What makes a restaurant “gay?” Genuine community.

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What makes a restaurant “gay?” Genuine community.

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What comes to mind when you think of third spaces? A place to be in community that’s not a bar or a club? Try a diner…

For New York Times writer and author, Erik Piepenburg, diners were and still are institutions for the LGBTQ+ community. In his book, Dining Out: First Dates, Defiant Nights, and Last Call Disco Fries at America’s Gay Restaurants, Erik goes on a culinary tour of America to uncover why they’ve become such unique spaces.

This is… Food for Thought. And for the next few weeks, we’re looking at the way food and dining shape our communities and culture.

Today, Erik joins Brittany to dive into the golden age of gay restaurants and how diners have been unsung staples of queer placemaking.

This episode was produced by Alexis Williams. It was edited by Neena Pathak. Our Supervising Producer is Barton Girdwood. Our Executive Producer is Veralyn Williams. Our VP of Programming is Yolanda Sangweni.