Sometimes the answer is right in front of you, if you just know where to look.
Case in point: Walking along the north side of U Street in Northwest DC, the space that now houses DC’s newest gay bar features a small, unassuming storefront. Blink and you’ll miss it. The “Lucky Pollo Peruvian Chicken” logo made up of LED lights and a cartoon chicken wearing a leather hat and boots serve as an “Easter egg” for those in the know. It’s a rare external clue that there’s more hidden underneath than meets the eye. Exterior view of takeout chicken shop.
As you enter the restaurant, even though it is under construction, there is already an ATM and three wall-mounted tablets installed, which will soon become the place for late-night drinkers to place their orders. Instinctively, my gaze inevitably drifts to the right. Looking around the space.
If you look beyond the bright yellow and white walls and main service counter, you’ll see a mid-20th century candy vending machine with candy bars lined up in the shop window. A small note taped to the front of the machine says “out of order.”
But it’s this vintage machine that will be the starting point for your journey.
Grab one of the levers on the vending machine and pull it. The machine will open and a passage will appear behind it. It’s a dark, black hallway decorated with flashing LED lights. Anticipation, urgency, and curiosity drive you forward. The door closes behind you, leaving you in near-darkness, peering down a dimly lit hallway.
You can imagine hearing that little voice in your head every time you step away from the entrance to the vending machine that brought you into this world.
come with me,
and you will be
In a world of pure imagination.
Reach out and touch what was once
Only in your imagination…
Proceed down the leather hallway to your right and you’ll find a small shop selling wares tucked away in a caged area. During peak hours, patrons can purchase gear and other adult store items.
“Our facility is a bootlegger,” says Zach Renovates, principal managing partner of the new District Eagle. “There’s no signage outside, so you have to know about the space and know where to go in. It’s a look back at the past and history of gay establishments, but at the same time it creates a whole new concept for the D.C. community. I will make it possible.”
Renovates says it was important to “create a bar that celebrates the history of gay and LGBT spaces that necessarily had to remain hidden and secret.”
The bar will open to the public on Wednesday, January 22, kicking off a five-day grand opening “Kickoff Celebration.”
Just beyond the product cage is a boot black chair. The hallway then opens up into an even larger room. To the left is a bar with heavy metal chains suspended from the ceiling to the countertop. Music is played from hidden speakers and videos are played on two screens at either end of the bar.
Along the right wall is a long sofa with a leather backrest, and an LED-lit area branches from the wall to the ceiling and extends into the bar area. The DJ booth occupies a back corner surrounded by 100-year-old casting patterns once used to cast machine parts in a factory in Connecticut. The design is meticulously perfect, courtesy of Jasine Kadic, who also designed the LGBTQ dance club bunker adjacent to District Eagle.
Dim lighting mixes with foundry patterns protruding from the walls and booths to create the illusion of giant speakers coming from afar. There is a metronome-shaped cast member in the upper center of the DJ booth.
Beyond the dance floor, to the right, is another long hallway with giant murals of Tom of Finland lining the walls. To the left are two bathrooms with five innovative water-saving ‘sink urinals’. The second bathroom has an opening that allows curious cruisers to get a glimpse of who’s inside. Additionally, there is a corner with walls lined with black padding where patrons gather.
Patrons visiting the District Eagle’s five-day “Kickoff Weekend” will see how the bar expands into an upstairs space (a straight bar called Alice, open only on Friday and Saturday nights) You can. There is also a bar and a rooftop garden. If the second floor is occupied, a red LED sign indicating the stairs will be illuminated, “Eagle XL Open.”
Renovates said District Eagle has a capacity of about 116 people on any given night, but the building’s overall capacity on “Eagle XL” nights is about 300 people. There is usually no cover charge, except for special events and such occasions. If your bar needs to pay for an outside group or performer, such as a well-known DJ or performer from out of town.
So far, Renovates plans to use the second floor for monthly Sunday tea dances and during the upcoming WorldPride 2025.
Since Renovátes is also the managing partner of the Bunker, there are plans to allow District Eagle patrons to use their receipts from the Eagle to earn free admission to the Bunker on certain weekends.
“Having the facility next door allows our guests to utilize District Eagle as their first stop before arriving at the Bunker later,” he says.
Perhaps the most confusing thing about District Eagle’s launch is the perception that they are somehow connected to the long-closed DC Eagle, the iconic leather bar in Washington, D.C.’s Benning neighborhood. However, the store has permanently closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“District Eagle Bar is a brand new facility focused on creating a safe haven for our kinky and alternative lifestyle community,” says Renovates. “That said, it shares the tradition of ‘Eagles’ around the world.”According to Wikipedia, there are currently about 30 eagles in countries such as the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Austria, Japan, and New Zealand. “Eagle” bar is open.
“The name Eagle has a lot of connotations in gay nightlife culture,” Renovates said. “When you’re in an Eagle space, there are expectations and features you want to find. So the name Eagle is something we used to enable a sexually liberated mindset. And We are proud to take on a new role within the community that has been missing for a long time.”
Renovates said District Eagle is “specifically designed for the LGBTQ community” and hopes to work with LGBTQ kinky and fetish groups to coordinate events.
“We share the unique program we offer with our guests, allowing them to enjoy different types of nights and events each day of the week,” he says. “We hope that by naming specific events, our customers will recognize that we curate different experiences for different communities.”
space welcomes you all Although we are members of the LGBTQ community, we focus on promoting an awkward and pervert-friendly space.
“We want everyone to be able to find a safe place within our community at District Eagle,” Renovates said. “So, if you’re a person who loves Latin music, we might host a Latin night, but it’s our For example, a unique twist on a Latin night. And we’ll see how customers respond to these different services. ”
There is no specific dress code for entry, but Renovates said the bar discourages potential customers from wearing open-toed shoes or sandals due to safety concerns. Some of the bar’s special nights feature certain styles of attire that are recommended but not required, such as jockstrap night and gear night, and the bar offers discounts to patrons with different types of attire. I will.
“We really encourage our customers to show off their individuality, show off their perversion, and bring that scene into our space,” he says, adding that District Eagle is strictly leather-based. Avoid characterizing it as a bar.
“Leather is just one part of it,” he says. “There are many elements that fall under the umbrella of ‘kink,’ and we want to be inclusive of all kink communities.”
Renovates said District Eagle is “first and foremost a cruising bar designed by the LGBTQ community, for the LGBTQ community, and the only cruising bar in Washington, DC.” This is not an establishment for the faint of heart. We want people to understand what they’re walking into and what they’re walking into when they walk into our space. We don’t police our customers’ sexuality. We want our customers to be able to express themselves freely.
“Certain communities will immediately understand it and want to be a part of this space,” he concludes. “For others, it may not be the space for them, and that’s okay. In our community, it’s okay to create and manage spaces that enhance specific experiences for our customers. We want this to be for people who are curious, who have a cruising mindset, who want to experience a sexually positive environment. We don’t want to run away from that concept.”
District Eagle opens at 1357-BU St. NW on Wednesday, Jan. 22, at 6 p.m. Post-launch hours are 6pm to 2am on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Friday from 6pm to 3am and Saturday from 2pm to 3am. Sunday from 2pm to midnight. For more information, please email info@districteagle.com. or Follow Bar on Instagram @districteagle.
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Source: Metro Weekly – www.metroweekly.com
