Arts & Entertainment

Freddie’s purple reign

Va. gay bar/restaurant celebrates 10 years with month of festivities

Published

15 years ago

February 24, 2011

Freddie Lutz at his 60th birthday party in December. The gay entrepreneur has another milestone coming up — his bar turns 10. (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Freddie’s Beach Bar and Restaurant
555 So. 23rd St.
Arlington, Va.

Anniversary festivities:
8 p.m. Tuesday “Purple Party” — buffet and DJ Alicia
March 4 — Wicked Jezebel
March 5 — Saturday ‘Drag Diner’ buffet brunch
with Shelby Bottoms (Saturdays weekly)
$9.95 — 10 a.m.-3 p.m
Sunday champagne brunch
(Sundays weekly)
$19.95 – 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
Freddie’s Follies Drag Show
with Destiny B. Childs (Sundays weekly)
9 p.m.-11 p.m.
March 8, 10 and 11 — WiseCRACK Disco Trivia
(Tuesday, Thursday, Friday weekly)
March 10 — “Dining Out For Life”
March 20 — “Mimi I’mFurst”
For details, go here or call 703-685-0555

Freddie Lutz knows what it takes to succeed as a restaurateur. But how to put it into words?

Certainly it’s that ineffable “je ne sais quoi” — that intuitive yet practical sense of how to succeed in the world of hospitality, as a purveyor of food and drink and good times. And it’s second nature to the man known to everyone simply as “Freddie.”

His is the motto for many who succeed — “excellence equals success.” In Lutz’s words, “They say if you make it past the first year, you’re doing good, but if you make it past the third year, you’re really doing good.”

However, the well-known rule of thumb in the restaurant industry is this sobering statistic: most new ones don’t make it much past one year. Therefore, Lutz says, “I guess if you make it past a decade, you’re doing fabulous.”

March is his 10th anniversary celebration month, starting Tuesday. He calls it “our purple party,” and it begins at 8 that night with a complimentary hors d’oeuvre buffet and an atmosphere of merriment with party favors. There is, as Freddie insists, “no cover charge” whatsoever,” because, he calls it “a big celebration, and everyone’s invited.”

“It’s a thank-you to the community,” he says, “for all their love and support over the last 10 years.” Lutz’s favorite color is purple, so that’s the theme.

Purple streamers deck the small stage — a mainstay for karaoke and drag shows, flanked by a white baby grand piano.

Lutz admits he borrowed — he calls it “artistic license” — the purple hue from elsewhere. He dubs it “royal purple” and says proudly, “I stole it from a diner in Key West, where I fell in love with it.” So back in Arlington, he immediately went to a Duron paint store, and found it.

But Tuesday’s kick-off party is just the beginning.

March 4 at 9 p.m., the lesbian band Wicked Jezebel will perform. Then on March 10, Lutz plans to give more back to the community, by, he says, “donating 110 percent of the proceeds” — not the profits, but the proceeds — of all sales that evening to Food and Friends’ “Dining Out For Life” fundraiser. March 20 brings the drag artist “Mimi I’mFurst,” well-known from “Ru Paul’s Drag Race.”

But Lutz is counting on staging more events. He’s planning them in concert with his general manager, his 24-year-old nephew Ryan, whom Lutz insists is straight, saying he is sort of like the young man Val — played by actor Dan Futterman in “The Birdcage.”

One touch of décor, of course, is Lutz’s sense of fashion style, through his own collection of colorful Hawaiian shirts — at first he simply estimates there are “a lot of them” in his closet, but then concedes that maybe it’s around 40. “Hey,” he says, “it’s a beach bar.”

Lutz also says that he has aimed to transplant the atmosphere of “The Birdcage” — set in Miami’s South Beach — to his place, with its “islandy feeling,” on 23rd Street in a commercial strip between Arlington Ridge and Crystal City. Its decor was spun through his own mixing bowl of styles. “I didn’t need to hire a decorator,” he says, “I pretty much did it myself, I guess my theme song is ‘I Did It My Way.'”

Lutz lives on Meade Street, near the restaurant in the old Lutz family home, with his partner of 13 years, Johnny Cervantes. It’s the same house where Lutz lived with his parents, from when he was age 3. He boasts a degree from the Rhode Island School of Design.

Lutz just celebrated another landmark anniversary — his 60th birthday, on Dec. 3, with a big bash at the restaurant. Cervantes, meanwhile, only owns up to being “39-ish, again, but I never give out my age.” When interviewed, they had just returned from their second home — in Rehoboth Beach — and Cervantes’ fondness for his partner was palpable.

“With Freddie, what you see is what you get,” Cervantes says. “But it’s true,” adding that “it’s his honesty and his integrity,” plus, “he’s got so much energy.” In their relationship, Cervantes says, “he’s always the one who is willing to take the risks — and the only way I can describe him is as a free spirit, while also remaining respectful of everyone that he knows.”

“He doesn’t step on anyone’s toes. The bottom line is this, everybody loves Freddie, and Freddie loves everybody, whether in this neighborhood, in the business community, straight or gay.”

Cervantes says the secret of the success of the bar and restaurant is that Lutz has “great negotiating skills.”

Asked about that, Lutz acknowledges that when he started out a decade ago, after a 25-year career working down the street as manager and maitre’d at Cafe Italia, “I just wanted to see if I could do it myself, to see if I could make it happen, to create a gay bar and restaurant, but also — gay or not — to just see if I could do it on my own.”

Yes, he sees Freddie’s as “just one big, happy, dysfunctional family, with all the crazy drama that goes along with a gay bar, the intensity and all that, but this is important,” he adds, “the accent is on the word ‘happy,’ that’s definitely a key word.”

So yes, he feels “a great sense of accomplishment” now, to hit the 10-year mark.

Asked about the new LGBT bar in Northern Virginia, whether or not he feels any rivalry with the So Addictive Lounge at 733 Elden St. in Herndon, Lutz insists, “Absolutely not, in fact, I welcome it.”

He says there’s plenty of room in Northern Virginia for another gay bar. It’s managed by a former Freddie’s employee and they’ve talked about how they can help each other. Lutz sent flowers opening night. He got flowers in return.

When Lutz began 10 years ago, buying the location of the old Foxhole — he called it “a neighborhood, ‘Cheers’-type sports bar.” But then he started to change everything, he says, though they stayed open the whole time. Several of the Foxhole regulars hung around. He told them to hang on, the purple paint and redecorating were just part of “a work in progress,” a phrase he says still applies.

Up Next

Brush strokes from the masters

Don't Miss

Calendar: Feb. 25

FUND LGBTQ JOURNALISM

Sports

New IOC policy bans trans women from Olympics

New regulation to be in effect at 2028 summer games in Los Angeles

Published

15 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Michael K. Lavers

(Photo by Greg Martin; courtesy IOC)

The International Olympic Committee on Thursday announced it will not allow transgender women from competing in female events at the Olympics.

“For all disciplines on the Sports Program of an IOC event, including individual and team sports, eligibility for any Female Category is limited to biological females,” reads the new policy.

The policy states “eligibility for the Female Category is to be determined in the first instance by SRY Gene screening to detect the absence or presence of the SRY Gene.”

“On the basis of the scientific evidence, the IOC considers that the SRY (sex-determining Region Y) Gene is fixed throughout life and represents highly accurate evidence that an athlete has experienced or will experience male sex development,” it reads. “Furthermore, the IOC considers that SRY Gene screening via saliva, cheek swab or blood sample is unintrusive compared to other possible methods. Athletes who screen negative for the SRY gene permanently satisfy this policy’s eligibility criteria for competition in the Female Category.”

The policy states the test “will be a once-in-a-lifetime test” unless “there is reason to believe a negative reading is in error.”

The new regulation will be in place for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

“I understand that this a very sensitive topic,” said IOC President Kirsty Coventry on Thursday in a video. “As a former athlete, I passionately believe in the rights of all Olympians to take part in fair competition.”

“The policy that we have announced is based on science and it has been led by medical experts with the best interests of athletes at its heart. The scientific evidence is very clear: male chromosomes give performance advances in sport that rely on strength, power, or endurance,” she added. “At the Olympic Games, even the smallest margins can be the difference between victory and defeat. So, it is absolutely clear that it would not be fair for biological males to compete in the female category. In addition, in some sports it would simply not be safe.”

(Video courtesy of the IOC)

Laurel Hubbard, a weightlifter from New Zealand, in 2021 became the first trans woman to compete at the Olympics.

Imane Khelif, an Algerian boxer, won a gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Khelif later sued JK Rowling and Elon Musk for cyberstalking after they questioned her gender identity.

Ellis Lundholm, a mogul skier from Sweden, this year became the first openly trans athlete to compete in any Winter Olympics when he participated in Milan Cortina Winter Olympics in Italy.

President Donald Trump in February 2025 issued an executive order that bans trans women and girls from female sports teams in the U.S.

The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee last July banned trans women from competing in female sporting events. Republican lawmakers have demanded the IOC ban trans athletes from women’s athletic competitions.

“I’m grateful the Olympics finally embraced the common sense policy that women’s sports are for women, not for men,” said U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) on X.

An IOC spokesperson on Thursday referred the Washington Blade to the press release that announced the new policy.

a&e features

Introducing the Torchbearers Awards honoring queer, trans women and nonbinary people

Meet the Legends and Illuminators lighting new paths

Published

15 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Staff reports

The Torchbearers Awards are more than recognition—they are a continuation of legacy. They honor the quiet architects of progress in our community: those who organize, advocate, build, and protect, often without fanfare but always with purpose. Rooted in a belief in intentional recognition, this honor names those who carry our movements forward—those who make room for others, who remind us that change is both generational and generative. In a time marked by uncertainty and challenge, these leaders push forward with courage, clarity, and an unwavering commitment to expanding opportunity and equity.

This year’s honorees reflect the full breadth of our community, spanning generations, backgrounds, identities, and industries. From Legends, with decades of leadership and having created pathways for others, to Illuminators, who are lighting new paths with creativity and innovation, each Torchbearer represents the power of intergenerational leadership and the strength found in our diversity. They are organizers, advocates, artists, policy leaders, healers, and changemakers whose lived experiences shape a shared vision for equity and liberation.

This award is our love letter to queer and trans women and nonbinary people who carry the flame when it would be easier to let it dim. To those who consistently show up, who use their voice and visibility and stand firm, often without recognition, so that others may live more freely and fully. The Torchbearers Awards celebrates not just what has been done, but the enduring spirit, responsibility, and collective care that ensure the work continues, and that the flame is always passed forward.

Co-Creators of the Torchbearers Awards: Shannon Alston, June Crenshaw, Heidi Ellis

Torchbearers Awards Advisory Board: Aditi Hardikar, Lesley Bryant, Jasmine Wilson-Bryant, Stephen Rutgers

ILLUMINATOR AWARDEES

Representative Sharice Davids (she/her), (D, KS-03)
— U.S. House of Representatives
Greisa Martinez Rosas (she/her/ella)
— Executive Director, United We Dream
Paola Ramos (she/her)
— Journalist & Correspondent
Meagan A. Fitzgerald (she/her)
— Journalist & Correspondent
Jessica L. Lewis (she/her)
— Founder / Producer, Play Play DC
Savannah Wade (she/her)
— Founder, OAR Agency
Suhad Babaa (she/her)
— Filmmaker/ Former Executive Director of Just Vision
Ashlee Davis (she/her)
— Global Head of Inclusive Outcomes, Ancestry
Jazmine Hughes (she/her)
— Journalist and Former Editor at New York Times Magazine
Queen Adesuyi (she/they)
— Policy Advisor & Organizer, ReFrame Health & Justice
Michele Rayner, Esq. (she/her)
— Civil Rights Attorney, State Representative (Florida House of Representatives)
Gaby Vincent (she/her)
— Sports/Cultural Commentator and Community Leader
Jenny Nguyen (she/her)
— Founder & Owner, The Sports Bra
Denice Frohman (she/her)
— Independent Artist, Poet / Performer
Vida Rangel (she/her)
— Founder, Our Trans Capital
Roxanne Anderson (they/them)
— Executive Director, Our Space
Ann Marie Gothard (she/her)
— Co-Founder & President, Pride Live (Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center)
Diana Rodriques (she/her)
— Co-Founder & CEO, Pride Live (Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center)
Wendi Cooper (she/her)
— Founder / Executive Director, Transcending Women
Toya Matthews (she/her)
— City of San Antonio, Texas
Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones (she/her)
— Sports/Cultural Commentator and Community Leader
Charity Blackwell (she/her)
— Poet, LGBTQ Advocate & Community Leader
Wilhelmina Indermaur (she/her)
— Director of Communications, Tyler Clementi Foundation
Em Chadwick (she/her)
— CMO, For Them & Autostraddle
Kylo Freeman (they/he)
— CEO, For Them & Autostraddle

LEGEND AWARDEES

Sheila Alexander-Reid (she/her)
— Executive Director, PHL Diversity, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau
Cassandra Cantave Burton (she/her)
— Interim Director of Thought Leadership & Senior Research Advisor, AARP
leigh h. mosley (she/her)
— Photographer / Educator, PhotoFlo Photography
Jenn M. Jackson, PhD (they/them)
— Assistant Professor of Political Science; Author & Columnist, Syracuse University
Jordyn White (she/her)
— COO, Washington Prodigy / VP of Leadership Development & Research, HRC Foundation
AJ Hikes (they/them)
— Deputy Executive Director, ACLU
RaeShanda Lias (she/her)
— Digital Creator, RL Lockhart
Donna Payne-Hardy (she/her)
— Educator, EEO Specialist, Former Leader at the Human Rights Campaign
Courtney R. Snowden (she/her)
— Principal, Blueprint Strategy Group
Gaye Adegbalola (she/her)
— Musician & Activist, Musician / Inductee of the Blues Hall of Fame
Cheryl A. Head (she/her)
— Independent Author, Novelist (Crime Fiction)
Letitia Gomez (she/her)
— The American LGBTQ+ Museum, Formerly of Voto Latino
Lynne Brown (she/her)
— Publisher, Washington Blade
Shay Franco-Clausen (She/Her/Ella/Queen)
— Political Strategist and Organizer
Melissa L. Bradley (she/her)
— Founder & Managing Partner, New Majority Ventures
Meghann Burke (she/her)
— Executive Director, NWSL Players Association
Victoria Kirby York, MPA (she/they)
— Director of Public Policy & Programs, National Black Justice Coalition
Joli Angel Robinson (she/her)
— CEO, Center on Halsted
Jeannine Frisby LaRue (she/her)
— CEO, Moxie Strategies
Alice Wu (she/her)
— Film Director (Saving Face, The Half of It) / Screenwriter
Storme Webber (she/her)
— Interdisciplinary Artist / Educator, University of Washington
Kim Stone
— CEO of the Washington Spirit, Washington Spirit
Mickalene Thomas
— American Visual Artist, Mickalene Thomas Studio
Erika Lorshbough (any/they/she)
— Executive Director, interACT
J. Gia Loving (she/ella)
— Co-Executive Director, GSA Network

Celebrity News

D.C. goes gaga for Gaga

Bisexual icon brought ‘The Mayhem Ball’ tour to Washington this week

Published

2 days ago

March 25, 2026

Michael K. Lavers

Lady Gaga brought "The Mayhem Ball" tour to Capital One Arena this week. (Washington Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)

Lady Gaga this week took D.C. by storm.

The bisexual icon and LGBTQ rights champion brought “The Mayhem Ball” tour to Capital One Arena on Monday and Tuesday.

“Abracadabra,” “Paparazzi,” “Applause,” and “Bad Romance” are among the songs Lady Gaga performed during the 2 1/2-hour long concert. Lady Gaga also celebrated her many queer fans.

“You are precious to us,” she said on Tuesday night before she performed “Born This Way.”