ST. LOUIS — June is Pride Month. Celebrations, events and specials are planned all month long throughout the St. Louis area in support of the LGBTQ+ community.
This year, in-person events are back after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the larger gatherings the past two years.
5 On Your Side has put together a list of ways you can mark Pride Month, whether by dining out or by attending an event.
PrideFest
The big PrideFest celebration returns to downtown St. Louis this June. PrideSTL announced the theme for this year’s event is “Together Again” – aptly named since the event has been put on hold for the last two years.
PrideSTL is holding a kickoff event from 7-10 p.m. on Monday, June 6, at the Anheuser-Busch Biergarten. The free event is open to the St. Louis community. There will be free food and drinks, silent auctions, raffles, live performances, special guests and a photo opportunity with the Budweiser Clydesdales.
The big festival is set for the weekend of June 25-26 on Tucker Boulevard between Market and Olive streets, with events planned from 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Sunday. The parade starts at 11 a.m. Sunday.
There will be local and national entertainers (full lineup TBA), vendors, food trucks, a dance tent and more.
1220 Artisan Spirits and 4 Hands Brewing Co.
The St. Louis brewery and it's affiliated distillery are donating a portion of proceeds from several of their products in June.
4 Hands redesigned its popular City Wide beer can to include rainbow colors and a rainbow version of the St. Louis flag. It also debuted the new Rainbow Snow Cone hard seltzer.
1220 Artisan Spirits redesigned its signature Encrypted Vodka so the bottle now features a rainbow version of the usual label.
A portion of proceeds from every Pride beverage will be donated to PROMO, a statewide organization that works to support Missouri’s LGBTQ+ community. The Pride drinks are available at 4 Hands and local Missouri retailers throughout June.
ART Bar at the Angad Arts Hotel
ART Bar is on the rooftop of the Angad Arts Hotel in the Grand Center neighborhood.
A variety of drinks on the menu will help support PROMO, which works to support Missouri’s LGBTQ+ community. The drinks are:
- Watermelon Suga cocktail: features 1220 Spirits’ Encrypted Vodka, watermelon mint cordial, soda water and a Tajin rim
- Beautiful cocktail: features tequila, lime, mint and soda water
- 4 Hands’ Rainbow Snowcone Seltzer
- 4 Hands’ Citywide Beer
- 1220’s Cherry balaton and Parisian lime vodka
- 1220’s Lemonade and lavender vodka
The bar also plans to close out St. Louis Pride weekend with a "Rainbows on the Rooftop" color party. It's set for Sunday, June 26 from 3-11:30 p.m. A DJ will perform from 8-11 p.m. The event is free and open to the public; reservations are not required.
Bijoux
The chocolates that are almost too beautiful to eat are taking on all the colors of Pride Month flags.
Bijoux, which is in Des Peres, has put together a Pride Flag collection – a box of bonbons that includes eight different flavors, which each one representing a different Pride Month flag: hazelnut poprock, tiramisu, black currant mint, 68% cinnamon cayenne, PB&J, salted caramel, caramel popcorn and mango kalamansi.
The chocolatier also has caramel marshmallow rainbow hearts for sale.
All proceeds from the Pride Month items will go to PROMO, a statewide organization that works to support Missouri’s LGBTQ+ community.
City Foundry STL
The multi-use complex in Midtown is hosting several events to celebrate Pride Month. Here's the lineup:
- June 21: Pride Week Bodyweight Bootcamp
Starting at 5:30 p.m., a bodyweight bootcamp will take place outside on Foundry Way. The free event features a Pride-themed playlist and those of any fitness level or background are
- June 22-24: "Made with PRIDE" Pop-Up Market
More than 50 local LGBTQ-owned businesses will offer art, crafts and gifts at a pop-up outdoor market on Foundry Way. The event runs from 3-8 p.m. on June 22-23 and from 3-9 p.m. on June 24. Attendees are asked to bring their own yoga mat and encouraged to arrive early to fill out a required waver.
- June 23: LGBTQ+ Trivia Night
An LGBTQ+ trivia event will be held from 7-9 p.m. at the Food Hall inside the Foundry. Players' knowledge of queer history from St. Louis and throughout the country, queer pop culture knowledge, and more will be tested, with the opportunity to take home surprise prizes from 4 Hands Brewing Co.
- Through June 30: Select food PRIDE specials
Several kitchens inside The Food Hall are offering colorful PRIDE-themed dishes, with a portion of proceeds going to charity. The specials are available Sunday-Tuesday from 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday from 11 a.m.-8 p.m., and Friday-Saturday from 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
Press Waffle Co. is offering the Funfetti Liege Waggle, with 10% of proceeds going to LGBTQ+ organizations. The waffle is drizzled with cookie butter and lemon curd, and topped with fresh-cut strawberries, mandarin oranges, pineapple, kiwi, blueberries, and blackberries, and is finished with house-made whipped cream and a sprinkle of Fruity Pebbles.
The Kitchen Bar's Pride drink specials include Earthbound Beer's Out and About, 4 Hand Brewing Co.'s Rainbow Snowcone Seltzer, and Perennial's Double Entendre, with a portion of proceeds going to LGBTQ+ causes. The food hall bar is also adding two special cocktails, the Stonewall Spritz and the Lavender Menace.
4 Hens Creole Kitchen, which is owned and operated by four LGBTQ+ women, is offering "Rainbow Fries": a large basket of Creole seasoned fries and all of the kitchen’s sauces for dipping, including Ranch, Creole Ranch, Creole Cream Sauce, Remoulade, Dirty Mustard, Kickin’ Ketchup and Sweet Cream Sauce.
Clementine’s Creamery
The St. Louis-based ice cream business is bringing back its signature rainbow cones for Pride Month. A portion of the sales from all Pride cones sold in June will go to several LGBTQ nonprofit organizations, including Vivent Health, Metro Trans Umbrella Group and HRC St. Louis.
Hi-Pointe Drive-In and Chicken Out
The fast-casual restaurants have put together a “Hi on Pride” event for June with colorful shake specials that give back to the LGBTQ+ community.
Hi-Pointe will offer a rainbow funfetti cake shake, which features Ronnie’s vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, rainbow sprinkles and half of a Hostess Cupcake with sprinkles. Chicken Out will serve up a vanilla funfetti shake featuring Ronnie’s vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, sprinkles and rainbow tropical fruit purée.
A portion of the money from each shake sold will go to PROMO, which is a statewide organization that fights systemic inequities for the LGBTQ+ community in Missouri. The Pride shakes will be available all month long.
Mission Taco Joint and Steve’s Hot Dogs
The two St. Louis businesses are collaborating for menu items that will benefit several nonprofits in the St. Louis area.
Mission Taco Joint will serve the Hot Dog Taco, which is inspired by Steve’s Hot Dogs. It features a soft-flour tortilla with hot dog-spiced beer-braised pork, hibiscus pickled onions, cilantro, Mission Taco queso and fried jalapenos.
The taco will be served at all Mission Taco Joint locations all month. A portion of the proceeds will go to Metro Trans Umbrella Group, which is an organization that offers support, advocacy and education for the transgender community.
Steve’s Hot Dogs will offer a hotdog version of the taco on Tuesdays in June, called the Mission Taco Dog. It features a smoked and grilled all-beef hot dog topped with hot dog-spiced roast pork carnitas, pickled red onions, cilantro, Mission Taco queso and fried jalapenos.
Every Tuesday this month, 15% of Steve’s Hot Dog sales will go to a different nonprofit organization that helps the LGBTQ+ community in St. Louis.
Missouri Historical Society
The Missouri Historical Society (MHS) is putting on several special events for the month of June, but it’s also looking to the future.
MHS is collecting stories and artifacts from St. Louis’ LGBTQ+ community, with plans to gather all of the information into a major gallery exhibit for 2024.
“These stories will be preserved in perpetuity at the Library & Research Center,” the historical society’s Gateway to Pride website states. “This local initiative will showcase the complexity, creativity, and diversity of St. Louis’s LGBTQIA+ communities.”
Those looking to share their stories or events from the area’s LGBTQ+ history or those who want to submit an artifact or photo can follow the links here.
The Missouri Historical Society also is hosting special programming in June:
- June 3: Storytelling in the Museum: Pride Stories, free
- June 9: Pride Keynote: “As I Am” with Musician Tre G, free
- June 18: See STL – Gay Liberation in the Gateway City, $20 per person, $15 for MHS members
- All month, virtual: Gateway to Pride
Old Bakery Beer Company
The Alton-based brewer is bringing back its Pride Month collaboration for the fourth year in a row.
Each year, Old Bakery Beer releases a seasonal brew to raise money for people living with HIV. This year’s beer is “Oh Yeah!” which is a tropical punch-inspired beer.
A portion of the proceeds from each Oh Yeah! beer sold will go to Vivent Health, which provides health services and a “medical home” model for people in the St. Louis area living with HIV.
Pride St. Charles
The festival is back for 2022. The event is set for Saturday, June 18 from 12-8 p.m. at the Family Arena. There won’t be a parade this year. Check out the Pride St. Charles website and Facebook page for more details as they’re released.
Soulard Pride
The St. Louis neighborhood is bringing back the celebration on Saturday, June 11. There will be a golf cart parade kicking off the events at noon. It starts at BooCoo and finishes at Soulard Bastille, which also will be hosting a drag show. After the parade, those who are 21 and up can visit participating bars for themed drinks and color-matching beads.
All Soulard Pride events are free to attend. Limited edition t-shirts will be available to buy.
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are bringing back Pride Night for the fifth year. It’s set for Friday, June 10 at Busch Stadium.
There will be a pregame party in Budweiser Terrace featuring a DJ and a performance of God Bless America by the Gateway Men’s Chorus.
At the game, the purchase of a special theme ticket will get fans a rainbow Cardinals hooded pullover. A portion of each theme ticket sold will be donated to PFLAG Greater St. Louis.
Regional Pride celebrations
Pride events aren’t only held in June. Some other large-scale gatherings are set throughout the St. Louis area the rest of the year. Check out the list below for more celebrations.
Alton Pride, Sept. 10
Black Pride St. Louis, Aug. 20
Metro East Pride, Oct. 1
Mid-Missouri Pride, Sept. 24-25
Tower Grove Pride, Sept. 24-25