Check out these creative Pride Month drink specials from across the United States.
BY EMILY JOY MENESES
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE
Featured photo by Lisett Kruusimäe
Petition to make Pride a year-round event! This June, tons of cafés are serving up creative drinks to celebrate themselves and their loved ones, and all of the beautiful identities that make the coffee community what it is. Here are some of our favorite Pride Month specials.
Craft & Common: Cereal Milk Latte
To celebrate this year’s Pride Month, Orlando, Fla.’s Craft & Common has brought back their iconic Cereal Milk Latte. All of the proceeds for the drink are going to local organizations Zebra Youth Council and The Center Orlando.
Kittitas Cafe: L-Word Latte
Based in Kittitas, Wash., Kittitas Cafe serves up the L-Word Latte infused with vanilla and topped with lavender cold foam.
Café co-owner Mackenzie Cohen shares with us what inspired the beverage: “The name is inspired by the show ’The L Word,’ but it’s a little bit of a play on words because it’s a house vanilla latte with lavender cold foam—the lavender being the ‘L-word’. The drink was actually inspired by one of our super supportive customers, who, months ago, came up with the flavor profiles.”
Mackenzie also shares the personal significance of the drink and the efforts the coffeehouse has been making to create a safe space for their town’s LGBTQ+ community. “I recently realized I’m gay … and now seems like a great opportunity to just be out and proud. We’re a café in a small agricultural town and have created a really strong and diverse community through coffee, food, and just loving on people really hard. We held our second-ever Pride event at our stage at the back of the café, and it was beautiful! We’re making gradual changes in people, and I see our community becoming more and more inclusive.”
Café Corazón KC: Amor Pride Latte
Rose, white chocolate, and espresso come together beautifully at this Kansas City, Mo., coffeehouse, which is Latino and indigenous-owned. Romantic and luxurious, the drink has everything you could want out of a Pride Month special.
Routine Coffee: Strawberries and Cigarettes
Inspired by the song “Strawberries & Cigarettes” by Troye Sivan, this beverage is cold brew topped with strawberry marshmallow cold foam and a toasted marshmallow. The Cleveland café has a bunch of other Pride Month specials, including one inspired by the song “Honey” by Kehlani—matcha whisked with lavender honey over milk and topped with honeycomb cereal.
Wordplay Coffee: Pride Matcha
Colorado-based coffee pop-up Wordplay Coffee teamed up with the Durango Rainbow Youth Center for their June Pride event, themed “Jurassic Pride.“ Their feature drink was the Pride Matcha—an oat milk-based beverage infused with blueberry, beet, and turmeric, creating layers of color and flavor, topped with matcha. Other creative drinks on the pop-up’s menu include the Open Sesame—a latte with tahini, honey syrup, and black sesame whipped cream—and the Carrot Cake Latte, which includes fresh carrot juice, coconut milk, and chai spices.
“I started Wordplay Coffee as a creative outlet and to support my local LGBTQ+ community,” owner Megan Milstead shares. Megan first developed a passion for coffee through Houston Coffee Collective, carrying it over to Wordplay’s current home in Durango, Colo. This summer, you can catch Megan hosting coffee pop-ups throughout town, including at the Durango Farmers Market.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Emily Joy Meneses (she/they) is a writer and musician based in Los Angeles. Her hobbies include foraging, cortados, vintage synths, and connecting with her Filipino roots through music, art, food, and beverage.
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