The Open
Issue two. Hi to everyone who subscribed after the debut. Turns out there are a LOT of you (119 to be exact), and we are genuinely, super flattered. Welcome to Sac Queens. Tell a friend. Forward this to the gay you love most. Reply to any issue. We read every reply.
Quick note: Thomas and I are at EDC Vegas this weekend. Three days of EDM and PLUR (peace, love, unity, respect). If replies are slow for a few days, it’s because we’re recovering from the Tiësto set. We’ll be back next Thursday with full coverage of Memorial Day weekend and the run-up to Sac Pride.
Nevertheless, this issue has all queer Sac essentials, our Person of the Week (a love letter, frankly), a newer pub to know in Old Sac, and a heads-up on Pride-month programming worth marking your calendar for.
This Week in Sac Queer
May 14–20.
Asexual / Aromantic Spectrum Social — Thu May 14, 7–8:30 PM · Lavender Library
At 1414 21st in Midtown. Tonight. Monthly Ace/Aro meetup at the library — second Thursday of every month. Walk in, sit down, find your people. No reading required, no script — just a room of folks who get it. Hosted by @sacllace. Read More
Concerts in the Park — Fri May 15, 6–9:30 PM · Cesar Chavez Plaza · free
At 9th and J downtown. Free Friday-night concert series, every Friday May 1–June 26. Not queer-specific, but it’s the kind of overlap event where everyone’s downtown anyway and you’ll see your friends. Bring a chair (or not), food trucks on site. Follow @cipsacramento for the week’s lineup. We went last week and it was 10/10 (if you like bass). Read More
Roscoe’s Drag Brunch — Sun May 17, 10:30 AM or 1:30 PM · Roscoe’s Bar & Burgers (upstairs)
At 2007 K Street, upstairs. The weekly Sunday drag brunch. $10 entry, $18 bottomless mimosas with an entrée. Online tickets close an hour before showtime. Tip your queens. Follow @roscoes916. Read More
Queer Crafternoon at Lavender Library — Sun May 17, 1–3 PM
At 1414 21st in Midtown. The 3rd-Sunday craft afternoon at the library. Materials provided, all ages welcome, glue guns honored. Bring your own project if you’ve got one cooking. Free. Hosted by @sacllace. Read More
NorCal AIDS Cycle Closing Ceremony — Sun May 17, 12:35 PM · California State Capitol, West Steps
NCAC riders finish their 306-mile, four-day ride at the Capitol after raising funds for HIV/AIDS service orgs across NorCal. Community welcome from 12:35 PM, cyclists ride in at 1:00 PM. Show up, cheer them on. Follow @norcalaidscycle. Read More
Tea Dance at Badlands — Sun May 17, 3-7 PM · Badlands · hosted by Paul + Colin
At 2003 K Street in Midtown. Sunday afternoon dance party at @badlandssac. Tea Dance is a classic gay tradition — the original "where do you go after brunch." Read More
Looking Ahead
Harvey Milk Day — Fri May 22 · statewide observance
California’s official day honoring Harvey Milk. Simplest move: tip a queer bartender extra, donate to a Sac queer org, or rewatch Milk and tell your closest queer person why they matter. Read More
Sacramento Gay Men’s Brunch — Sat May 30, 10:30 AM · Marie Callender’s (Meetup)
A traveling brunch group that rotates Sacramento spots, 2nd and 4th Saturdays at 10:30 AM. This stop: Marie Callender’s, covered patio up front. Singles, couples, and guests welcome. Reservations already in, RSVP on Meetup. Show up hungry, leave with a few new people in your phone. Read More
Sacramento Pride — Sat–Sun June 13–14 · Capitol Mall · March from Southside Park, Sun 11 AM
Sacramento’s main Pride weekend, four weeks out. Festival on Capitol Mall, March from Southside Park Sunday June 14, 11 AM. Full coverage in coming issues — start your group chat now. Read More
Gay Skate at The Rink: Tue June 16, 6–9 PM · The Rink · $25, $15 students
At 2900 Bradshaw Rd. Pride on skates. DJ Pocket on the music, Roselia hosting. Proceeds benefit the Gender Health Center and the Mr. Bolt Travel Fund. Read More
Rainbow Chamber Networking Mixer, Pride Edition: Tue June 16, 6–7:30 PM · MOSAC · free for members, $10 non-members
Pride-edition mixer at the Museum of Science and Curiosity, paired with a Lady Gaga laser light show because of course. Hosted by @sacrainbowchamber. Register online. Read More
Rhinestone Cowboy: SGMC’s 2026 Pride Show: Fri June 19, 7 PM · The Sofia (B Street Theatre)
At 2700 Capitol Ave. The Sacramento Gay Men’s Chorus puts a queer rhinestone twist on country classics for Pride Month. Cowboys, cowgirls, cowtheys, all welcome. Also runs Sat June 20 (3 PM and 7 PM) and Sun June 21 (3 PM). Tickets via B Street Theatre. Follow @sacgaymenschorus. Read More
Person of the Week
Edvard Farris and Bryce Hoeltke
For over 20 years, Ed and Bryce have opened their home to host Thursday Social, a beloved community gathering loosely inspired by the 1993 miniseries, Tales of the City.
Like the series, Thursday Social is built on the idea of a found family, a neutral and welcoming space where everyone feels respected, supported, and valued, and where relationships are grounded in choice, mutual support, and unconditional love.
Ed and Bryce are as warm and welcoming as they come, and let’s be real, if you don’t know them yet, honey, you will. Because they’ve so graciously thrown open their doors (and their bar) to the community, we’re crowning them our inaugural Person of the Week (fine, we can call it "People of the Week”). So next time you spot them out and about, don’t be shy!
Queer-Owned This Week
Bear & Crown
The British pub in Old Sacramento, opened August 2023 by husbands Joe and Jesse Ledin. Joe grew up around his family’s local British import shop in the States after immigrating from London. Jesse came from Phoenix with nearly two decades of hospitality experience. They’ve lived and worked in downtown Sac together since 2017, and they built Bear & Crown to scratch a very specific itch: a proper pub, with a California spin, where Joe’s homesickness for fish and chips and Jesse’s hospitality instincts could meet.
A bear and a crown is a name that practically writes itself, and yes, we noticed. Full bar, pool tables, sports on the screens, a fire pit on the patio. Pub quiz, Sunday roast, and the kind of fish and chips you go to a British pub specifically for. Next door, the Ledins also run Bear & Crown Trading Co., a British imports and tea shop with made-to-order tea behind the counter.
Our favorite cocktail is the London Boy!
1022 2nd Street, Old Sacramento Waterfront.
Follow @bearandcrownsac or visit bearandcrown.com.
Community Shoutouts
From the inbox. Reader submissions, thank-yous, celebrations, or anything fun or noteworthy. Lightly edited for clarity, not for vibe. If you have a shoutout, just reply to this with your submission for next week’s newsletter!
Shoutout to Colin and Paul. The tea dance is everything! We love getting out there and just meeting so many new people and seeing smiling faces on the dance floor. No judgement and so much fun. You guys do such a fantastic job of keeping camaraderie alive!
Kudos to Scott Doyle and all the Sacramento riders on helping the 2026 Norcal AIDS Cycle raise over $220,000!
Thank you Dan for coordinating another great Spring Kickball Season with OutLoud Sports!
Derec & Steven, Thank you for hosting an amazing Birds of a Feather: an Afternoon High Tea party! We loved spending time with our flock…
The Close
Three things before we go:
Got something? Reply. We read every one. Person of the Week and Shoutouts both come from our inbox.
Loved this? Forward it to the gay you love most.
Going to EDC? DM us. Otherwise, hope your weekend is gay in your own way.
See you next Thursday.
— Thomas & Tom
