Known as a hub for some of D.C.'s best restaurants and nightlife, the U Street corridor is also home to plenty of gay and lesbian bars. The ethnically diverse neighborhood has been thriving and changing over the past decade and is now home to many LGBTQ+ individuals and families. Popular LGBTQ+ Location: Nellie's Sports Bar.You can also find Rock Creek Park and the Metro in the area. “It is a place where people can come together and be supported by people who know what it's like to have that done to them."Īdditionally, there's a Wonderland Ballroom, which is on 11th Street and has a lively DJ and plenty of dancing. “It's where gay people and trans people can be themselves, where they can come in and they don't have to worry about being undermined, hurt, violated, repressed, harassed," says Ruby Corado, founder and director of Casa Ruby. Further, Casa Ruby, a center for homeless LGBTQ+ youth, recently opened in Columbia Heights.
Members of the gay community flock to Columbia Heights for its diversity, both in business and population.Ĭolumbia Heights is home to an eclectic mix of creatives and ex-pats, many of whom frequent the densely populated neighborhood's farmer's market, GALA Hispanic Theater, vegan bakery combo, Mexican Cultural Institute and elegant row homes and embassies. While gentrification has been happening over the past five years, with the area becoming more modernized, Columbia Heights remains home to a large Hispanic segment of the LGBTQ+ community. Also, adjacent to Capitol Hill is D.C.'s famous Capital Pride, a four-day event celebrating gay pride. Orchid is one of Capitol Hill's premier queer hangouts, thanks to its weekend disco brunch and Prohibition-era glam theme. Over at Barracks Row in Capitol, Hill you can find Orchid Bar featuring a '20s aesthetic with a 40-foot marble bar. However, there are many gay bars and LGBTQ+ entertainment spots, restaurants and markets in this neighborhood, too.ĭuring the weekend the Eastern market showcases a lot of crafts, foods and antiques. In Washington, D.C., Capitol Hill is the place where many gay singles and families move when they don't want to be in a lively party district like Dupont Circle. Some of the popular residential homes include the Richardsonian Romanesque, Beaux Arts and Queen Anne Homes. In addition to JR's, 17th Street is renowned for its gay-owned businesses, featuring myriad art museums and boutiques. LGBTQ+ community to congregate.ĭupont Circle can be an expensive district to call home, so you may find an older generation of people living within its confines. JR's Bar and Grill, located on 17th Street, is less of a grill (it only serves popcorn) and more of a place for members of the D.C. There are many bars, bookstores and restaurants that are geared toward the LGBTQ+ community. Popular LGBTQ+ Location: JR's Bar and Grillĭupont Circle is one of the most traditional gay neighborhoods, or gayborhoods, in the area.Here are the best areas to live in Washington, D.C. If you're a member of the LGBTQ+ community in any city, chances are you want to know the best neighborhoods for security and communal queer-spaces. – there are still plenty of neighborhoods that embrace LGBTQ+. metro area has made it more difficult for gay neighborhoods to thrive in D.C. That doesn't mean all is lost for gay areas in Washington, D.C. isn't devoid of gayborhoods, but the shifting economics of the D.C. Gone are Apex and Badlands, ambassadors of the D.C. Lately, however, Washington D.C.'s gay neighborhoods have grown smaller, with many pillars of the gay community vanishing.
The capital of the United States has a longstanding history as an open-minded community and hub for LGBTQ+ groups.