The Imageout Film Festival is the biggest LGBTQ event in upstate NY & the largest queer film fest in NYS. IO also produces a juried art show & film screenings and cultural events throughout the year.
The Gay Alliance has an amazing youth program; a senior center and program; and publishes NYS's oldest gay newspaper, the Empty Closet.
Gay-owned and themed coffee house in the South Wedge. Along with being the meeting place for lots o' groups and gatherings of LGBTQ+ people, it's a great place for a 1st date or looking for a date.
WNY's largest LGBT book and video store. Both mainstream & adult movies for sale or rent. Lots of gift-y rainbow & pride stuff. Leather shop that does custom pieces & adult items are in separate room.
Not my fav spot, personally, but a really cool-looking nightclub with a good drag show and a separate lounge room. Mixed crowd of queer & straight. Enclosed outside bar & smoking area is pretty neat.
This gay bar has had many names & owners. Old timers still call it "RJ's." Drag shows on Fri & Sat. Karaoke on Tue & Sat. Full dinner menu on Thu, Fri, & Sat. A good place to get a beer & play pool.
Can't miss the pride statue outside this NOTA bar. Mostly gay men go here, but it is friendly and open to all. Host leather nights and bear nights.
Intimate little bar on the Monroe Ave strip. Lots of regulars. Nice place for those who prefer to sit & talk in dim lighting rather than dance & tip drag queens under a disco ball.
People associate Pride with parades, drag shows, public nudity, & beer tents. But Pride is about honoring our history and our future and commemorating the Stonewall Riot. Rochester Pride is in July.
Queer-owned and delicious artisan chocolate shop in the Wedge. Curry chocolate, lavender chocolate, and other delicious concoctions that are made in the kitchen behind the store.
Queer-owned artisan ice cream shop in the Wedge. Yummy ice cream flavors like salted caramel and coconut almond brittle. 2 dairy-free sorbets every day, too. The strawberry basil sorbet is awesome.
Gay-owned upscale restaurant and cocktail bar. Great martinis. Hosts a popular drag brunch!
It's a bathhouse. Do I need to say more? Obvs, I've never been there. Because my gender is female and I'm not invited.
The most prominent LGBT statewide advocacy org, the Empire State Pride Agenda, hosts an annual fundraising dinner in Roc. Pricey, but fun! ESPA also has a local WNY Organizer on the ground year-round.
