“When I told my friend (and Bon Appetit associate editor) Chala Tyson Tshitundu I’d never been to a drag brunch, it was—direct quote—‘a gay crime.’’’ — ToNoAvalle
, whose performances filled the time between courses of tikka-inspired flatbread, madras fried chicken sandwiches, and smoked salmon served on everything-bagel-seasoned naan.Sona’s menu draws from a mélange of restaurateur Maneesh K. Goyal’s identities, serving stereotypically brunchy fare like eggs Benedict and lox alongside South Asian–inspired breads, curries, and drinks.
I often treat brunch as a restorative to nurse myself back from nasty hangovers, but drag brunch at Sona is not a quiet meal. Avoiding the show is simply not an option here. The music throbbed over my ringing ears, louder than any other bar I’ve frequented, and even if I wanted to ignore the big gay spectacle, it’s not like there’s a stage to turn away from. Instead, the queens were alwayssashaying down the aisles between tables as if the entire dining room were a runway.
Goyal himself is gay, and opening Sona felt like a way to honor his queer identity along with his memories of growing up in an Indian restaurant. The idea to do a drag brunch came from members of Sona’s largely queer and trans staff. Organizing the weekly show felt like a way to honoridentities as well, but also a way to turn an upscale restaurant in lower Manhattan—a phrase that makes me shudder from the implied heterosexuality—into a visibly LGBTQ-friendly space.
I wonder what I’d be like if I’d grown up around drag queens. Not raised by them, necessarily, just what it would have been like if playing with gender had been allowed and encouraged from a young age. Maybe I’d know how to wear makeup better, or how to dress myself. Despite now being openly trans, I still struggle to feel comfortable in my body or present in high femme, mostly out of fear that I’m doing something wrong.
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