HOUSTON, Texas — Pride Month is underway and events are scheduled all month long in celebration, but one party happening Tuesday night will take Houstonians back in time.
Known as the place where Pride began, the Stonewall Inn in New York was the site of the 1969 riots that launched the Gay Rights Movement. Because of that, Stonewall Inn and the surrounding streets are now a national monument.
“Stonewall is a staple for the LGBTQ community. It was the first gay bar I ever went to and the first bartender that ever waited on me is actually going to be here tomorrow," Adriana Maldonado, executive chef of Trash Panda Drinking Club, said.
Bringing a piece of that history to her hometown, Maldonado says for one night only, Tuesday night, they’re turning the bar from Trash Panda into the iconic Stonewall Inn.
“The décor is going to be like Stonewall and so we’re going to have a lot of the historical pictures that they have. Just trying to bring the vibe that they have over there, the community and stuff," Maldonado said.
A member of the LGBTQ community, Maldonado says Stonewall was the first gay bar she visited in New York, and she’s invited Stonewall’s bartenders and DJ who now work there to come to Houston for the pop-up.
On top of that, they’ll also feature New York-inspired foods to compliment the event.
“You know people that can’t go to New York or can’t go to Stonewall. Give them a little taste of something that I loved from the city," Maldonado said.
And she’s not stopping there.
On June 13, Trash Panda will have another pop-up honoring Cubbyhole, a popular lesbian bar in New York. And on June 24, their final pop-up will pay tribute to the now-shuttered Houston hot spot, La Strada.
“It’s important right now with our times, with what’s going on, you know with LGBTQ rights in the country, I think it’s very important to remind people where it all started," Maldonado said.