Sometimes acting on impulse really pays off. I was scrolling on my phone late one night at the end of June and saw that tickets had gone on sale for Drag Dinner in July at Arroy Thai & Filipino Restaurant in Downtown St. Cloud. I had gone to Drag dinner there in May and knew how fast the event sold out. Not wanting to miss out on the fun, I snagged a table for four people, assuming my friends would be free on a Sunday night.
They were not free. Suddenly I had a table for four and only myself attending. I told my parents about my predicament and they said they would LOVE to go with me. Thank goodness for that. But they didn’t totally know what they had signed up for as neither of them had ever attended a drag show.
As a drag fan, I had slowly introduced them to the world of the art form through watching RuPaul’s Drag Race (that I had recorded on their DVR) and over the past couple of seasons, my dad had gotten more involved with watching it with me. My mom was a dance mom for my sister and me growing up so choreography and sparkly costumes weren’t out of her wheelhouse either. And my mom’s bestie, Kelly, filled our 4th seat at the table, she’s down for anything!
Before the show Sunday, my dad was VERY concerned about his outfit. If there’s one thing you need to know about Dan, it’s that he always goes all out. He is all in on everything, and drag dinner was no exception. He made my mom stop at Old Navy before the show to buy him a pair of “nice” capri pants to match his cut-off plaid shirt with rhinestone fringe that we had made him at my bachelorette party the year before. Like I said, all in.
The dinner itself at Arroy was amazing, they have some of the BEST food in the St. Cloud area. The Thai/Filipino fusion is unlike anything you will get in the surrounding area. They have the best secret rub on their chicken wings, and the glass noodle salad is a dish that I would recommend to even the pickiest of eaters. We ordered family style and all shared so we could try other dishes as well like spring rolls, curry, and lumpia. We ate like kings and then got entertained by queens.
When the show started my dad immediately got singled out by the host, which is what happens when you are the person in the room who is having the most fun. He spent the whole show cheering, clapping, and tipping the queens. By the end of it we all had sore cheeks from smiling and laughing so much. Drag is such a joyous art form, and getting to share and experience it with your favorite people just makes it that much better.
Check out the full experience and learn more about how Arroy got started on this week’s episode of The Small Town Tourist Podcast.
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