best Chantilly cream in the world. There’s a combo where they give you both a mimosa and coffee along with your meal. Also, there’s a patio out back where you can sit in the shade and think about how great your life now that you have Chantilly cream in your mouth. There’s often a wait on the weekends, but it’s worth it.

Cubana Social
70 N 6th st
(718) 782-3334
It’s cuban so you’d think it would be all pork everything but they are amazingly veg-friendly and everything is really fresh and delicious, plus they serve really strong coffee and you can get mojitos with brunch (which is amazing). It is also the site of cara’s notorious fall, cos they sat us on the stage (they have live jazz sometimes, and other times they screen movies there). Also I dunno if this has changed since I moved but I feel like nobody knows this place is there; there’s never a wait.

House of Small Wonder
77 N. 6th Street (b/t Wythe & Berry / Williamsburg)
Brooklyn, NY 1121
Worth it just for the decor which includes a tree growing smack dab in the middle of the place. Lots of brunchy sandwiches like the Fig Bree Apple Baguette and Organic Egg Scramble on crossiant. It aims for an environment like European cafes, “where the small cozy establishments focus on quality and not quantity,” and a menu with Japanese influences.

Peaches
393 Lewis Ave (b/t Mac Donough St & Decatur St in Bed-Sty)
Brooklyn, NY 11233
(718) 942-4162
“Peaches is bomb southern food. You know how that guy who wrote “Stuff White People Like?” He insists that Brunch is a white people thing. That is not true, just go to Peaches. I’ve never felt so underdressed while eating breakfast foods. I want to make Peaches my lover.” – Hannah Hodson, Peaches’ lover

Taco Chulo
318 grand st
(718) 302-2485
It’s mexican so if you’re vegan you can get a smothered burrito or the guacamole breakfast, which is what I always got. The food, coffee and cocktails are pretty solid (hibiscus margaritas), but the best part is that it’s down the block from lodge, which always has like a two-hour wait on the weekends. Taco chulo almost always seats you immediately and then you feel like that emoji with the sunglasses, which is my favourite emotion.

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Cambridge, MA

Petsi Pie
31 Putnam Avenue
617.499.0801
This lovely spot is tucked away between Central and Harvard Squares, and while I’m terribly uninformed about the pies for which they are named, I think they make the best egg sandwiches in the Boston area. They have seven different options for egg sandwiches, all on brioche with cracked pepper baked right into the dough. I also have sampled many of their gigantic scones, all of which are top notch. Petsi Pie is a very reliable brunch place in inclement weather — I brunched there while we were shoveling out after Winter Storm Hercules. One thing that’s important to note is that they don’t have much in the way of gluten free or vegan options.

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Chicago, IL

Chicago Diner
Lakeview:
3411 N Halsted St
773-935-6696
Logan Square:
2333 N. Milwaukee Ave
773-252-3211
Chicago’s go-to vegan restaurant has killer breakfast foods that everyone can enjoy. Their vegan cinnamon rolls are an steal at 2 for $5, and their potato hash is not to be missed. They have a variety of vegan proteins, including seitan sausage and tofu bacon, and a build-your-own breakfast option where you can pick your favorite parts of the menu. If you’ve still got room after all that, order one of their decadent lactose-free milkshakes. You won’t regret it.

Dunlay’s on the Square
3137 W. Logan Blvd
773-227-2400
Dunlay’s is a bar, so the first items on their brunch menu are drinks. Sip one of those while you choose from a full menu of eggs, pancakes, hash, sandwiches and more. Big Mike’s Irish Breakfast comes complete with a Guinness, if you’re into that sort of thing, and the roasted chicken chilaquiles are authentically Latin with queso blanco, poblano crema and avocado. Their creamy, gooey hash browns are almost a meal on their own, but save room for an order of their monkey bread — basically a big pull-apart cinnamon roll — after your meal. If you don’t feel like waiting an hour to get into Logan Square’s other famous brunch spots, Dunlay’s won’t let you down.

Cozy Corner Diner & Pancake House
2294 N Milwaukee Ave
773-276-2215
The best diner in Chicago is in the process of getting a facelift, and if you see how busy they are on weekends, you’ll see why they’re expanding into the former grocery store next door. They serve cheap, delicious breakfast foods with a smile, and they’ll go out of their way to get your group whatever you need during your meal. Is diner breakfast food usually worth a 40-minute wait? No, but if Cozy Corner wasn’t worth it, there wouldn’t be a line out the door every Sunday morning.

m.henry
5707 N Clark St
773-561-1600
Both m.henry and its sister restaurant, m.henrietta, serve up what they call “globally inspired, new American style cooking.” That’s just a fancy way of saying it’s freaking delicious, huge portions of decadent breakfast foods. When every menu item has an ingredient list that takes up two lines, you know how much thought has gone into making sure it’s good. By far the best item on the menu is Fannie’s Killer Fried Egg Sandwich, which comes with applewood smoked bacon, gorgonzola, arugula, thyme and plum tomatoes, but the baguette French toast with fresh berries and vanilla creme is light, fluffy heaven on a plate. They don’t serve alcohol but are very BYOB-friendly, and will bring out an ice bucket to keep your champagne chilled while you make your own mimosas.

Sweet Maple Cafe
1339 W. Taylor St.
312-243-8908
This sweet and quaint cafe puts love in their food. Seriously, everything in this place has a homemade heartiness and is perfect post hangover food. The must have items are homemade biscuits, pancakes, and home fries. Please go here now!

Taverna 750
750 W. Cornelia Ave.
773-904-7466
Martinis, mimosas, and scrumptious well plated food is what you will dive into at Taverna 750. The fabulous Italian style eatery must haves are the steak and eggs, veggie hash, or the eggs benedict which are equally amazing. They’re always adding new items that can suit anyone’s taste palette or wallet. This brunch is perfect for folks who want to go dutch!

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Houston, Texas

Baby Barnaby’s
602 Fairview,
713-522-4229
There are several Barnaby’s in Htown but only one Baby Barnaby’s and it is the best, most rainbow brunch spot in town. They have a rainbow painted roof and a sweet little patio in the front. The wait can be long for the coveted Sunday brunch and famous green eggs but you sign your name on a clipboard and a handsome waiter calls them out in delightful ways. They also provide you with ice water and coffee while you wait which is lovely.

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London, UK

Black Cat Café
76 Clarence Road
Hackney
020-8985-7091
Black Cat Cafe uses 100% vegan (and often local) ingredients. They’ve got a considerable amount of space if you’re bringing a large party — the cafe was the venue for our post-Pride London Autostraddle meet-up and the staff were great to us. They’ve also got a fridge full of food to take home (including vegan haggis!) and a neat book collection for sale.

The Deptford Brunch Club
Douglas Square (next to Albany Theatre)
Douglas Way
Deptford

This pop-up brunch club is only going to be around till October 2014. If you’re into street food in the style of London’s many weekend markets and bottomless booze, this is for you.

The Gate
370 St John Street
0207-278-5483

51 Queen Caroline Street
020-8748-6932
The Gate Restaurant is fully vegetarian, and also often fully booked up for weekend brunches so save yourself a spot in advance. The food is excellent (albeit a bit pricey) but the main memory I have of this place is this one time my friend and I spent a good amount of time trying to decide if the waitress was queer, only to have her later tell us she “recognised my accent” as she handed us the bill. We couldn’t decide if this was just an offhand remark or a hint that she’d overheard our whole conversation (the restaurant was fairly empty then) so naturally, we fled in embarrassment.

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Los Angeles, California

Blu Jam Café
7371 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90046
323-951-9191
Monday-Sunday
The wait can be upwards of 30 minutes on the weekends and parking in the Fairfax District is bordering on nonexistent. But it’s completely worth it when you sit down to Chilaquiles or the Vanilla French Toast. While they don’t do bottomless mimosas, they do have tasty vegan options like the Spicy Tex Mex Tofu Hash. Also, it’s super close to the Melrose Trading Post, LA’s best flea market/spot for people watching.

Border Grill
1445 4th St
Santa Monica, CA
310-451-1655

445 S. Figueroa St.
Los Angeles, CA 90071
213-486-5171
Sundays only
Owned by the awesome, Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger (a queer lady and general LGBTQ ally) these hot spots are the best for brunch! For $30 you get all you can eat small plates of anything from Fish Tacos to Bread Pudding French Toast. For an extra $10 you get bottomless Mimosas! The Downtown location never, ever has a wait and Santa Monica generally has a 15-20 minute wait. And for the love of all that in confectionary, have the Churro Tots!

Hamburger Mary’s
8288 Santa Monica Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA 90046
323-654-3800
Monday-Sunday 11am- 3pm
This place has the most interesting collage walls and even more interesting clientele. Located right at the edge of Boys Town, this is where you go to have a good time and flirt shamelessly with everyone who walks in the door. The Cinnamon Roll French toast is die for,as is their menu of coffee/alcohol combos. There is never a dull a moment here,the waiters are hilarious, L Word cast members show up at random and the music is to die for.

Kitchen 24
8575 Santa Monica Blvd
West Hollywood, CA
424-777-0959
This spot is located in the heart of Boys Town and caters to anyone awake enough to make it. True to its name it’s open 24hrs and serves pretty much everything. The Disco Fries go exceptionally well with the Build Your Own Omelet option, and on Saturday you can add $10 bottomless Bloody Mary’s or Mimosas to your order. With its ample outdoor seating and really sweet waiters, this place is the best for a relaxed meal with friends.

Moonshadows
20357 Pacific Coast Hwy.
310-456-3010
Moonshadows is the perfect spot for lovers and friends. The restaurant has a gorgeous view overlooking the ocean, live music, and nothing but beauty in a brunch. It’s right on the ocean and while you dine you have the pleasure of hearing the waves crashing as you enjoy your beautiful meal. From the oysters to the beautifully crafted crab cakes to the wonderful red d’anjou pear salad, anything you pick from the menu will be a great choice! Enjoy!

WeHo Bistro
1040 N. La Cienega Blvd.
310-657-9696
Be prepared for a short wait, great service, and delicious food! Starting with the most amazing french toast, delectable filet minot & eggs, or a wonderful crepe paired with your choice of mimosa or select wine. The best part about WeHo bistro is the wonderful patio area and the pet-friendly atmosphere makes it a superb brunch date!

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New York, NY

Amy Ruth’s
113 West 116th St. Harlem, NY.
212-280-3109
This is a very famous soul-food restaurant with a very serious waffle menu. Treat yourself to The Rev. Al Sharpton (Chicken & Waffles), The Monica Brown (waffles & fried whiting), The City Councilwoman Inez Dickens (5-grain waffles), The Bishop Charles Reed (original waffles w/ fresh sauteed apples) or chicken, pork chops, omlets and other classics not necessarily named after anybody.

Bocado
1293 Lexington Avenue
212-289-9004
They have a breakfast pizza. If that’s not enough to convince you, try their belgian waffles or a delicious Croque Madame. Every brunch comes with a free mimosa or bellini, and it’s worth splurging on a second one. Delicious, classy and not too expensive!

Crooked Knife
29 E 30th St (b/t Madison Ave & S Park Ave in Midtown East)
New York, NY 10016
(212) 696-2593
BOTTOMLESS BRUNCH. BOOZY BRUNCH!

Good Enough to Eat
520 Columbus Ave (b/t 85th St & 86th St)
New York, NY 10024
(212) 496-0163
This is a family-friendly option for queermos with kiddos who will undoubtedly enjoy the farmhouse decor. They serve breakfast every day from 8am to 4pm (9am on weekends), with homestyle American dishes like Silver Dollar pancakes, Pumpkin fresh toast and a Deep South Scramble.

Josie’s
300 Amsterdam Ave (at 74th street)
(212) 769-1212
This kinda-bougie all-vegetarian restaurant has been around for a while, boasting a variety of inventive brunch options and a pretty unbeatable pre-meal bread situation. Vegan tofu scramble! Apple pancakes! Homemade turkey sausage!

La Palapa
77 St. Marks Pl (b/t 1st Ave & 2nd Ave)
New York, NY 10003
(212) 777-2537
This neighborhood Mexican spot in the East Village, which has a lot of vegan/vegetarian options, is an Autostraddlers’ favorite, especially if you like to start your morning with a margarita. Their brunch deal is unbeatable – $15 for coffee or tea, a brunch drink, a brunch entree and a plate for fresh fruit. Plus it’s great for groups!

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Northampton, MA

The Green Bean
241 Main Street
413-584-2326
I lived in Northampton for exactly 7 weeks three years ago, and it was long enough to establish that the Green Bean makes the best brunch. It’s always packed — expect to wait, and expect the wait to be worth it. All their major egg dishes (and there are also not-egg vegan dishes, and fake meat options) come with bomb home fries AND a delightful scone (just the right amount of sweet to go with your savory). Their menu is full of winners, but if asked to pick a favorite, I’d go with their delightfully simple breakfast sandwich: the Itty Bitty, which is a fried egg on an english muffin with goat cheese, pesto and tomato. Highly recommended. Also, there’s bottomless coffee and you get to pick your own mug off a tree.

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Oakland, CA

Aunt Mary’s Cafe
4307 Telegraph Ave
510-601-9227
Aunt Mary’s has brunch with a Southern fusion twist– eggs with collard greens, shrimp and grits, etc! All the waitresses are way cute, and appear to be fierce femmes (though who knows!), and their pozole is almost as good as mine!

Cock-a-doodle Cafe
719 Washington Street
510-465-5400
You gotta love a queer-owned brunch spot that also has its own Taco Truck on Fridays and Saturdays! Also, fried chicken with graham cracker encrusted French toast, holy shit!

Mama’s Royal Cafe
4012 Broadway
510-547-7600
The fact that Oakland has more lesbian couples per capita than anywhere else in the country is abundantly clear circa every Saturday/Sunday at noon on the sidewalk outside of Mama’s, where they’re all waiting for a table at the same brunch spot. Mama’s feels kinda like a diner but with locally sourced ingredients, inventive specials and tofu scramble. Once you get in, service is fast and everything tastes good.

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Phoenix, AZ

Liberty Market
Mon – Fri 7am – 11am
Sat + Sun 7am – 1pm
230 N. Gilbert Rd., Gilbert AZ

Liberty Market has vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options, and the historic space is large enough for you and several of your closest, queerest friendos. There’s a fistful of breakfast cocktails to choose from and their coffee/espresso bar is amazing. Get Chef David’s Breakfast Sandwich and sit near a window so you can take in Old Town Gilbert. (Don’t leave without finding the kugel in Water Tower Park. Thank me later.)

Morning Glory Cafe (at The Farm at South Mountain)
Tues – Fri 8am – 11am
Sat + Sun 8am – 1pm
6106 S 32nd St, Phoenix, AZ 85042

Morning Glory Cafe is a little outdoor breakfast spot serving meat and vegetarian options, right there on the farm grass. The entire sky is over your head and you can pick up a bouquet of wildflowers from the shop on your way out. It’s also super intimate and quiet (you’re outside on a farm, you know?) and even though they will accommodate larger parties, it’s better to just keep it small. Limited breakfast cocktail selection, but who needs alcohol when you’re ON A FARM. The Brioche French Toast is so good you’ll probably just lie down and cry when it’s all over.

Pomegranate Cafe
Tues – Sun 8am – 4pm
4025 E. Chandler Blvd., Suite 28, Phoenix, AZ 85048

This is all the way down in Ahwatukee, but it’s the best damn vegan/vegetarian food in the entire valley, so it’s worth the drive (and the strip malls). Pomegranate is probably best for an intimate brunch with two or three friends because of its size (though they did expand their space a couple of years ago), but don’t let that stop you and 20 friends from stopping by anyway. They serve kombucha beer, mimosas and sangria, but the Hibiscus Cooler is my favorite. Get the Green Garden Protein Bowl with a side of tempeh bacon if it’s the last thing you do.

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Portland, Oregon

A N D
5420 E Burnside St
Almost every restaurant in Portland has good vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options, but AND really specializes. It’s vegan by default but you can ask for egg or cheese and best of all there is none of those pesky extra charges for the veg and gluten-freedom.

Broder
2508 SE Clinton St.
2240 N Interstate Ave. Suite 160
Two locations means that all Eastsiders can enjoy this Scandinavian themed brunch spot. It also means that, even though it’s popular, the wait is only medium, even on a Sunday.Plus the staff is almost all adorable Portlandy gay men who are sweet and great servers.

Interurban
4057 N Mississippi Ave.
Known for its incredible happy hour Interurban has not yet been discovered as a brunch place so there is usually no wait, at least for the next 6 months. Firendly gay wait staff serve up specialities such as homemade Pop-Tarts, salted caramel french toast and and to-die-for brunch greens.

Pambiche
2811 NE Glisan St.
A busy Cuban dinner eatery, Pambiche also serves a Caribbean style brunch with some of the best Cafe con Leche I have ever sipped. They’ve been doing this for awhile so I’m not sure why no one has figured out that you have less wait time on a weekend morning but I’m all for it. They helpfully label everything veggie, vegan and GF. I’d even go for just the free sweets basket that comes to every table.

Sen Yai
3384 SE Division St.
Another spot not usually thought of as a brunch option is this noodle house from the same folks who bring you the wildly popular Pok Pok restaurants elsewhere in the city and now even in NYC. They don’t have the crazy (read: 2+ hours) wait of the other locations in general and their morning offerings are an interesting look into how Thai’s break their fast with dishes such as rice porridge in pork bone broth, Vietnamese style sunnyside up eggs, Chinese sausage and muu yaw ground pork served with a baguette or fried Thai-style savory crullers.

Sweedeedee
5202 N Albina Ave.
This twee little spot has some of the best baked goods in town and items like the salted honey pie are not to be missed. The most accurate description I have ever heard was when a friend said it was as if Marcel the Shell with Shoes on opened a cafe. Locals, hipsters, tourists and even your mom will fall in love with this place so there is a little bit of a wait, but it’s still not too bad by PDX stadards.

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Queens, NY

Il Bambino
34-08 31st Ave
Astoria, Queens
718-626-0087
Il Bambino takes all your favorite breakfast elements and puts them on a panini. Even better, they’ll make any of the 16 brunch sandwiches vegetarian for no extra cost — just tell them what you’d like to substitute for the meat. The cute back patio is the perfect sunny spot for a weekend meal, but they also serve brunch on Fridays until 3:30 if you want to beat the rush.

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Rochester, New York

The Owl House
75 Marshall Street
585-360-2920
Fresh ingredients. Seasonal and always changing menu. Tasty brunch drinks including your standard mimosa and fun non-alcoholic concoctions like the Put Up Your Dukes–locally roasted coffee, vegan bourbon cream and black walnut bitters. Come for the watermelon salad with mint, cucumber olive oil, and feta (or housemade sunflower seed cheese). Stay for the breakfast poutine. Almost everything can be made vegan or eggy-meaty and many items are gluten free, so bring all your special-dietary-needs friends!

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San Antonio, Texas

Candlelight Coffeehouse
3011 N St Marys St,
210-738-0099
Candlelight is a beautifully cozy brunch spot with a huge, shady sprawling patio. For their “food styles” on their Facebook they straight up say brunch.You order at a counter so the wait is however long it takes you to muscle into a good spot (from no time at all to ten minutes), the best are these really opulent couches placed around coffee tables. They really know how to make Eggs Benedict but it is the Smoked Salmon Scramble that is truly addicting. I don’t know what a “semi-bottomless” mimosa is; when I lived down the street, they were bottomless…

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San Francisco, CA

Brick House
426 Brannan St. (b/t Ritch St. & Zoe St)
San Francisco, CA 94107
415-369-0222
It’s sort of off the beaten path and a bit crowded — the decor and menu has an Austin, Texas vibe — but worth it. The menu is pretty f*cking scrumptious, including a signature eggs benedict, jalapeno golden polenta grits, vanilla bean french toast and killer huevos rancheros.

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Singapore

Eight Cafe & Bar
8 Bukit Pasoh Rd
6220-4513
Located close to the CBD, Eight serves brunch on Sundays. While I generally steer clear of anything that markets itself as “Asian fusion,” Eight serves very decent food for a decent price in a relaxing atmosphere.

The Garden Slug
55 Lorong L Telok Kurau
#01-59/61 Bright Centre
8688-8575
The Garden Slug is a little out of the way but well worth the visit for its tasty, inventive food. They’ve got plenty of vegetarian options and a track record of strong support for queer causes and people, both of which I know better than to take for granted in Singapore.

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Todmorden, West Yorkshire, UK

Todmorden is a little Lancashire/Yorkshire border-town at the meeting-point of three valleys. Each valley has a road leading to a now-depressed post-industrial mill-town, and each of these roads has a tip-top brunch place on it. Like so!

There are also many, many, many queer ladies here. They came in the seventies to start communes n stuff and now it’s a veritable mecca for lesbians and veggies. Of course, you might think that a Yorkshire brunch guide would be all fried foods and pastry, but that’s where you would be wrong. It’s only half fried foods and pastry! Although to be fair you’re probably reading this article for fried foods and pastry joints so yeah.

The Bear Cafe
29 Rochdale Road, Todmorden
01706-433606
Super-awesome cult veggie-vegan was-once-a-co-op local-fairtrade-organic-and-all-that-jazz health-food emporium and cafe, everyone round these parts knows The Bear. There is an actual brunch section on the menu featuring such delights as Huevos Rancheros (poached eggs and salsa), miso and tomatoes on toasted caraway rye bread (NOM!), homemade granola and pancakes. Shedloads of vegan options.

Exciting fact! Many moons ago, for my sins, I was the manager of this cafe…in fact that’s kinda how I ended up in this odd little town.

Kava
53 Halifax Road, Todmorden
01706-818730
My favourite breakfast spot in Tod, vegetarian Kava do a totally mean fry-up. Plus the co-owner Svet is the most charmingly enthusiastic barista you will EVER meet. Bar non. There’s also a cute garden out the back, dogs are welcome, the food leans in a Unkrainian direction, the coffee is wood-roasted and the music is a depressing mix of early-90s dirges plus The Smiths (because the co-owner Dale used to be in that very band!! I know, right?!) (BTW you should totally click on that link to see Svet being gorgeous about Tod.)
Brunch highlights include Yufka (baked stuffed Ukrainian pastries), filled croissants and a full vegetarian/vegan English. Loads of vegan options too.

Exciting fact! Svet has the world’s best collection of tights. I’ve literally never seen her wear the same pair twice.

Vanilla Kitchen
52 Patmos, Burnley Road, Todmorden
01706-433748
Recently-opend bistro near the park with a crazy-imaginative menu. Not officially a brunch spot as it doesn’t open til 12 but the food is so yum that it needs a mention. Highlights include Croque Mon Tod – a fried ham and cheese sandwich with Lancashire cheese, and a ridiculously delicious dish of sautéed halloumi with olives, spinach and baked eggs.

Exciting fact! This is the last place in Todmorden to get the evening sunshine so it’s officially the best place for dinner al fresco too.

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Winter Park, FL

Ethos Vegan Kitchen
601-B South New York Avenue
407-228-3898
Ethos is hands down the best brunch spot in the Orlando area. It’s an entirely vegan restaurant which offers delicious brunch options like seasonal pumpkin pancakes (which are unreal) and biscuits and gravy. There is pretty much no wrong choice when it comes to their brunch menu (and their regular menu, honestly). Their brunch hours are Saturday & Sunday from 9am-3pm and they have a different brunch special every week.

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Vancouver, British Columbia

Bandidas Taqueria
2781 Commercial Dr,
604-568-8224
My vegetarian pick! I kind of hate vegetables but this place makes me forget. I hightly recommend the eggs benny; instead of english muffins they use cornbread muffin tops. CORNBREAD MUFFIN TOPS. Guys. GUYS. CORNBREAD. If you are super early, almost zero wait time. Around 10:30-noon it’s about a 35-50 min wait on weekends, because everyone rolls out of bed around the same time.

Chewie’s
Kits: 2201 W 1st Ave
604-558-4448

Coal Harbour: 110-1055 West Hastings St.
604-620-7634
To be honest, I’ve only ever had the chicken and waffles at Chewie’s because it is damn delicious and it’s hard to find in Vancouver. It’s very easy to make reservations online, and I’ve never had to wait to get seated. If you want late Sunday afternoon decadence, this should hit the spot (if you are a carnivore)!

The Dutch Wooden Shoe Cafe
3292 Cambie St.
604-874-0922
Minimal to no wait. Tuesdays are 2 for 1, you can get bomb pannekoeks for little funds (mid-week deliciousness). Quick service and off-the-beaten-path option.

Medina
556 Beatty St.
604-879-3114
The last time I hit up Saturday brunch, we arrived around 9:30 and it was a 45 min wait. A known brunch spot in the city, prepare to spend a bit of time hanging out in front. Tasty and fancy feeling at a decent price (under $20), it’s a lovely treat yoself option!

Insider tip: make sure your entire party is present, as they won’t seat you unless everyone is there.

San Francisco Dyke March Is Our History; This is What Its Present Looks Like

The San Francisco Dyke March is the most beloved and highly participatory pride celebration in all the land. The first Dyke March was held in 1993 and organized by the Lesbian Avengers, Queer Nation and the National ACT UP Women’s Committee and had an astounding attendance of 10,000 lesbian-identified women. Throughout the years, the San Francisco Dyke March has grown to the largest in the nation, attended by up to 50,000 queer humans who show up to the march to participate, not just observe. Molly Adams snapped these shots of the beautiful attendees of this year’s San Francisco Dyke March.

Click to enlarge

Zoie Palmer Totally Has A Girlfriend: “Lost Girl” Actress Thanks Partner at Canadian Screen Awards

Last year, when we asked our readers to vote for their favorite out queer women for the annual Hot 100, heaps of readers ignored the “out” part and voted in droves for Ellen Page… who came out last month. The other frontrunner in the “women you voted for even though you weren’t supposed to” category? Zoie Palmer, who plays the dashing lesbian doctor Lauren in Lost Girl. And last night, at the 2014 Canadian Screen Awards, Palmer won the Fan’s Choice Award and in her acceptance speech, pulled a Jodie Foster and thanked her “incredible partner” Alex Lalonde. And by partner, sources say, she meant, you know, partner. Zoie also thanked her son, Lucas, who is said to be Lalonde’s son from a previous relationship. He’s probably really cute.

Here’s that speech, in which Palmer is wearing a dykey bracelet, looks super gay, and is up on stage with her co-star Anna Silk, who plays Lauren’s on-again off-again lady-love, Bo, on Lost Girl:

http://youtu.be/K5Aqc5ZMfak

Palmer was born in England but grew up in Newmarket, Ontario, getting involved in theater as a teenager. She’s been working steadily in the US and Canada since 2002, grabbing parts in made-for-TV movies like The Reagans and recurring roles in shows like the CTV teen series Instant Star and Global TV series The Guard. She recently starred in Sex After Kids, a romantic comedy written and directed by Jeremy Lalonde, who I think we can safely say is related to Alex Lalonde. (UPDATE: Apparently not. There must be lots of Lalondes in Canada!) Her role as Lauren on Lost Girl, which began in 2010, is what vaulted her into the hearts and minds of queer women all over the galaxy. Bo and Lauren were named Top TV Couple by E! Online in 2013, Best Lesbian/Bi Character of 2013 on AfterEllen and a Top Queer TV Character of 2012 on Autostraddle. 

Zoie has been involved with TV Producer Alex Lalonde (who tweeted her excitement over Palmer’s win) for an unspecified period of time. The two were involved in some of the same projects in the past. Anthropologists report an early sighting of the two women together on twitter in 2011, but it’s impossible to know for sure. Undoubtedly, additional unverified information will continue trickling in.

For now, let’s just bask in the glory of the goddess who is blessing us with so many hot smart ladies coming out this year. Who knows, the next one could be YOU.

10 Reasons Why Michelle Rodriguez and Cara Delevingne Are Already The Gayest Couple Ever

Bisexual actress Michelle Rodriguez and British fashion model Cara Delevingne have been dating for approximately six weeks and have already far exceeded my wildest expectations for the first celebrity romance I’ve cared about since SamRo/Lilo (RIP). In addition to inspiring me to set up my first-ever “google alert,” Michelle and Cara have enjoyed a whirlwind love affair filled with fancy fashions, sexy faces and inspirational moments. Furthermore, insofar as I am declaring “lesbian” an adjective describing a romantic relationship involving two women for the purposes of this post, they’re becoming the most lesbianish couple of all time. Let’s discuss why that is.

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10. They’re Spending 99% Of Their Time Together

Seriously, they spent like three hours apart the other night and it made national news. “They’re really happy and loved-up, and spending as much time together as possible,” said a friend. “They’re also forever texting and messaging one another.” Mhm. That photo above is at Cara’s show in Milan on Thursday night, which the couple flew to in a private jet, along with Cara’s fancy family. Back at the start of the month, The Mirror noted that “they have spent the past two weeks holed up at the Covent Garden Hotel, but will soon be off to US star Michelle’s home in Venice Beach, Los Angeles.” They even got injected with vitamins intravenously while holding hands. Probably while listening to “Blood and Fire.”

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9. They’re Dressing Super Matchy…

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8. …And Sometimes They’re Not Even Wearing Pants

Two nights ago, Michelle Rodriguez and Cara Delevingne were spotted entering a limousine. Later, after an unspecified but undoubtedly sensual period of time, the two departed the limo. At this point, Michelle was no longer wearing pants, which we all know is an ancient lesbian ritual. It has been so since 1929, when Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West were seen entering Virginia’s 1927 Singer Senior wearing trousers, and when the couple emerged, Vita was gripping Virginia’s trousers in her poetic fist, sweaty with love and longing. True story.

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7. They’re Merging Career Aspirations

Cara’s an enormously popular model of the moment — ranked number 5 on Models.com’s Top 50 Models, winning Model of the Year at the British Fashion Awards, named by the Evening Standard as one of London’s Most Influential People and currently serving as the face of Mulberry’s 2014 campaign. She’s appeared on the covers of Vogue UK, Vogue Korea, i-D and Jalouse and has walked for Jason Wu, Moschino, Oscar de la Renta, Burberry, Stella McCartney, Chanel and Dolce & Gabbanna. She’s been the face of DKNY, H&M’s 2011 Authentic Collection, Chanel’s Resort 2013 and Burberry’s Beauty.

But now Cara’s itching to do more acting — specifically, the kind of acting her lady-love is known for, telling the press at the Elle Style Awards, “I’d love to do action roles. I want to do parts I really have time to research and get into — stuff with real meaning, not stupid blonde girls that get killed halfway through. I hate that kind of s**t. I’m not just a model, guys. Give me something I can work with.”

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6. They’re Already Exchanging “I Love Yous”

“I love her, she’s great,” says Cara. Granted that statement was followed up with “She’s a very good friend of mine — she’s wonderful,” but I think we can all read/invent/misinterpret the subtext here. I assume Michelle’s saying “I love you” back, because otherwise they’d both explode. That’s a rule of Lesbian Physics invented by 19th century Russian mathematician Sonja Kovalevsky.

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5. Michelle is 14 Years Older Than Cara

Ladies who love ladies are especially prone to loving ladies who are older than them. It’s a Scientific Fact.

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4. They Love Cats and Bikes

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3. Animal Onesies

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2. Uncle Frank Still Can’t Say The Word “Girlfriend”

E! is doing that thing your parents did before they were willing to accept that your “roommate” literally shared your room because she actually slept in your bed, spooning and scissoring, every night, because she is YOUR GIRLFRIEND JUST LIKE YOU SAID. Despite Michelle confirming the relationship and all evidence to the contrary, this E! piece from yesterday refers to Michelle as Cara’s “BFF” in the title and later writes, “Delevingne was all smiles while chatting with her BFF.” Later, they whip out a “Rodriguez watched from the audience while supporting her best gal-pal.” Mhm.

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1. They’re taking muff-diving opportunities wherever they can get them.

You Should Go: Queer Ladies Speed Dating At Strand Bookstore, Holiday Edition

New York City, I have some crazysexycool exciting news for you! On Tuesday, December 10th Strand Bookstore is hosting another round of Queer Ladies Speed Dating, and Autostraddle Heroic Duo Gabby and Katrina will be starring as your rad hosts. Unfortunately I no longer live in The Best City In The World so I cannot attend, but I trust all of you single ladies (and otherwise identified homoqueers) to show up and look cute and make casual small talk about books and literature and graphic novels and all the other amazingly awkward topics of conversation you might broach with a perfect stranger while taking part in an activity like speed dating. If you’ve ever attended Queer Ladies Speed Dating at The Strand before you know how fun it is and how at ease Gabby and Katrina can make you feel, and if you’ve never attended before all I can say is damn, you are in for a treat!

Let’s go over the basics: Strand Bookstore has continuously proven itself to be an excellent ally to New York City queer women. The bookstore first offered Queer Ladies Speed Dating back in June 2012 and it has continued to host the popular event which is both super well-attended and also super duper fun. (You can check out what past Queer Ladies Speed Dating events at The Strand have looked like here and here!) I have it on good authority that several Autostraddlers have found love at this event but for real, even if you don’t find a sexytimes activity partner you are guaranteed to make a few new friends, engage in some clever conversation, and enjoy some delicious treats. There is no downside.

Now that winter is properly upon us, Strand is back with the Holiday (HoliGAY?) edition of Queer Ladies Speed Dating. It will take place on Tuesday, December 10th at 7:30pm. Admission to the event is $20 per person and tickets must be purchased in advance. Spots are limited so if you wanna go, make sure to buy a ticket ASAP! Refreshments will be provided in the form of alcoholic beverages and yummy treats from Prohibition Bakery, and prizes will be awarded to a few lucky participants from local restaurants and shops including Brooklyn Farmacy & Soda Fountain. Seriously, let’s do some math: cute single ladies plus Autostraddle’s finest hosts plus delicious food and drink plus literary trivia plus Strand Bookstore? All of that equals a best-seller evening in my very humble opinion.

Buy your ticket today and we’ll see you at The Strand!

The event will be located in the Strand’s 3rd floor Rare Book Room at 828 Broadway at 12th Street, Union Square, New York City. 

Queering the Politics of Animal Rights with VINE Sanctuary

Long before Leslie Knope married gay penguins in Pawnee, many species in the animal kingdom have been enjoying the pleasures of homosexual sex. Giraffes do it, Bottlenose Dolphins do it, even Black Swans do it. And then I learned about the queer ducks at VINE (Veganism is the Next Evolution) Sanctuary.

“At first we mistook their mating for fighting and tried to separate them. They went to great lengths to reunite until we realized they were boyfriends. After that, they were a lifelong bonded pair, ” explains educator and activist Pattrice Jones. Jean-Paul and Jena-Claude, the two male mated ducks, remained devoted companions for seven years.

VINE Sanctuary in Vermont (originally Eastern Shore Sanctuary) works to queer the politics of the animal rights movement with an intersectional approach. A lesbian-feminist, Jones observes, “You don’t have to actually be queer to be subjected to homophobic or transphobic discrimination or violence, just fail to conform to gender norms, which we were beginning to see as constructed in party by reference to animals.” For over a decade the two queer co-founders of the sanctuary, patrice and Miriam Jones, have been connecting the politics of racism, sexism and speciesism in talks about “Queering Animal Liberation” around the country.

Scholars with an interest in animal rights politics can often be far removed from those individuals on whose behalf they fight. One way to bridge the gap between activism with animals and theoretical and academic work is with the animal rescue sanctuary movement. Jones explains, “In the real world, actual animals live, suffer and die in material circumstances shaped by human activities. Those human activities are themselves entangled in social, economic, and ideological systems that are themselves patterned by factors such as racism and sexism.”

Over the past few years the field of Animal Studies has grown exponentially with programs across the country such as the program at New York University. While it’s encouraging to see an increasing interest in the politics of Animal Rights Law and Animal Studies, Jones has some concerns. She has noticed some of the same fragmentation between activist and academic work in Animal Studies as in the LGBTQ movement.

“We saw Queer Theory, which arose in academia as a result of radical street activism in the context of the AIDS crisis, morph into an inaccessible discourse wherein elite academics talk to each other, never bothering to translate their ideas into terms that less-educated people could understand or use in their activism.”

This tension outlined by Jones becomes clear when exploring the history of the class-based push for affordable HIV/AIDS drugs by the organization ACT UP in the 1980s in comparison to the focus of much of the mainstream LGBTQ organizations today. “The rightward shift (marriage and military) in the LGBTQ rights movement might not have happened if some of the more progressive ideas current in academia had been more accessible to grassroots activists.”

Of the five queer individuals who make up the core of those working at the sanctuary there is one non-gender-normative individuals in addition to a trans (FTM) individual, a happily married same-sex couple and finally, “One of us finds that none of the alphabet soup of LGBTQ identities quite describes her sexuality and tends to chafe at identity politics altogether.” To Jones, transphobia is symptomatic of larger social norms more than a problem of ecofeminist politics. Moving beyond the work of trans-inclusion jones argues, “We just want to use our standpoint to say things that we think will be even more disruptive to the binary logic of domination that oppresses both non-human animals and LGBTQ people.”

In a nutshell, Jones explains the motivation to queer animal liberation and push the boundaries of identity politics: “We think we can make a more substantial contribution by continuing to talk about the biodiversity of sexuality and gender expression among human and non-human animals, thereby unsettling the gender binary that European colonialism carried (along with capitalism and cockfighting) around the world.”

You should go!

Vegan & Animal Rights Bookswap
Saturday September 14th, 4-7pm.

The Women’s Center
46 Pleasant St. Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139

Please join us for an evening swap of inspiring vegan cookbooks, theory books, how-to dvds, and all other media related to vegetarianism and animal rights. Bring up to ten items or just bring yourself and mingle!

There will be a raffle and bake sale in support of VINE sanctuary in Vermont. Confirmed prizes for the raffle include a $40 gift certificate to Sudo shoes, a $25 gift certificate to Life Alive, a gift basket of vegan themed stationary from Two Trick Pony, and more! (See list of sponsors below.)

This event is free and open to people of all genders, diets, and ages. The space is wheelchair accessible.

Raffle is at 6PM.

UPDATE: The book swap was attended by 20 people and over $250 was raised!

Support our event sponsors:

sudoshoes.com
twotrickpony.com
lifealive.com
veggiegalaxy.com
etsy.com/shop/kristincrane
compassionco.bigcartel.com
truebistroboston.com
ecolissa.com

Learn about the animal sanctuary here.

Check out The Humane League

For more info, please visit our Facebook event page.

See a full interview with Pattrice Jones here.

You Should Go: Marimacho’s New York Fashion Week Debut

If you’re not already familiar with the Brooklyn based lable Marimacho, you’re in for the butch-fashion treat of a lifetime. Marimacho is “classic fashion for the unconventionally masculine” and one of my very favorite queer clothing lines. Marimacho floored me last summer with their Super Boi Swim Brief. Later, Marimacho founders Ivette González-Alé and Crystal González-Alé went on to help us out with our Style Manual! So what I’m saying is that we like Marimacho quite a lot around these parts.

From Marimacho:

A pioneer in the current wave of androgynous fashion, MARIMACHO exists in the negative space between identity and fashion. While mainstream women’s designers simply allude to menswear, Marimacho unapologetically embraces masculine fashion without the euphemisms of feminine detail. They create masculine silhouettesadapted to fit those traditionally underserved by mainstream menswear–womyn, trans men, petite men, androgynous and genderqueer people.

This Saturday night, September 7th, at 8pm in Brooklyn, NY Marimacho is debuting its Spring/Summer 2014 collection. Tickets are $15 in advance online or $20 at the door. Plus, at 9pm the bitchin’ after party kicks off! If you want to be really cool, you can submit a picture of yourself rocking your interpretation of #futuredandy to contest [at] marimachobk [dot] com and maybe win 2 VIP Tickets!

From Marimacho:

Marimacho invites you to Atlantis 2050, as they make their New York Fashion Week debut. This future world serves as the backdrop to their 2014 Spring/ Summer Collection, a re-imagining of our identities and bodies. Building on the theme of identity, models on a wide spectrum of gender expressions will all walk the runway. The clothing itself will subvert classic menswear tropes with the use of non-traditional fabrics and modern cuts on varied bodies. Marimacho explores the full gamut of the ocean’s moods, dangers, and its possibilities for renewal as we embark on our own journey of self-discovery.

Underground fashion, music, art and queer culture converge at the AFTER PARTY in a tidal wave of mythical proportions. Submerge your inner shark in the underwater city scapes of renowned queer, installation artist Diego Montoya. The siren calls of DJs Shomi Noise and Precolumbian will lull you into their sonic boom. From the warm waters of Haiti, The Salivation Army crashes down on Brooklyn by way of Montreal, pulling you into her musical maelstrom. Let the midnight current take you into darker waters with Brazilian Carioca Bass artist, Zuzuka Poderosa, and underground rap queenpin, Wavy Spice. These black pearls will conjure up musical spells with their lyrical brujeria.

I know you’re already calling your friends and making plans, but here’s the best part: I’m going to be there! So come join me for a night of hot bois, partying and, of course, top of the line dapper fashion.

Who: Marimacho
What: A dope Runway Show and After Party
When: Saturday, September 07, 2013 8pm, After Party at 9pm
Where: The Space – 50 N 3rd St (between Kent Ave & Wythe Ave) Brooklyn, NY 11211
Why: To watch a runway show, check out really well dressed bois and hang out with Lizz!

Sisters Nightclub Closes, Leaves A Hole in Philly’s Lesbian Nightlife and Our Hearts

Feature Image via VisitPhilly.com

The walls closed in. My heart thudded up against my ribcage, suddenly too large for my chest. My lungs felt like they had collapsed. I both wanted to hide, and wanted desperately to be seen. It was 2008, I thought I might be gay, and I had gone to the only lesbian bar in Philadelphia in fearful hope that someone else might be able to figure things out for me. I didn’t get the answers that night, but I was still saddened this week to learn that Sisters Nightclub is closing.

On Monday, General Manager Denise Cohen posted notice of the closure on Facebook:

How do you say goodbye to something that has been part of your life for so long – a dream – a passion – a love … I have worked within the Gay & Lesbian community for 24 years with 17 of them at Sisters … today with much sadness no actually with a broken heart I am announcing that Sisters Nightclub is no longer in business.

All future events are cancelled except for the Big Gay Boat party hosted by DJ Deejay on August 25. It takes place off site at Moshulu, a four-masted sailing ship; the beloved Gayborhood nightclub and bar itself will open its doors no longer.

My personal experience with Sisters was brief, but it made a big impression on me. I went exactly once while it was open, and I stayed 30 minutes, tops. I was so nervous that I walked around the block twice before I worked up the nerve to go inside. At the door, I paid the bouncer a $5 cover for a DJ I never managed to hear over the sound of my own heartbeat in my ears. I sat at the horseshoe-shaped bar, downed two Blue Moons, and attempted to surreptitiously inspect everyone in the bar without landing eye contact. I timidly peeked upstairs and downstairs, then fled for the parking lot, having spoken to no one but the bartender. She had to ask me to repeat my drink order, I spoke so quietly.

All in all, I considered the night to be a great success.

As you may have guessed, Sisters really wasn’t my cup of tea. Lesbian bars terrified me as a questioning 21-year-old; even now, as an out bisexual in New York City, I still don’t feel entirely at home in them. But the point of my adventure that night wasn’t to feel comfortable; it was to explore. I had questions that I couldn’t even give words to, let alone ask out loud. All I wanted right then was to be around some lesbians, watch them living their lives, and see how it made me feel. Sisters allowed me to do exactly that, and I feel so thankful that it was there for me when I needed it.

The news of Sisters’ closure comes at a time when many ponder the death of the lesbian bar scene. Like some of Autostraddle’s smart and wonderful commenters, I find the assessment a tad hyperbolic. As Liz mentioned, queer dance nights are plentiful, and they do tend to skew female. Have you been to Truck Stop in NYC or LA lately? Dyke Night in Boston? They’re thriving – although it’s true that they serve a slightly different function. Honestly, I’m not sure Hot Rabbit is something I could’ve worked up the gumption to explore at 21, although others do it all the time. I probably would have figured something else out, but it stings a little to think that the door on the experience I had is closing, even if not fully.

Molly Webb, a patron of the bar for the past year, points out that while there are many spaces where queer women are welcome, there’s a unique sense of community built within lesbian-specific spaces. She recalls the reliable cast of characters that would show up every week. “My best memory of Sisters would be the certainty of Thursday nights, and that everyone would be there and someone would sing ‘Closer to Fine’ on karaoke. It was just stability in our lives,” she says.“Sisters was the only stable space dedicated to just dykes and queer ladies. There’s a definite hole in the Philly queer scene now.”

On Tuesday, Molly staged a funeral to commemorate Sisters and the loss of lesbian-specific space in Philadelphia. A gathering of 15-20 people showed up to write their goodbyes on Post-it notes, put lipstick kisses on the door and leave plastic flowers in the door handle. They are looking to put together a discussion group, but Molly says, “It’s nebulous right now. … I don’t think that there are any definitive or limiting suggestions on the table right now.”

Whatever the future may hold, Sisters will not be forgotten. Although the physical location may be locked (and the Post-it notes now removed from the door), there’s a beautiful internet love fest going on for anyone who wants to join in the reminiscing at Denise Cohen’s Facebook and Sisters Philly’s Facebook.

You Should Go: Lez Out This Friday with Julie and Brandy at Fubar

If you live in Los Angeles, you should be familiar with Fubar. It’s where we had a calendar girl party, it’s seen other lezzie parties come and go, and now it finds itself the esteemed homebase of the newest, flyest, Autostraddliest party in Los Angeles: Faggity Fridays.

Julie Goldman and Brandy Howard are hosting this monthly party that falls on the first Friday of every month. Brandy will be playing all the jams as DJ Sexo Pharmacia. But don’t get it twisted. She doesn’t take requests. She’s not that kind of DJ. If you’ve ever wanted to party with Julie and Brandy, then now is your chance. They’re not your usual party hosts, which you probably could have guessed. Faggity Fridays is the official after party for the Mikey and Teddy Comedy Hour.

So to reiterate, Friday August 2nd from 10pm-2am this Friday (and the first Friday of every month) at Fubar! No cover, no excuses.

Cheers, Queers! Craft Brews Are the Queers of the Beer World

Feature Image via beerdedladies.com

When I set out to write a series on queers and craft beer, I was surprised by how little has actually been done on the subject. While the queer, and especially the queer girl, community might not be the first thing that comes to mind when one thinks about the macho, rugged boy’s club culture that has come to be synonymous with beer and brewing – think: know-it-all bearded fellows in flannel shirts, stirring bubbling buckets of homebrew in their man dens while their buddies shoot pool nearby – to me, it’s a natural pairing. And as a queer who spends at least 70% of my day thinking about, writing about, dreaming about or imbibing this delicious and fascinating beverage, I can’t wait to attempt to fill this journalistic and cultural void.

Despite its straight-white-male reputation, craft beer as an industry and movement is actually pretty damn queer. The business was founded on the principles of experimentation, improvisation, collaboration and working class ingenuity. The craft beer pioneers were dissatisfied with the mainstream telling them what to drink and trying to trick them with advertising so they ventured out on their own, inventing guides to homebrewing and transforming abandoned factories into breweries that cranked out frothy kegs shipped out for communal enjoyment amongst friends instead of pounding cans alone in front of the tube. The odds were against these early brewers: they had very little money and were competing tap for tap with multi-billion dollar titans of industry (over 90% of this fine country’s beer is produced by only two corporations…). But, just like us resilient queers, these folks survived on love, pride and an enduring devotion to community building.

My love for craft beer began in college, the same year I was introduced to the queer music scene. To me, the two worlds fit together perfectly – people unsatisfied with mainstream consumerism weren’t just sitting around, miserably swallowing the MTVs and the Coors Lites – they were taking a risk and producing their own ish, sharing their creative expression with their communities and encouraging likeminded folks to follow suit. I won’t even go into the political differences between big beer and the microbrews, but let’s just say it’s about as stark as between an Autostraddle reader and a Guns & Ammo devotee.

So, as gay pride parades sweep across the nation this month, be mindful of your local tea dance’s beer sponsor. Is that a Coors logo? A cherry red Budweiser label? Are the girls in the bikinis drinking dripping wet Coronas or are they pouring pitchers of Miller Lite down each other’s shirts? Don’t be fooled by the rainbow lanyards and free Bud Lite bottle openers – these corporations will happily take your hard earned cash and divert it to Focus on the Family. Drink smart, do your research and expand your palate. Think craft beer is just for rich snobs? Trade in your PBR for a crisp Narragansett tall boy or a bottle of Shiner Bock and feel good about where those two bucks went. Beer is a common drink and should be a celebrated as common drink by honoring the hardworking, independent brewers that produce it instead of a multibillion dollar industry full of automated canning lines and conservative funding.

Most of all, both queers and craft beers are about friends and community. Share a few cold ones with some friends and introduce them to beer that tastes amazing. Talk to other queers about what they’re drinking, pick up a book like Christina Perozzi and Hallie Beaune’s The Naked Pint or read a female-oriented beer blog like Beerded Ladies (ok, shameless plug). In my experience, being queer is all about demanding the right to be different, to resist the mainstream. Let’s embrace craft beer as a fellow comrade in the fight to be as weird and offbeat as we want to be. Cheers, queers!

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A documentary filmmaker by trade and training, Meredith develops digital content for Homoground, a queer music podcast, and heads up the female-centric craft beer blog BeerdedLadies.com, amongst other more lucrative pursuits. Meredith is originally from St. Louis but now lives in Brooklyn where she can usually be found enjoying a cold one or playing softball in Prospect Park alongside her mutt, Miko.

You Should Go: Babeland Throws Us Another Party

Feature image courtesy of Babeland.

In case you haven’t noticed, many of us around here love Babeland. As it turns out, Babeland loves Autostraddle as much as we love them. To prove it, they’re throwing another party for us on June 20. If you missed the first one a few months ago, you should know that it involved cocktails, cuties and a workshop tailored just for you, all amidst shiny sparkling sex toys and safer sex supplies. This one promises to be even better. Why, you ask?

Well, since last time the workshop covered the basics, this time they’re bestowing us with kinky sex tips, just in time for Pride. Between the kinky queer workshop, free booze and Autostraddlers to mingle with, it’ll be like one giant birthday party for your sex life. Also, it’s free. Free!

Speaking of free, the first lucky fifteen humans to arrive will get free gift bags, so you can try all the kinky things out at home. So now that you’re convinced, let’s talk details.

What: Queer Pride Cocktail Party With Babeland + Autostraddle
Where: Babeland Soho, 43 Mercer Street
When: June 20, 7pm
Cost: Free
Age: You have to be 18+ to enter the store because, sex.

You can RSVP here to let them know how much booze to get how many people to expect. Questions? Comments? Feelings? I can’t wait to see all of your faces!

You Should Go: Top Picks Of All The Things In NYC This Month

It’s Pride month, and here in NYC that means there are suddenly more things to do than anyone can actually keep track of. This self-identified homebody in particular feels very overwhelmed by everything happening — in a good way! But still. It’s a lot. So, I went ahead and combed through the parties and the fundraisers happening around town this June and lined up the things I am most excited about for your viewing pleasure. My one wish is for everyone to find the party most relevant to their individual fun-time style, so please share what you’re doing this month so that no one has to miss out on anything. Hope to see you around!

Tuesday, June 11, 6pm, 21+
Annual Stonewall Raffle For The NYC Dyke March, at the Stonewall Inn
If you’ve never been to this yearly event, you need to go. It’s always packed, and the raffle prizes are traditionally amazing. One year I won original art by Alison Bechdel, just saying. There are also drink specials, and since it’s the first Dyke March event of the season, it’s pretty exciting. You could win an Autostraddle gift bag!

Saturday, June 15, 1pm-5pm, all ages!
The Dyke March Rock Show, at Public Assembly
Featuring Tin Vulva, Rusty Curtains, Kelly Montoya, Tiny Tusks, and Clinical Trials. Enough said.

Tuesday, June 18, 7:30pm, 21+
The Dyke March Cocktail Party, at The Dalloway
The fanciest party ever sponsored by the Dyke March. Put on your Tuesday finest and sip cocktails while learning what the Dyke March committee is up to this year.

Thursday, June 20, 7pm, 18+
Queer Pride Cocktail Party with Babeland + Autostraddle, at Babeland Soho
You have to come to this because you love Autostraddle and maybe also sex. The workshop will be about kinky tips and the first 15 guests get free gift bags. More info will be on this website soon since it’s our party.

Saturday, June 15, 8pm
Party With Pride For The Astrea Foundation, at the Gowanus Loft
Or, instead of going to a massive mermaid dance party, you could go to this party, which is in support of fierce queer activists around the world. It’s $50 before 9:30pm, but after that it’s $25! Also though, no one will be turned away for lack of funds, so actually this is however much you want it to be. There’ll be performances, dancing, food, drinks, etc. Sounds great.

Saturday, June 23, 9pm, 21+
SIREN, NYC’s Official Saturday Night Pride Beach Party, at Beekman Beer Garden Beach Club (South St. Seaport)
There are mermaids on the flier for this. Also, relevantly, it’s a dance party on the beach with like, 2500 lesbos, or so the invite says. It’s $25, but they’re donating some of the money to the Ali Forney Center, and honestly think about how quickly you’d spend that same amount of money at some boring bar not dancing with thousands of queer grrls and bois.

Thursday, June 27, 8pm
EVERYBOOTY Curated by Spankzine Buddy, HEY QUEEN! and Earl Dax, at BAM/Brooklyn Academy of Music
A radical night of multi-arts mayhem to ring in Pride weekend. Why the eff wouldn’t you go to this? It will literally have all the things a party could have. Plus it’s at BAM which is cool.

Friday, June 28, 10pm
Hot Rabbit Pride, at The Monster
Do you like hot sweaty dance parties? DJs, cheap drinks, cuties; this party was named one of the best Gay Nightlife Events by Time Out NYC for a reason. It’s $5 cover if you have the password, which is on the Facebook invite.

Saturday, June 29, 8pm, 21+
The Official Dyke March After Party, at Ginger’s
Join in the time honored tradition of getting totally wasted after the Dyke March at your favorite neighborhood lesbian bar, Ginger’s. This is a great thing to do even if you have plans to go to some hip dance party afterwards, because who doesn’t like Ginger’s and also you can get swag from this year’s march. Also, this is the Dyke March’s biggest fundraiser, so it’s important.

Sunday, June 30, 21+, 5pm
NYC PRIDE 2013 Whitney Day Events & Hot Rabbit Present: Wild Thang, at the Marquee Nightclub
So let’s say you’re not too hung over from the Dyke March After Party and even have motivation to do something during/after the Manhattan Pride parade situation. This looks like a good option if you like to dance a lot and have hot sweaty photos taken of you.

Sunday, June 30, 4pm
Yes Ma’am presents WHAM BAM!, at Huckleberry Bar
This party is bringing queer body positive nightlife into the daylight at an indoor/outdoor event with swanky lounge, good food, and great cocktails, and overall sounds really cute and like a great time.

Okay, what will you all be doing this month?

You Should Go: Lambda Literary Awards Nominees Mingle and Drink at the Dalloway

Hey New York City, what are you guys doing tomorrow night, like around 7:00 PM? I was probably going to sit quietly at home and read a book in my pajamas, but why do that when you could talk about books with a bunch of hot girls? Lambda Literary Award finalist Jeanne Thornton (The Dream of Doctor Bantam) and OR Books will be celebrating the winners and nominees of this year’s Lambda Literary Awards with a lovely get-together at our favorite local lady bar, The Dalloway.  It’s a great opportunity to talk about writing in LGBT circles, meet new literary-minded individuals and enjoy a fancy cocktail. Additionally, there will be a drink ticket giveaway for the first twenty people who buy The Dream of Doctor Bantam. Vanessa and I will definitely be there, and you should definitely come buy me a Middlebrow.

For more information and to RSVP, visit the Facebook event page!

You Should Go Eat Dinner With One Table, Ashley Merriman, and Vanessa

Hi friends! I’m back from A-Camp and trying to do a lot of really stupendous things in the month of June to ease my feelings-filled little heart back into the cruel real world. It’s tough, but luckily I live in New York and there is no shortage of fanfuckingtastic queer stuff going on right in my backyard. First up? Dinner with the One Table crew… with special guest chef Ashley Merriman! If this is a thing that makes you really excited, guess what? There are still a few seats open, and you should totally come! I want you to come eat delicious food and drink perfect cocktails at a large queer amazing table in Brooklyn. Please join me! Let me tell you more about it! Exclamation point!

You may remember the mouthwatering post we published about One Table a few months ago, after I attended the queer-lady-focused monthly dinner back in March and enjoyed an evening filled with foodgasms. If you need a reminder, let me jog your memory with some food porn.

I mean, need I say more?! Well okay, I will, even if that photo speaks for itself, because perhaps you didn’t catch the part where I nonchalantly mentioned that one of our very favorite lesbian chefs, Ashley Merriman – of Top Chef Season 6 fame and now the Waverly Inn! – will be the guest chef at this month’s One Table!

So what’s the deal? How can you join me at the most delicious event of June? Here’s the nitty gritty:

WHAT: One Table 4.0: CORSICA
WHO: Betsy Devine and Deanna Maher with special guest Ashley Merriman
WHEN: Monday, June 3, 2013 (That’s THIS Monday!)
WHERE: Lunetta Restaurant, Brooklyn NY
TIME: Cocktails at 8:00pm. Dinner to follow.

The cost is $85 per ticket, which buys pre-dinner bites, pre-dinner cocktails, wine, and family style dinner, along with post-dinner cocktails and service. Wine and drinks are included but you’re welcome to bring some of your own, too, and the event is first come first served so sign up quickly if you wanna get in on the action! You can look forward to a rustic Corsican menu and outdoor seating, along with really incredible chefs and a lot of sexy intelligent perfect company.

If you wanna go (and you should totally go) visit the One Table website to buy your ticket. See ya there!

VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: Beth Ditto Being Fabulous at the GLAAD Awards LA 2013

It’s a given that we’re all collectively in love with Beth Ditto – outspoken member of the LGBTQ community, feminist, style icon, and rockstar frontwoman of Gossip – yes? Excellent, then we can all gather round our computer screens and watch this video exclusive of Ditto’s speech at the 2013 Los Angeles GLAAD Awards and be happy and excited together!

If you need any more incentive to watch this speech, you should know it includes a funny anecdote about Mr. Bill Clinton, an empowering disregard for rules and prompters, and an adorable, giddy mention of Ditto’s wedding plans with fiance, Kristin Ogata! So many awesome feelings.

“And I’d like to say that I’m very in love with my girlfriend and have always wanted to get married, and we are getting married, because we are ready, because the United States of America is ready.”

And that’s that. If Beth Ditto says it’s true, then you better believe it.

Ugh so cute.

GLAAD Awards Los Angeles 2013: Carly & Robin Do the Red Carpet and We Do This Show

Carly and I attended the 24th Annual GLAAD Awards Red Carpet in Los Angeles this past weekend and were so excited to be there representing Autostraddle, which has been nominated for its own GLAAD award for “Outstanding Blog.” We talked to attendees and honorees alike, most notably, bad-ass queer Beth Ditto.

Check out some of our red carpet photos and interviews, and then the rest of the team will brief you on the show itself, in which lots of people won awards such as Bill Clinton, who received the inaugural Advocate for Change Award from his daughter Chelsea Clinton.

Fortune Feimster

Carly: What was your fashion inspiration when getting dressed tonight?
Fortune: Um, lesbian. I was like, how can I look like a big ol’ lesbian? I just picked up my cardigan and tie and I was done. I was doing an interview and they asked us ‘who we were wearing?’ I was like, uh, the Gap. I don’t want to brag or anything, but that’s who I’m wearing.
Carly: Great tees. Great tees, guys, they’re very comfortable. Why do you think it’s so important that organizations like GLAAD exist?
Fortune: It’s important for me personally, because I wouldn’t be on television otherwise, you know. I feel like they’ve really paved the way to make it okay for people who are gay to be out in the media and they make it acceptable for other people to appreciate it who aren’t exposed to gay people. And you know, our show is very gay-friendly and we have gay people on staff, so teaming up and supporting this sort of organization is a good fit, because we both have a similar cause. Equality. All that good stuff.

Naya Rivera

Maria Menounos

 

 Hal Sparks

Ted Danson & Mary Steenburgen

Alex Newell

 

Peter Paige

 

Andrew Rannells

Remember back in 2004 when Andrew Rannells wasn’t a Huge Deal yet, like he is now because of The New Normal and Girls, and he was playing Dana Fairbanks’ beard and tennis partner? Oh, the memories. Oops, not true, actually — different guy.

Teri Polo and Sherri Saum

 

Chef K & Brittany

Much like our design director, Chef K (who you hopefully recognize from The Taste, but might also recognize from being Miss June 2012 Francine‘s girlfriend on The Real L Word) only dates Autostraddle Calendar Girls. Here she is with Brittany Weiner, Miss July 2013:

 

Cori & Kacy

There is always a place in our heart for these two. Always.

Kacy Boccumini: We’re here for Jen Tyrrell. The Boy Scout den mother. The lesbian den mother. That’s who we’re here to support. Also, The Real L World, but tangential to, you know, equality.
Carly: We’re equality over reality television right now.
Kacy: Completely!
Cori Boccumini: High five.
Kacy: High five. Every day of the week.
Carly: So, what else is going on right now with you guys? What’s going on?
Cori: Just normal, boring stuff.
Kacy: You know, Jonesy’s still hanging out, still a cat. Still not pregnant, you know. Same old stuff. And we’re always crying. Always. Crying.
Cori: And we do talk about sperm.
Kacy: A lot.
Cori: Still.
Kacy: All the time.
Cori: We do it all day.
Kacy: Just ‘cuz.
Carly: It’s a good thing to talk about. If you’re not talking about it, who’s going to be?
Kacy: Nikki and Jill?

 

Beth Ditto

Check out our interview with Beth Ditto!

Beth Ditto Knows What’s Up – LA GLAAD Awards 4/20/13 from autostraddle on Vimeo.

Carly: What are you listening to right now, like what new albums are rocking your world?
Beth Ditto: My girlfriend and I — well, she’s obsessed — but we’ve been listening to the new Lil Wayne, a lot of Kendrick Lamar, Alabama Shakes. What else? Oh, the new Knife record.
Carly: Oh my god. Oh… my god.
Beth: Come on! I just love that, it’s like… feminist electro? Radical electro? It’s fucking brave. I got chills thinking about it.

Jane Espenson

Wilson Cruz

Unfortunately, some of the big names at the GLAAD Awards this year didn’t make it to the carpet (or to our end of the carpet), but attending the awards were attractive and interesting humans like Bill Clinton and Betty White…

…Leonardo DiCaprio and Charlize Theron…

…Kristen Dunst…

…Sara Ramirez…

….Jennifer Lawrence and Darren Criss (obviously they’re best friends now, right?)…

…Jenny Boylan (author of She’s Not There: A Life in Two Genders)…

…and Drew Barrymore, who hosted the show!

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NEXT: Videos from the show!

You Should Go: Haviland Stillwell & Amir Levi Live In LA With Alex Vega On Drums!

Yo, LA Straddlers, what are you up to tomorrow night? Oh, you don’t have plans yet? Cool, let me help change that.

Tomorrow (Tuesday!) night, Autostraddle’s favorite risen star Haviland Stillwell will be performing Rockwell: Table & Stage with Amir Levi (of Unicorn Plan-It hilarity and fame) and a bevy of talented musicians, including Autostraddle’s own Alex Vega. Did you just get so excited? Duh, of course you did. Allow me to raise your excitement level even more with this flyer. Try not to faint from the pure hotness that exists in this image.

This performance is particularly exciting because Haviland has recently released two brand new singles, “MKE” and “Infinity,” and will be performing both of her new hits along with a third single that has yet to be released (and of course many old songs and covers, too!). She has big plans to release a full-length dance pop album in the near(ish) future, but for now you’ll just have to be satisfied with these singles — trust me, they do not disappoint. “MKE” invokes Haviland’s alter ego, MKE, in a fun track that is absolutely impossible not to dance through, and “Infinity” touches on some super gay themes and will have you swooning over the sound of Haviland’s sweet vocals. Did I mention that I really like these songs? And that I’m pretty jealous that all LA humans can go see them performed live? Yeah.

If you’re like me and can’t attend this show, you can still rock out to Haviland’s new singles. Both songs are written by Haviland Stillwell and produced by Mike Schlosser, with cover design by Heather J. Weiss and photos by Sabrina Bringuier. Buy them on iTunes (“MKE“; “Infinity“) or stream them on Spotify (“MKE“; “Infinity“) and host your very own dance party right here, right now. Get into it!

Haviland Stillwell & Amir Levi perform live at Rockwell: Table & Stage, 1714 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA on Tuesday, April 23 at 8pm (Amir Levi) and 9pm (Haviland Stillwell). Haviland and Amir will be performing with Anthony Starble (piano), Alex Vega (drums), Kristy Hanson (guitars and vocals), Ed Goodman (guitar), Julia Davis (vocals) and Lauren Lograsso (vocals). Tickets are $12 and can be purchased on Rockwell’s ticketing site. This is the Facebook invitation. If you don’t go you obviously hate fun, gorgeous humans and unicorns.

The 2013 Trans 100 Chicago Launch Event: I Went, I Saw, They Inspired

“As we carry ourselves over the hurdles, [we must also] reach out a hand to help another trans sister over them as well.” –Trisha Lee Holloway, honoree of the 2013 Trans 100

The inaugural Trans 100 selection was released last week (read Autostraddle’s coverage of it here), the result of a collaborative effort headed by Antonia D’orsay (This is H.O.W., Arizona TransAlliance, Dyssonace) and Jen Richards (We Happy Trans, WTF Trans* Dating, Trans* Love Stories, Sugar and Spice). From the get-go, the goal of the project was to recognize a diversity of trans* Americans who are currently doing work to better the lives of other trans* people. This is not at all a list of the “Top 100 Trans* People” (whatever that would mean), but rather “a curated set of examples [of activists]” according to D’orsay, who refers to the Trans 100 as a “selection.”

As Richards explained to me, and highlighted in an audio interview with JRV MAJESTY, a Trans 100 focused on recognizing “how much great [activism] work is happening” serves multiple, important purposes. It is a valuable resource for other trans* people who need advocates or are looking to become more active (like yours truly), “a positive way of drawing attention to…our needs [as a community]”, and a key component in helping to diversify the broader, cultural narrative of trans*ness in America by telling the media, “These are the people doing the work; these are the people you should be talking to.”

And although the Trans 100 was published online on April 9th, official launch events took place in Chicago and Phoenix to announce the selection on March 31st , coinciding with the 4th annual Transgender Day of Visibility, a fitting choice to celebrate the righteous work of trans* activists. (While this article will focus on the Chicago launch, a parallel event also took place in Phoenix, which, given the recent passage of SB-1045 by the Arizona House Appropriations Committee, “expanded into a rally and acquired a different tone [than originally intended],” according to D’orsay.)

Having recently moved to Chicago, I was lucky enough to attend the launch event there, and honestly spent over three hours with my jaw on the floor, my heartstrings in constant song, and the baby activist inside me growing more inspired by the minute.

Actually, the awesome trans*ness of my night started before I even got to the venue, when I randomly met Kate Sosin, a Trans 100 honoree and a writer for the Windy City Times, while waiting on the platform for the Red Line. I had a great time chatting with Kate as we rode the near-empty Sunday evening train to the Mayne Stage Theater. Despite my being new to the Chicago trans* community, the handful of people I’ve met here so far have all been like Kate: incredibly awesome and welcoming. And even though I only knew a few folks in the sold out crowd that night, I felt like I was among family as soon as I walked through the door.

Considering how shy and awkward I can be around new people, even when I feel welcomed, it’s fantastic that the handful of people I’ve met here have been so great at introducing me to other people and helping me get acquainted to the awesomeness of the Chicago trans* community.

Indeed, as soon as I ran into Christina Kahrl, a Trans 100 honoree working on a number of issues near to my heart (like the inclusion of trans* students in athletics) in the lobby, she started introducing me to some of the movers and shakers in the Chicago trans* community. For example, thanks to Christina, I met and had a great conversation with the lovely and talented Miss Angelica Ross (a model and entrepreneur, and one of the presenters that evening), during which we chatted about some of her recent projects and she told me how impressed she was that I was playing roller derby. :: swoons ::

However, this networking is about way more than just meeting other cool trans* people. It’s about developing important connections and building community. According to Richards, these connections were central to the development of the Trans 100 project. “It’s vital that we… increase our own professional networking and support each other’s businesses,” she said, “[to] make visibility and connection to the community an economic asset rather than a liability.”

Indeed, Richards drew on her professional and community connections and took a “for us, by us” attitude in staffing the Chicago event with a trans* designer, photographer, videographer, production manager, and stage manager. Awesomely, those individuals were all compensated for their work, thanks to monies raised via donations and sponsorships, and though services donated by the keynote speakers (Janet Mock and Dr. Kortney Ryan Ziegler, who were both awesome and inspiring, to say the least) and a cadre of trans* volunteers.

To me, the Trans 100 launch event reflects that the trans* community in Chicago is built from the ground up on strong interpersonal relationships and collaborations that cut across barriers that might otherwise divide people (race, class, ability, gender identity, etc.). And by bringing together a diverse crowd of trans* people and allies to celebrate activism, the event helped further that networking by facilitating interactions and discussions among people whom had never before met, yet share experiences or identities or simply the desire to make the world a better place for trans* people.

As Van Binfa, a Trans 100 honoree, cartoonist, and a facilitator of Soy Quien Soy (a Chicago-based trans* empowerment collective) put it, “I was so happy to meet folks with similar experiences and [with] intersecting identities. We are now all connected…thanks to the Trans 100 evening.”

Not long into her opening address at the Chicago event, host and performer KOKUMO poignantly stated that the Trans 100 signals “the beginning of a new era.” One where we are no longer getting together only to commemorate the victims of physical, emotional, sexual, and institutional violence, but where we now also come together to celebrate and promote those among us who are actively working to end those violences. So many trans* people have turned the energy and knowledge generated by their own personal advocacy into community activism and helping others, and it’s about time that their efforts are acknowledged.

“Trans* people are living history right now,” said presenter and honoree Andre Perez (founder of the Trans Oral History Project). And the Trans 100 project represents a broad initiative by trans* people to make sure it is the best history possible.

One of my favorite aspects of the Chicago launch event was the presenters, who in addition to naming a subset of honorees, offered their own takes on the current state of trans*ness and highlighted some of the righteous work they are doing in the local trans* community. As someone who’s trying to figure out how best to channel her activist energies in a new city, I was in complete awe at how much awesome and varied work is being done in Chicago with the goals of bettering the lives of trans* individuals and building a vibrant trans* community.

I moved to Chicago in no small part because I had learned, through conversations with friends and some personal experience, that the city was (relatively) trans* friendly and had a lot of trans*-specific stuff going on. It was a place where I hoped that I could feel (relatively) safe and meet people like me. Clearly this kind of an environment doesn’t come into being on its own, but instead is built on the hard work of awesome people advocating for themselves and for others, and many of the folks leading that push were presenting the Trans 100.

Take for example, Channyn Lynne Parker (also an honoree), who as the Care Coordinator for Chicago House’s TransLife Project, is working to provide “a seamless continuum of care by offering potential housing, job trainings, and connecting HIV impacted individuals into medical care”, so that trans* women of color are not “forced into stereotypical roles” but rather are empowered to “take whatever place we please.”

While the launch event brought together a diverse group of Chicago activists and allies (and a few people who could make the trip), the full Trans 100 selection highlights the diversity of work being done in the trans* community across America, and the diversity of people doing it. Everyone named is an awesomely different trans* individual whose activism is manifest in a uniquely fantastic way. The honorees represent community organizers, authors, musicians, bloggers, academics, video game designers, historians, health care workers, lawyers, etc., reflecting the reality that trans*ness truly does cut across society.

As different as the honorees are, not one of them is working in a vacuum. Rather, each is engaged in the trans* community and many are sharing resources and experiences across populations. As a result, while the Trans 100 is a selection of awesome individual activists it is also a reflection of the awesomeness of the broader trans* community and all those who are working to make the world better for trans* people.

Janet Mock touched on this in her moving closing address, telling the Chicago audience that “I am here tonight because of the 99 other names on the inaugural Trans 100 list and the unrecognized thousands who are not on this list whose quiet acts are changing lives.”

In an interview after the event, photographer Andy Karol (an honoree whose photos are featured in this article) echoed Janet’s sentiment, telling me that “no person got here on their own. Each name [on the Trans 100] is a representation of more than a handful of people within the trans* community.” For me, this inaugural Trans 100 really opened my eyes to the awesomeness of my community, certainly in my new home, but across the country, as well.

However diverse the honorees and their work are, similarities certainly run through the Trans 100, with a number of people working on a common issue (say, homelessness reduction), but in different locations or with different populations. A future layer to the Trans 100, known as breakouts, will highlight some of these commonalities in the work being done in the trans* community. Each breakout will feature activists working on a particular topic, ranging from stigma reduction to prison reform to entrepreneurship, and the folks included will not be limited to the 100 honorees, but will also highlight individuals whom were nominated or whom the curators were only more recently made aware of. Up to 25 breakouts will be published over the course of the year starting in May. (The original plan was to start publishing the breakouts with the full selection, but the debate, rally, and hearings over SB-1045 in Arizona took time and energy from the list, and delaying curation of the breakouts.)

In talking to those involved with and honored in the Trans 100 following the launch events and publication of the selection, it is clear that no one involved is resting on their laurels. Many honorees I spoke to are already working to broaden and increase the impacts of their work. For example, Trisha Lee Holloway, a case manager at Howard Brown Health Center (where I and many other trans*folks go to receive health care) and a force behind the Trans Life Center is now working on exporting the model to other cities.

“It is going to open a whole new world for young trans women who have been kicked out of their homes,” Trisha told me in an interview after the event. “We [can and need] to get these services in other cities.”

Christina Kahrl echoed that sentiment, telling me, “There’s no victory lap here. Being named is not merely an honor, [but] a reminder of responsibility and a call to duty [so that we may] achieve a better future for every trans* person to come.”

And neither are the project directors taking a breath. In addition to working towards the release of the breakouts and fighting for the rights of trans* people in their own communities, both Richards and D’orsay are already planning for the Trans 100 in 2014. Having pulled together the inaugural run of this amazing and inspiring project in just a few short months, I can’t even fathom how awesome future Trans 100s will be.

What I do know, however, is that the work being done by the inaugural Trans 100 is simply awesome and purely inspirational.

And if there’s one thing I took away from the Trans 100, it is that I need to turn that inspiration into action. Indeed, Dr. Kortney Ryan Ziegler challenged me, and the rest of the audience to this very task in his keystone address, saying, “It is my hope that everyone in this room will use the names on this list as inspiration to continue doing the necessary work. Let them propel you to be the advocates and activists our community needs.”

Challenge accepted, Dr. Ziegler. Let’s get to work.

As a final note, if any readers are interested in getting involved with or lending their support to the awesome projects of the Trans 100, I encourage them to check out the official publication, which links to the websites of the honorees and directors, or Autostraddle’s 51 Women Of the Trans 100, which discusses the trans women on the list in depth, with quotes!

In particular, please consider supporting the work of Toni D’orsay, who is leading the rally against Arizona SB-1045 and supporting trans* Arizonans of all stripes via This is H.O.W.

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About the author: Joseph L. Simonis (“Joe”) likes stuff. And things. Except when things get in the way. Then she just likes stuff. She’s not exactly the biggest fan of labels and identities, but she works at a zoo, plays roller derby, and makes sound collages, amongst other, less interesting, activities. She can be found in cyberspace at her website trannysauruswrex.com/ or Twitter @josephlsimonis

Lez Eat: One Table Brooklyn Wants To Feed Your Queer Mind/Body/Soul

Supper clubs are not exactly new. I don’t remember when I first heard about them, but I definitely accidentally attended one in Berlin in 2009 (thanks, Alan!), and according to GrubHub, “the shadowy world of underground restaurants” has been around since 2006. Wikipedia says that a supper club “traditionally refers to a dining establishment that also functions as a social club,” which is true, but with all the whispering and winking that goes on about this particular foodie trend, I like to think of supper clubs as totally synonymous with lesbian sex. Stay with me here, we’ll get out of this simile alive and hungry — pinky swear.

But for real, supper clubs are kind of like lesbian sex in that an exact uniform definition for them can seem to be elusive at first, but when it comes down to it they can be whatever you want them to be: There are fancy supper clubs and low key supper clubs, there are supper clubs run by amateur cooks and supper clubs run by professional chefs, there are exclusive supper clubs and free-for-all supper clubs…and now, thanks to Betsy Devine and Deanna Maher, there’s a supper club for queer ladies (and all members of the LGBTQ community) in Brooklyn! Whew, I told you it would be worth it to stick with my sleep-deprived-inspired simile, because now I get to introduce you to this culinary delight and tell you how you can partake in this delicious mixture of “dining establishment” and “social club” with the coolest kids on the block.

Straddlers, meet One Table Brooklyn. Get ready to eat your hearts out…literally.

I went to One Table for the first time last month, and I had absolutely no idea what to expect. The dinner took place on a Monday night and it started snowing really heavily and unexpectedly at about 5pm, so the homebody in me wanted nothing more than to take the train home and curl up under a blanket with leftovers and Netflix. Thank goodness I didn’t do that. Instead I met my friend Alison in Park Slope and we huddled under a frail umbrella to get to Lunetta Restaurant, where the meal would be served. Full disclosure, Alison is completely gorgeous and brilliant (and totally single), so I wasn’t worried about chatting with other humans — I figured I could use my wingwoman status to initiate conversation. And if all else failed, I would drink.

As soon as Alison and I stepped foot into Lunetta’s, I realized my diligent planning (be a wingwoman, in case of emergency, DRINK) was unnecessary. To say that everyone was warm and welcoming would be an understatement. Deanna, one of the hosts and chefs, came up to us almost immediately and introduced us to a slew of humans, all of which were really friendly and super interesting. I met a fellow photographer, a woman who works with kids with special needs, and a chef. Nekisia Davis, the bartender, took the time to explain exactly what was in the best cocktail I’ve ever had in my life, and made sure our glasses were never empty (even well past the cocktail hour’s official end).

For the actual meal we sat at the end of the table alongside a gorgeous woman with flawless bangs, a flirtatious lady who owns a motorcycle, and a talented artist who had helped decorate said table. I’m a person who loves meeting new people but hates hitting the bar scene, and it quickly dawned on me that this table was my own personal heaven. Good company, pretty girls, and a perfectly-crafted-cocktail-plus-BYOB-wine-situation that insured my glass was never empty? Hello, Monday — you have never looked so good!

Oh, and the food. The food you guys. Oh. My. God. I cannot say enough about how fucking delicious every single thing was. I’ve had dreams about the shrimp in the weeks since the event. I’m not kidding. This photo (below) is making me nostalgic. Someone bring me back to a time where I can eat this shrimp.

When I asked Deanna and Betsy to describe their venture in one sentence, Deanna said she hoped One Table could be “one big dimly lit table where good food doesn’t stop coming and rad interesting girls are talking, eating, flirting, and wanting to come back!” I can confidently say this mission is currently being accomplished, because dear lord can I not wait to go back. Alison and I left the restaurant (much, much later than we had planned) feeling nourished in every sense of the word. I strongly recommend anyone who can make it to Brooklyn on a week night check out this unique gathering, and I hope One Table continues to grow and thrive.

Deanna, Betsy, and Nekisia chatted with me after I experienced the joys of One Table for myself and answered a few burning questions about where the idea to start this supper club came from, what they hope happens in the future, and how we can all make it our business to show up at their table next Monday — because trust me, you want in on this culinary adventure.

Hi! Who the heck are you guys?!

Deanna: I’m an LA sunbather and a transplant to the streets of NYC where I came to hustle! I am always taking pictures, making paintings and dirty cards, serving food, making food, collecting vintage patches and making new friends.

Nekisia: I am an ex-restaurant manager and the creator of delicious boozy things at franny’s as well as the current owner of Early Bird granola (the best goddam stuff on earth). I’m from Texas but got out as fast as I could, although it’s still in there and I’m real proud of those parts.

Betsy: I’m a life long lover of food and the current owner of Salvatore Bklyn Ricotta, the freshest stuff on earth. One Table is so awesome for me because I finally get to cook for lots of people again.

Tell me how One Table got born.

Deanna: When I moved to New York I didn’t have the network of friends that I was used to and I am not one to chat up girls at a bar. I realized that I wanted to have like-minded people around a table, to talk and eat and hopefully meet their next love. I started a seasonal business at the Brooklyn Flea and Betsy and Nekisia entered my life. One hot summer night after several Buds, I shared my dreams of One Table and, boom. We started.

What can people expect from One Table if they attend?

You can expect to feel welcomed, to eat a good meal, to meet at least 20 new women, and you will laugh — a lot. You will leave hopefully better than when you arrived.

How do you guys envision the future of One Table? What do you hope it will bring to the community?

We hope that One Table fills a void in the lesbian community by creating a space where women can come together to eat and meet. We would love a space where we can do this at least three times a week and on the off nights turn the space into a gallery or dance party, cooking classes, basically a space where women can meet and converse around mutually enjoyable events and eat damn good food. In the meantime we will continue to provide lesbian and queer women with a rad place to meet and eat.

Do you have to be a gay lady to attend One Table?

While we want to create a space for lesbian women, we are all inclusive – LGBT! We want women ready to eat, drink, and meet a lot of new people. One love.

How can people sign up to attend One Table?

As of right now we can feed 25 lovely people. The dinners are announced via email blasts and our instagram @onetablebk. Sign up via our website. Price varies depending on the fare, but it is all so worth it. There is a often a waitlist so people should sign up early and please…OVERWHELM US! We want to meet you and feed you.

What is your absolute favorite food?

Deanna: A 1 ½ pound steamed lobster.

Nekisia: I’ve a sweet spot for sweetbreads.

Betsy: I can never have enough sandwiches in my life.

Favorite drink?

Deanna: A proper Negroni.

Nekisia: I, too, love a Negroni.

Betsy: Bloody Mary(s).

Is there anything else you want to share with the Autostraddle community about One Table?

One Table is something that we truly love doing. We’re rad people who are open and nice and we want you to come join us at the party. If you love good, creative, thoughtful food and drink surrounded by women from all over the city, this is your new favorite Monday night. Please come and let us take care of you.

We’re a hungry community, and One Table Brooklyn wants to feed us. Lez eat!

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The next One Table is a week from today on Monday, April 22, at Lunetta Restaurant, 116 Smith St., Brooklyn, NY. Cocktails at 8pm, dinner to follow. Dinner will be a rustic-Italian menu and is $75 per person, which buys  pre-dinner bites, pre-dinner cocktails, a family style dinner, post-dinner cocktails, and service. Feel free to bring your own wine and be prepared to have the best time. RSVP.

Brittani Does Dinah Shore, Girlfriend and Dignity Still Intact

Here I stand (sit?), a two-time Dinah veteran. Not yet a seasoned pro, but getting there. I’ve experienced Dinah as extremely single and extremely taken, as a nobody with a pool party pass and a shitty hotel room and a nobody with a guest bracelet and a nice hotel room. I’ve laughed. I’ve cried. I’ve walked more than I wanted and slept less than I needed. I approached this Dinah with an understanding of what I was about to encounter and a preparedness that allowed me to not only survive but to mostly enjoy myself.

My girlfriend and I drove from LA to Palm Springs Thursday night. I figured it would be healthier for our relationship since there was a thing on Friday we could possibly be late for, and she is perpetually that. One of the perks of being white, I guess: you get to be late and you don’t feel like people will judge your entire race for it. Girlfriend Liz tells me this is called “stereotype threat.”

We arrive at the hotel and they have the wrong name listed for check-in. I don’t really know whose fault this is so I blame the entire human race as I am wont to do. I have to call Alex Vega in the 11 o’clock hour so she can call the hotel and switch the reservation to my name. She handles it like a pro and in no time I’m filling out a form that not only replaces me as the person assigned the room, but lets me list the names of people I authorize to get room keys whenever they need them. All of this is a huge waste of time as apparently they burned this piece of paper as soon as I left, because no one was able to ever get a key without some sort of drama at the front desk.

The next morning is as leisurely and relaxed as it can be when you have to wait while someone changes their bikini top/shorts/tank top combination five times. We head to get our wristbands before the noon rush and then go back to our room to hang out until our friends and Autostraddle web series members get in. Along with Lauren Neal and Sarah Sokolski from Words With Girls, Sarah Croce, Haviland Stillwell and Ashley Reed are there with Unicorn Plan-It. There’s an Autostraddle meet-up that afternoon; we have all decided beforehand that it will be pointless, but we decide to be responsible individuals anyway. I don’t know about you, but when I’m hyped from just arriving to an event, have been drinking my face off and am dancing violently next to a pool, the number-one thing I want to do is go to a dark bar whose location I’m unsure of and talk to people who are probably way more sober than I am. Needless to say, the meet-up is a rousing success. More than one person shows up. It is great. I also just want to throw in that the only place it was mentioned was in the booklet, which only some people that attend Dinah get and which roughly three people on earth read. One of those people is me. I have literally never seen anyone else even touch that booklet. I don’t know how people know where to be. I guess there’s some gay guiding force that pulls them.

After the pool party, which I don’t attend much of between the going to the meet-up and and taking note of where everyone’s rooms are, my girlfriend and I decide to find food. We haven’t eaten since we had something quick in the morning, and we’re both starving. We wander around the strips of restaurants a couple of blocks from our hotel in search of a place that has vegan options, isn’t expensive and takes cards. After 30 minutes, we both know that if we don’t find food soon, we’ll to turn into cranky grumbling monsters. Just in time, we find a place called Atomic Dogs. I don’t like hot dogs so while she lucked out, I’m still screwed. I say fuck it and map the closest Burger King, which is two Dinah miles away. A Dinah mile, as defined by me, is five minutes of walking while intoxicated. We decide to meet back at the hotel and I start walking.

After we eat, we nap until it’s time to get ready for the White Party and Haviland’s performance; we really know how to get the party going. Haviland performed a five-song set, including two of her original songs, at Hunter’s, a local gay bar. We watched the show and chatted with Wendy Jo Carlton (Hannah Free, Jamie and Jessie Are Not Together) and Lisa Cordileone (Easy Abby).

Unlike the pool parties, which were at the Hilton, the White Party is in Hotel Zoso, where we are staying. There are three different rooms going, so everywhere you turn, there are hordes of women, dressed in their best (and probably only) white attire with drinks in hand and smirks on faces. Before we join them, the members of Words With Girls and Unicorn Plan-It have to hit up the VIP Party. I go down early to check it out and report back. There are a few of the other web series folks milling around outside the room but none of them are going in—or talking to each other. I decide we can forgo this awkwardness for a little while.

By the time we show up, all of the people I recognized earlier are gone and the only people in the room are the people that paid to be. We’re all standing around talking when we realize the DJ is playing a ton of old Jay-Z and Missy Elliot, along with other straight-up 90s jams like “Candy Rain.” No strangers to spectacle, we dance by ourselves on the empty dance floor until it’s time for the red carpet, where we proceed to look like we don’t belong and probably confuse everyone with our presence.

After the red carpet, we go back to the VIP Room because the DJ is still playing a heavy hip hop and R&B throwback set. A party promoter from the Virgin Islands buys us all drinks, and a Club Skirts photographer snaps pictures of us being ridiculous. There’s no reason to leave so we don’t. They’ve stopped checking wristbands at the door, so we invite all of our friends to the room and only leave when we find out that there’s a hip hop room upstairs. Eventually we’ve danced long enough and most people are too drunk to coherently answer texts about where they are that we decide to move on to the next thing, which is obviously pizza. We find a place that is a)open, b)walkable and c)dirt cheap. We rendezvous with Jess Shaffer of The Love Corner and I call cabs for the eight people that successfully make it to her room. We end up at a house party until 3:30-ish, then head back to get some sleep.

Next: Saturday and Sunday Shenanigans