Washington, D.C
The iconic Little Gay Pub in D.C. expands to Philadelphia
A beloved gay bar in Washington, D.C., known for its eclectic atmosphere and celebrity sightings, is expanding to Philadelphia. The owners of the Little Gay Pub, which has quickly become a hotspot for locals and tourists, are bringing their unique hospitality brand to the City of Brotherly Love.
The new location will be at the corner of 13th and Drury Lane, near the historic McGillin’s Olde Ale House.
LGP founders Dito Sevilla, Dusty Martinez, and Benjamin Gander, longtime D.C. bartenders, aim to open the Philadelphia branch as soon as late December, but no later than next spring, in time for Pride Month, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
The trio’s mission is to create a pub where the LGBTQ+ community “is celebrated, more than just served.” Sevilla told the Inquirer that LGP’s decor and service “harken back to an older age in the community, when the bars were nicer, a little bit more leathery and darker, and the fixtures were better.” Both the D.C. and Philly locations are designed to capitalize on natural light, fostering a welcoming daytime drinking environment in addition to the late-night scene.
One of LGP’s standout features is its ornate restrooms with perfect lighting, which have become a social media sensation. The Instagram account Royal_Fiush_LGP is dedicated to capturing selfies taken in the pub’s bathrooms. Sevilla humorously explained, “We wanted to have over-the-top bathrooms, and there was really no specific reason…we made them crazy and kitschy— and so clean and nice.”
Sevilla told The Advocate that the team is excited about the expansion. “We love Philly! We are so excited to have the opportunity to bring our unique brand of not-so-Little Gay Pub, offering a quirky, campy, glamorously gay hospitality experience to an incredibly historic and LGBTQ-friendly city like Philadelphia.”
Sevilla emphasized the team’s dedication to detail, sharing that they always want to create a space full of personality and charm. “When we built the place, we had hoped it was going to be a gathering space for everybody, but people really have come to appreciate all the love we put into it,” he previously told The Advocate. “We wanted to put details and little hidden Easter eggs all across the bar because we all had our distinct personalities, and we wanted to have a place where we all felt represented.”
The Philly location will include a mural of the late city planner Ed Bacon, overseen by a rooftop deck, highlighting the local flavor and history. According to the Inquirer, the pub’s founders are committed to becoming part of the community, sharing an apartment to ensure that at least one of them is always in town.
The paper reports that the three plan to keep their doors open to engage with the neighborhood during construction.
“We plan to keep our doors open so the neighborhood can stop by, pop in, and ask us questions,” Martinez said. “We’re just a very friendly bunch of people that have brought greatness to D.C., and we hope to do so in Philadelphia.”
The original LGP has hosted numerous celebrities, including Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, the California Democrat, who visited last fall and took selfies in one of the pub’s famed restrooms. Other notable guests have included actors Billy Eichner and Alan Cumming. Recently, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and the season 9 cast of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Starsdropped by the pub.
Additionally, LGP has formed a notable partnership with the British Embassy, culminating in the creation of the “GREAT Love is for Everyone” mural by artist Lisa Marie Thalhammer.
Sevilla shared that the partners have long enjoyed Philadelphia’s LGBTQ+ spots and are eager to join and expand the community’s offerings. “For years, we have each enjoyed many of the LGBT spots Philly has had to offer—some of them for decades—and can’t wait to join them in expanding the offerings for our people and their allies to enjoy.”
Benjamin Gander echoed this enthusiasm: “We’re beyond excited to get up there.”
Philadelphia’s LGP aims to continue this legacy of community engagement, inclusivity, and celebration. Sevilla emphasized the pub’s ethos: “The Little Gay Pub is a small space with a big heart and an old soul. We can’t wait to share it with the City of Brotherly Love, Freedom, and the cradle of Liberty.”
Fights broke out in the Navy Yard area of D.C. Saturday night, causing Metro to close part of the nearby station.
Video from a News4 viewer shows a large crowd of what appears to be dozens of young people at New Jersey Avenue and M Street SE. Multiple police cruisers responded to the block, and some people appeared to be running away.
A spokesperson for WMATA said a large group of teens were fighting, which caused them to close the New Jersey Avenue side of the Navy Yard-Ballpark station.
It’s still unclear what led up to the fight or if anyone was arrested.
Last month, D.C. police arrested six young people after fights broke out at the Wharf in Southwest.
Stay with News4 for updates to this developing story.
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 17, 2025 /
17:30 pm
The Catholic Information Center (CIC) on Saturday held its third annual Eucharistic procession through Washington, D.C. in which more than 1,000 participants processed through the downtown area with the Blessed Sacrament.
Father Charles Trullols, the director of the CIC, told CNA the day was “perfect.”
The event kicked off with a Mass at CIC’s chapel. The group of attendees was so large that it could not fit inside the chapel itself, sending people to watch the Mass on a screen outside where they were eventually brought Holy Communion.
The procession began after Mass and was led by the crossbearer, candle-bearers, religious sisters, and young children who recently received their first Holy Communion and who laid rose petals ahead of the Eucharist.
Trullols carried the Blessed Sacrament in the monstrance and held it high for the crowd to witness and follow. A choir, priests, and lay people followed behind through the downtown area.
As the group walked, attendees said prayers and sang hymns. Some bystanders joined in and others kneeled as the procession passed by.
Gerard McNair-Lewis, a development associate at CIC, noted that the event is held during May, “the month of Mary.”
“What better way to celebrate Mary than to honor her son’s Eucharistic presence?” he said.
The group processed down K Street. The Eucharist in the procession was “the closest tabernacle to the White House,” McNair-Lewis said. It’s “a great testament that religious things happen in our nation’s capital.”
Throughout the procession the group stopped at different locations to kneel before the Blessed Sacrament and hear the gospel. At one stop, Monsignor Charles Pope spoke outside the veteran’s affairs office.
Pope praised veterans and the military, pointing out that “many put their lives on the line so that others can live in greater security and freedom.” He said these individuals “imitate Jesus who lays down His life so we can live eternally.”
Krista Anderson, an attendee from Virgina, told CNA that her husband Micheal Simpson was a staff sergeant for the United States Army who was killed in Afghanistan.
She felt the moment to honor veterans was a message from God.
(Story continues below)
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Craig Carter flew into Washington for a work trip and “happened to see [the procession].”
A Protestant, Carter said God “wanted me to come to D.C. early just to pray.” He joined the procession, he said, because God “has been working on [his] heart.”
“Adoration has always been super special to me in my Catholic faith,” Lydia Vaccaro, a young attendee from Virgina, told CNA. “So it brought me here.”
“It’s a beautiful witness,” said attendee Hannah Hermann.
“I like being in front of processions like this, where you’re out and people see,” Hermann said. “I’ve heard conversion stories from people who witness a procession.”
“The procession was beautiful,” Trullols told CNA after the event concluded. “Every year it is getting better.”
“We know how to do it better and it’s growing – the quantity of people, the attention, and also the way we organize the liturgy and the music,” Trullols said.
Tessa Gervasini is an intern for Catholic News Agency and a fellow of the College Fix. She recently graduated from Texas Christian University with a bachelor’s degree in strategic communication.
As part of the launch of World Pride in Washington, D.C. the American Civil Liberties Union and the Gender Liberation Movement is unveiling the Freedom To Be quilt on the National Mall on May 17, a 9,000 square-foot collection of over 250 quilt panels handmade by transgender people and their families from across the United States. Co-creators Abdool Corlette and Gillian Branstetter were working with a team of people to install the quilt panels on Thursday, May 16. (AP Video: Mike Pesoli)
As part of the launch of World Pride in Washington, D.C. the American Civil Liberties Union and the Gender Liberation Movement is unveiling the Freedom To Be quilt on the National Mall on May 17, a 9,000 square-foot collection of over 250 quilt panels handmade by transgender people and their families from across the United States. Co-creators Abdool Corlette and Gillian Branstetter were working with a team of people to install the quilt panels on Thursday, May 16. (AP Video: Mike Pesoli)
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