Sofitel Celebrates Philly Gay Pride With Rainbow Flag Display, Drag Tea, & Attic Fundraiser

Sofitel Philadelphia at Rittenhouse Square, part of AccorHotels, will celebrate June as Gay Pride Month with a series of new events and initiatives, including turning the hotel lobby into the Pride Month "LGBTQ Hall of Flags." For the first time ever, Sofitel will fly a giant Philadelphia Pride Flag on the outside of the hotel. Inside, look for the flag to be joined by six individual LGBTQ flags flying high above the lobby to celebrate the diversity of the hotel's community.

The raising of the flags coincides with a month-long benefit to support the Attic Youth Center. Sofitel will donate $1 to the Attic from select banquet menu items and $1 from all Liberté cocktails sold during June. Festivities will also include a twist on a classic tradition with the debut of Drag Tea with Brittany Lynn's Drag Mafia. Sofitel Philadelphia will also bring back Fête de La Musique with music, drag queens, cocktails and cuisine. Finally, the month will close with a special art reception to coincide with the hanging of artist Janie Telstar's "French Kiss" exhibition. Sofitel is located at 120 S. 17th Street, Philadelphia in the heart of Rittenhouse Square.

For information about events at Sofitel Philadelphia, visit Sofitel Philadelphia on Facebook. For booking a stay during Pride Month, call (215) 569-8300 or visit https://www.sofitel-philadelphia.com/.

"Sofitel Philadelphia is passionate about supporting our local community," said Sofitel Philadelphia General Manager Angela Bauer. "We are proud to debut the Philadelphia Pride rainbow flag on the outside of the hotel to publicly show our commitment to inclusiveness. Our line-up for June also includes two new drag teas, an art reception, the return of Fête de La Musique, and a month-long benefit for the Attic Youth Center. We invite you to stop by and join us during Pride Month - our doors are always open to all."

Sofitel Philadelphia kicks off Pride Month during Philadelphia's Gay Pride Weekend. On Saturday, June 8th, and again on Saturday, June 15th, look for a new spin on a time-honored tradition. Sofitel, famous for its classic afternoon tea service, will debut a new Drag Tea featuring Brittany Lynn's Drag Mafia. Sip tea (or spill it) in the presence of fabulous Drag Queens as you enjoy delicious offerings from Sofitel's award-winning culinary team. Drag Tea starts each week at 2:00pm and runs through 4:00pm inside Chez Colette Brasserie.

Come ready to be entertained as you enjoy classics, like scones, tea sandwiches (peanut butter, jelly, goat cheese, brioche; ham, pear, honey, pretzel; smoked salmon, cucumber, pumpernickel; and egg and pickles on rye), pastries (Queen Victoria roulade, Hibiscus and white chocolate verrine, macaroons; sticky toffee pudding tartlette), and Palais Des Thes (selection of nine different teas for you to choose) - plus your choice of Champagne, Mimosa or Bloody Mary.

Tickets are $40 per person - and add $10 for bottomless Champagne, Mimosas or Bloody Marys. Five dollars from each purchase will be donated to the Attic Center for LGBTQ Youth. Tickets are available at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/drag-queen-afternoon-tea-tickets-62597245045

Sofitel Philadelphia invites the community to celebrate Philadelphia's Pride rainbow flag on the outside of the building in June. An oversize rainbow flag, with Philly's addition of the brown and black stripes to honor diversity in the community, greets visitors as they enter to the left of the front doors. Inside look for the lobby to be renamed Philadelphia's LGBTQ Hall of Flags. Look for Philadelphia's locally designed and newsmaking rainbow flag to also have a center spot in the lobby, showcasing the diversity of our local community. The Philadelphia rainbow flag will be joined by host of LGBTQ flags flying high inside the lobby to celebrate the different facets of the local gay community, including, Lesbian Pride Flag, Gender Fluid Pride Flag, Binary Pride Flag, Pan Sexual Pride Flag, Transgender Pride Flag and the Bisexual Pride Flag.

On Friday, June 21, 2019, from 5:00pm to 7:00pm, head outside for Sofitel Philadelphia's annual Fête de La Musique celebration featuring a mini-block party under the porte with music, entertainment, drag performances, complimentary lite bites and cocktail samples. The Fête de la Musique began in Paris in 1982, and was founded by the popular French cultural minister Jack Lang. The festival originated in a humble burst of musical idealism and a few power connections, and yet, in only two decades has become a wildly popular global event.

Sofitel will conclude Pride Month in Philadelphia with the opening art reception for French Kiss by Janice Telstar on Thursday, June 27th, from 5:00pm to 7:00pm. The Reading, PA artist will debut her photographs in the lobby for a summer exhibition. Guests will enjoy complimentary bites and cocktail samples from Sofitel's new summer menu.

"This collection is my love letter to Paris," said Telstar. "In my photographic journey, I was devoted to bring life to the steel and stone that dominates the city. Bridges and monuments. Street lamps and statues. These objects appear cold and inanimate but they have souls and as the light changes throughout the day, they come alive. In my photographic art, I hope you feel like you can reach out and touch them. "

The reception is free and open to all.
ATTIC YOUTH CENTER FUNDRAISER

During the entire month of June, and through the rest of 2019, Sofitel Philadelphia will donate one dollar per each banquet menu item designated with the Attic's logo on the menu. Designated items range from breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets to beverages and snack breaks for groups of 10 or more people hosting a meeting or event at Sofitel Philadelphia. View the full banquet menu here.

Sofitel Philadelphia will also donate one dollar from every Liberté cocktail sold in the Liberté Lounge to Attic during Pride Month. All funds will support programs for local LGBTQ youth. The Liberté Cocktail is available in Liberté Lounge and features pear infused Vodka, lemon, St. Germain and Sparkling Wine.

"As part of our commitment to philanthropy, we started this program in 2017 and donated more than $29,000 to Broad Street Ministry," said Bauer. "We are proud to expand our commitment to the community, which is why we started our partnership with the Attic in June 2018. To date, we raised more than $12,000 for the Attic to directly support LGBTQ youth. Raise a glass to Pride during June with one dollar from each Liberté cocktail going to the Attic. Also, one dollar from select items on our banquet menu will be donated to the Attic - starting in June and through the rest of 2019."

The Attic offers multifaceted programming that focuses on life skills, youth leadership, mental health and supportive services for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. Young people ages 14 to 23 are helped to develop into healthy, independent, thriving, civic-minded adults within a safe and supportive community that promotes the acceptance of LGBTQ in society. For more about the Attic, visit https://www.atticyouthcenter.org/

Blending French elegance with American style Sofitel Philadelphia provides a refined environment for upscale business and leisure meetings, events and celebrations. Sofitel's gorgeous ballroom and distinctive dining options make it the ideal Center City location for chic, sophisticated gatherings.

Choose from a variety of spectacular venues including the brasserie Chez Colette and urban chic Liberté Lounge. Sofitel has the ability to accommodate small intimate family gatherings up to large corporate parties from 10 to 300 people. The hotel boasts 16,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space over two floors with 16 meeting rooms, including the Paris Ballroom. Executive Chef Edward Hancock and the award-winning culinary team skillfully creates event menus showcasing exquisite French-inspired cuisine featuring the freshest ingredients from the hotel's rooftop garden and bee hives.

Sofitel Philadelphia blends French elegance with American style providing a refined environment for upscale business and leisure travel in center city. The sophisticated downtown hotel is conveniently situated near historic attractions, museums, shopping, and restaurants. Aesthetic highlights of the hotel include a geometric lobby floor design inspired by Shaker quilts crafted from seven types of stone and French-inspired works of art adorning the walls. Sofitel Philadelphia offers 306 elegant rooms on 14 floors, including 67 luxurious suites all featuring Sofitel's signature feathertop and duvet sleep system- SoBed. The luxury experience is accentuated by the delicious cuisine of Liberté Lounge, a stylish restaurant and bar that brings back a bygone era with contemporary French-inspired food served in one of the city's loveliest settings. Sofitel Philadelphia ranked number nine on Conde Nast Traveler's Top 20 Hotels in NY State & the Mid-Atlantic: Readers' Choice Awards 2015, and is a Best Hotel in Philadelphia on the 2016 and 2017 Best Hotel Rankings from U.S. News & World Report.