Some North Texans participated in an explicit drag show at an eatery over the weekend.
Monkey King Noodle Company in Deep Ellum hosted another iteration of its Wake Up and Makeup drag brunch on Saturday. This “strictly 18+” event is held every Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, all-ages drag shows prompted a number of protests in the metroplex and other cities around Texas over the last few years. Such performances have also spurred accusations of being “derisive, divisive and demoralizing misogyny,” a notion West Texas A&M University president Walter Wendler expressed when he canceled a drag show on the campus in March 2023.
Monkey King Noodle Company is a Deep Ellum eatery that has locations in Richardson and Grapevine as well. It serves northern Chinese street food-inspired meals. The restaurant is owned by restauranter Andrew Chen.
The Dallas Express attended Monkey King Noodle Company’s Saturday drag brunch, where patrons celebrating birthdays and another group celebrating a bride-to-be were served various items off the restaurant’s menu, as well as alcoholic beverages both before and during the show.
The show started at approximately 1:50 p.m. A total of four drag queens danced seductively and interacted with guests as people cheered and gave the performers cash tips. Some patrons tucked the tips directly into the performers’ skimpy clothing.
Two performances involved drag queens stripping down to only a few articles of lingerie.
Guests were also invited to participate in two games by the show’s host, Emeka Bless. The first of the games was a beer-chugging contest called “What that throat do.” The future bride faced off against an older patron. The second game was a twerking competition in which multiple patrons took part, dancing around and on each other.
The show concluded concluded shortly before 3:30 p.m.
