Arts & Entertainment
Wade in the water
Former NFL player Davis to speak at Youth Pride Saturday
Wade Davis (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Youth Pride Day
Saturday
Noon-5 p.m.
Dupont Circle
Youthpridealliance.org
Youth Pride Day, the region’s largest event for LGBT youth staged each year by the Youth Pride Alliance, is Saturday and about 500 teens and 40 organizations are expected for an afternoon of music, videos, dance, drag and more.
Wade Davis, a former NFL player who came out last year as gay, will speak at the event. He entertained a bevy of questions during a phone interview this week from his Manhattan office where he works as assistant director of job readiness and academic enrichment at Hetrick-Martin Institute. Some comments have been edited for length and clarity.
BLADE: How did the invitation come about to visit Washington?
DAVIS: They reached out and asked if I could come. Anytime I have an opportunity to work with young people, I’m gung ho. I’m also nervous because the expectations with kids are a lot different than they are with adults, but they inspire me and give me strength when they share their stories with me.
BLADE: You’ve spoken before about being able to pass for straight and how that saved you from likely grief in the NFL. Do you think queer teens who are more likely to be perceived as LGBT have a tougher time overall?
DAVIS: Yes, because not all kids have the ability to exist as I did and if their gender representation is deemed to be, say, more effeminate, they are targeted. That’s one thing I try to do is illuminate the issue and point out that … it’s not OK to bully and demean those who don’t have the option of passing.
BLADE: Does your youth advocacy work on LGBT issues dovetail with the youth work you do with Hetrick-Martin?
DAVIS: Yes, they fit in perfectly.
BLADE: What recurring theme you hear from LGBT teens has been the most surprising?
DAVIS: One of the big things is they say people who identify as LGBT are actually the ones that are most critical of them. They say our young people have to exist in certain ways to further the gay movement, like not wear pants that sag or talk to loud. They think they should be more buttoned up and show a more pristine view of what it means to be LGBT. The kids feel they aren’t accepted in many adult LGBT circles because people want them to act differently. I think it’s very tragic.
BLADE: You’ve said before it was good you weren’t out during your years playing as you didn’t have enough LGBT experience or interaction to have contributed anything meaningful to the national dialogue at that time. Can you elaborate on what your feelings were at the time?
DAVIS: When I was playing from around 2000 to 2004, there were no conversations around gay athletes. It just wasn’t in my purview then and I had little if any contact with anyone who was gay. Even when I came out to myself in college finally — I still wasn’t able to say the words but I was very conscious of liking guys — but it was this unspoken thing that nobody was talking about so I certainly wasn’t going to talk about it either. When you’re not exposed to anything different, you don’t even have the language to really say what it is. I wouldn’t have even known how to articulate it. I didn’t know there was an acronym. I thought a transgender person was just drag. I had pretty much zero understanding so looking back I’m glad I didn’t say or do things at the time that would have been harmful to young people because of my lack of knowledge.
BLADE: Are you in a relationship now?
DAVIS: Yes. I’ve been in a relationship now for six years. He keeps me in line and makes sure I have a good work/life balance.
BLADE: You live together in Manhattan?
DAVIS: Yes, but he’s trying to convince me to move to Italy one day soon. He owns his own line of high end Italian furniture and thinks we should live there.
BLADE: He’s Italian?
DAVIS: No, Steven is Australian, he just loves Italy.
The fourth annual Equality Prince William Pride was held at the Harris Pavilion in Manassas, Va. on Saturday, May 17.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
The Washington Blade held its 18th annual Summer Kickoff Party in Rehoboth Beach, Del., on Friday, May 16. Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer spoke along with State Sen. Russ Huxtable, CAMP Rehoboth Executive Director Kim Leisey, Blade Editor Kevin Naff, and Clear Space Theatre Managing Director Joe Gfaller. The event raises funds for the Steve Elkins Memorial Fellowship in Journalism, which was awarded to AU student Abigail Hatting.
(Washington Blade photos by Daniel Truitt)
In some fowl fiction foreshadowing, a gay-owned chicken joint has come home to roost on U Street, taking a page from the chicken window subplot on the HBO show “Looking.”
Last Friday, Lucky Pollo – much more than just a takeout window – stretched its wings atop the busy nightlife corner of 14th and U Streets NW.
Behind the poultry production place is Zach Renovátes, a D.C.-based nightlife operator and managing partner of LGBTQ venues Bunker and District Eagle, as well as the LGBTQ event production company KINETIC Presents.
Renovátes opened Bunker in February 2023 and District Eagle in January of this year. Lucky Pollo is the third in his growing gay empire, though this time there are noshes.
“Lucky Pollo was meant to be fun and a little provocative,” Renovátes said.
Based around its Peruvian-style rotisserie chicken, Lucky Pollo is a quick-service restaurant boasting a small menu of poultry and sides. Renovátes says that the dishes are deeply rooted in Peruvian culinary tradition, “a playful experience alongside seriously good food.”
Lucky Pollo’s signature chicken is steeped in a dozen-plus-spice marinade for 24 hours. The meat is then slow-roasted, rotisserie-style, over oak-wood charcoal. Chicken options include quarter, half, and whole.
Helming the kitchen at Lucky Pollo is Chef Luis Herrera, who brings Peruvian recipes passed down through three generations, including his grandmother Laura’s original creations.
Beyond the full bird, the menu features Peruvian-inspired sides like yuca fries (“I personally love these,” says Renovátes) and fried plantains, as well as comfort classics such as mac and cheese and mashed potatoes, and bowls, wraps, and salads. Herrera oversees development of the multiple sauces (including staff favorite, the “secret green sauce”), crafted in-house using traditional Peruvian ingredients.
Lucky Pollo, in its streetside perch, is an independent concept from District Eagle, open to the public and staying open late (3 a.m. on weekends) to serve both nightlife guests and the wider U Street crowd hungry for late-night bites. However, just beyond the kitchen, tucked in the back lies a vintage 1950s candy machine—labeled “Out of Order,” which serves as the door leading to subterranean District Eagle.
Renovátes notes that when District Eagle is open, security staff will maintain a strict two-line policy, ensuring that those seeking meat to eat will not get entwined with those looking to gain access to District Eagle.
Lucky Pollo unites the need for sustenance with the idea of a bit of fortune, given its motto, “Get Lucky” and the whimsical brand mascot: a leather-booted chicken perched on a horseshoe. Renovátes and his District Eagle business partner had always been interested in opening a restaurant, and the Lucky Pollo space was indeed lucky: It already came with a functional kitchen. Plus, he says, the nearby fast-casual places around 14th and U streets “don’t offer a lot of quality options,” so opening the chicken spot “was a no-brainer.”
The space, designed by NYC creative Jasin Cadic, blends theatrical street-art-style vibes with Keith Haring-inspired wall prints, neon signs, and ceiling-hung chicken figurines —”some edgy, some sweet,” says Renovátes —creating an immersive, playful atmosphere. Lucky Pollo and District Eagle maintain separate amenities for their respective customers.
Lucky Pollo opened last week with a competition to devour a whole rotisserie chicken in the fastest time, with the winner earning $1,000 and a framed spot on the restaurant’s “Wall of Fame.” The opening also featured other games and prizes, and a full crowd spilling out the door.
“We want it to be a great place to eat, but also serve as a playful front for something completely unexpected.” Renovátes says.
On weekends especially, he jokes, the motto will be, ‘Come for the chicken, stay for the cock.’”
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