Georgia Voice - January 2026

JANUARY 2026 ■ TheGAVoice.com

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ATLANTA’S EVOLVING DINING SCENE P14

INSIDE Georgia legislative preview P5 Obsessed with ‘Heated Rivalry’ P10

EDITOR’S NOTE Looking forward, looking back As 2026 begins, global politics and events continue to cause worry and fear.

Frankly, there was little holiday cheer in December: COLLIN Another senseless KELLEY campus shooting at Brown University, the antisemitic terror attack in Australia, and the murder of beloved actor and director Rob Reiner. The trans community continued to be the GOP’s punching bag, with new bills introduced to limit gender affirming care dropped just before the holidays.

As we went to press, the U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and extradited him to New York. There were conflicting reports on who was running Venezuela, but Trump made it explicitly clear that all he cared about was the country’s huge oil reserve.

Here at home, millions of people do not feel better off than they were a year ago, and there’s very little evidence that we’re now living in some “golden age” as the economy falters, unemployment rises, and healthcare becomes unaffordable under the current

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administration.

In Atlanta, there’s going to be two main conversations happening all year long: the midterm elections and the FIFA World Cup. As witnessed not only in Georgia but across the country last fall, Democrats are resurgent as Americans reassess their finances and priorities. And while I’m as sick of politics as everyone else, this year’s midterms are shaping up to be a barn-burner of a general election that will be impossible to ignore.

If you aren’t registered to vote, remedy that immediately. Be aware of the races and candidates who will soon be bombarding the airwaves and interwebz with their campaign advertising. If Superman’s old motto of “truth, justice, and the American way” is feeling a little burnished these days, choose your representatives accordingly.

A respite in the political season will come this summer when the eyes of the world are once again trained on Atlanta.

Not since the 1996 Summer Olympics has Atlanta played host to anything as big and global as the FIFA World Cup. Mercedes-Benz Stadium will host eight matches, and there’s already a frenzied race to polish up the city and finish projects that will give an estimated 300,000 visitors a positive experience.

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CONTENTS JANUARY 2026

On a more personal note, 2025 marked my 40th year as a working journalist. When I was just 15, my first piece of real journalism appeared in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s old Sunday magazine supplement. The date was May 12, 1985. It was the first piece written about the movement to preserve the apartment where Margaret Mitchell wrote “Gone With the Wind.”

The Dump, as Peggy called it, is now a museum operated by the Atlanta History Center.

This small article opened doors for me as a journalist. It was the entrée to freelance work, my first job as a reporter at 16 with the old Fayette Sun newspaper, with the Marietta Daily Journal & Neighbor Newspapers, and now as executive editor at Georgia Voice, Atlanta Intown, and our parent company, Rough Draft Atlanta.

The fact that I’m still working in print journalism 40 years later is a miracle. And it’s all because the AJC took a chance on a kid who wanted to be a reporter. The AJC printed its last physical edition on Dec. 31, ending a 157-year legacy, as it transitioned to digital-only. It was a moment to reflect, remember, and say thank you for setting me on the path to fulfill my dream.

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Legislative Session

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Trans Prison Care

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Tucker Library Incident

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Atlanta Water Gardens

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Reeling In The Years

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News Roundup

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Heated Rivalry

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Reel Resistance Fellows

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Best Bets

11

Susan Powter Doc

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Peter Hujar’s Day

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Blue Moon Campground

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DINING Lewis Barbecue Opens

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Restaurant Closures

15

Japanese Supper Club

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At Arbeta

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ABOUT THE COVER Atlanta’s ever-evolving dining scene shows no signs of slowing down. We’ve got a roundup of openings, including Lewis Barbecue, shown on the cover, as well as news of some sad closures. Coverage begins on page 14. (Photo courtesy Lewis Barbecue)

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COMMUNITY Advocates expect continued attack on LGBTQ+ rights during 2026 state legislative session

By Katie Burkholder With several pieces of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation already passed into law, legal battles extending into the new year, and an upcoming election for state lawmakers, LGBTQ+ advocates are expecting a difficult legislative session in 2026.

When lawmakers return to the Gold Dome on Jan. 12, organizations like Georgia Equality and the Human Rights Campaign will be going with them to

advocate against expected legislation targeting school curriculum, genderaffirming health care, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.

Passed anti-LGBTQ+ legislation up in the air in 2026 Three pieces of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation were passed in 2025: SB36, which could effectively prohibit the government from intervening on discrimination against LGBTQ+ people

State appeals ruling that blocks ban on gender-affirming care in state prisons

By Ross Williams | Georgia Recorder A federal judge has struck down Georgia’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender inmates in state custody, but the state is appealing the decision.

Judge Victoria M. Calvert’s decision, which was issued in early December, means that the approximately 340 people with gender dysphoria diagnoses in the custody of the Georgia Department of Corrections can receive treatments like hormone therapy if their doctors deem it necessary. The case was brought by five transgender people in state custody.

Senate Bill 185, which was passed during the 2025 legislative session, received Gov. Brian Kemp’s signature and went into effect in May after sparking controversy in both chambers during this year’s legislative session.

In the Senate, three Democrats crossed party lines to support the measure along with all Republicans, while four other Democratic senators did not vote.

Nearly all House Democrats took part in a walkout over the bill, characterizing it as a waste of time and part of what they called a fixation on a vulnerable minority.

Three Democrats voted for the bill, while two others stayed in the chamber and voted against it.

Calvert’s ruling makes a temporary block on the bill she signed in September permanent.

The law called on doctors to monitor patients already receiving the treatments and taper the drugs gradually, and to provide counseling. Based on testimony, Calvert said that was “an inadequate blanket substitute for hormone therapy.”

She said there is “no genuine dispute” that gender dysphoria is a serious medical need and that removing the option for doctors to treat it with hormone therapy without a THEGAVOICE.COM

medical reason violates the law.

“The Court does not hold that the Constitution requires all inmates receive hormone therapy if they want it,” she wrote. “Rather, the Court requires healthcare decisions for prisoners to be made dispassionately, by physicians, based on individual determinations of medical need, and for reasons beyond the fact that the prisoners are prisoners.”

Attorney General Chris Carr’s office appealed the ruling. Carr said in a statement that his office is willing to fight the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Carr, a Republican, is running to be Georgia’s next governor.

The bill’s author, Cataula Republican Sen. Randy Robertson, said he’s not discouraged by the ruling.

“We planned this all along. We knew exactly how this was going to go, they were going to find a friendly judge, and Judge Calvert very much is that,” Robertson said of the Biden-nominated judge.”

Robertson argued that Georgia taxpayers should not be on the hook for treatments he called not medically necessary, and he expressed confidence that his bill will be vindicated as it winds through the courts.

“I stand with Attorney General Carr in the belief that, at the end of the day, this will be in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, and it will quickly be upheld, the law will be established as constitutional and right, and we will be moving on to things that are more important in Georgia,” he added.

In June, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of a Tennessee law banning genderaffirming care for minors, though that case deals with different aspects of the law than medical treatment for incarcerated people.

For now, transgender rights advocates are celebrating the ruling as a win.

Continued on page 6

and religious minorities; SB185, which bans gender affirming care for incarcerated people; and SB1, which bans transgender girls and women from participating in women’s sports teams in middle schools, high schools, and college sports.

SB185 is currently not in effect after being blocked by a federal judge for violating the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.

However, Attorney General Chris Carr’s office filed an appeal on the ruling and has said they will fight the case all the way to the Supreme Court. Bentley Hudgins, the Georgia State Director of HRC, told Georgia Voice that the state has already spent over $4 million in legal fees on SB185.

The future of SB1 also hangs in the balance ahead of a Supreme Court decision on Jan. 13. In Little v. Hecox, SCOTUS will determine whether these kinds of trans bans in sports violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

LGBTQ+ advocates expect “cruelty” during 2026 session Hudgins and Jeff Graham, the Executive Director of LGBTQ+ advocacy organization Georgia Equality, told Georgia Voice that they expect to see a slew of antiLGBTQ+ bills in 2026, both leftover from last session and newly introduced, targeting school curriculum and LGBTQ+ books in schools; gender-affirming care for trans youth; DEI initiatives; voting access; and gender-affirming coverage in health care benefits for transgender state employees.

With 2026 being an election year for state legislators, Hudgins says they also expect “cruelty” from Republican lawmakers who will continue to scapegoat the LGBTQ+ community and other marginalized groups.

“A lot of people in the state legislature are running for higher office or running for reelection,” Hudgins said. “There are people in the state legislature that, instead of focusing on making life better, they figure out ways to sow division.”

Pro-equality advocacy persists in 2026, though not without challenges Both Georgia Equality and HRC will be advocating for legislation that will expand access to PrEP and other HIV prevention (which Graham says has bipartisan support and will likely move through the legislature quickly, address funding equity in girls’ sports, develop affordable and accessible housing, and expand Medicaid.

“A lot of folks feel that with the passage of H.R.1, the Big Beautiful Bill, last year, the fight for Medicaid expansion is over,” Graham said. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”

Photo by Samantha Gardella

However, Hudgins was honest about the nature of this kind of advocacy work right now: it’s difficult.

“We tried every single way to provide constructive options to the problems that people mentioned. When people felt like they needed protection against discrimination, whether it was religious or whatever, we had language ready, we offered anti-discrimination bills, and they said no,” Hudgings said. “We came up with actual solutions that didn’t involve attacking people.”

“What people outside the policy world don’t know is just how bad it is,” they continued, “and how hard people like myself and allied lawmakers are trying to make life better, but [Republican lawmakers] refuse to let us talk about solutions.”

How to get involved When it comes to how Georgians can influence what legislation is championed and passed, both Graham and Hudgins were in agreement: communicate directly with your lawmakers. Both LGBTQ+ advocates encouraged Georgians to go to the Capitol to share their stories with their elected officials.

“One of the things that I appreciate the most about working on these issues here in Georgia is that our legislators are actually incredibly accessible, and despite the challenges that exist… there is no force as powerful as the voices of people speaking to their elected officials,” Graham said. “…

When their constituents reach out to them, they don’t always agree, but they do pay attention.”

Both Georgia Equality and HRC also have training programs coming up in the new year to better prepare people for how the legislative process works and how to effectively communicate with lawmakers.

Georgia Equality will also host a legislative advocacy training session on Jan. 24 at 11:30 a.m. virtually and in person at Neighborhood Church ATL. HRC, Georgia Equality, and other advocacy groups like the ACLU will be at the Capitol on Jan. 12 and invite people to join them. To learn more about HRC and Georgia Equality, visit hrc.org/georgia and georgiaequality.org.

JANUARY 2026 |

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Continued from page 5

Human Rights Campaign’s Georgia Director Bentley Hudgins said HRC and other groups mobilized thousands to oppose the bill as unconstitutional and a waste of money.

“It will bring more financial burdens to the State of Georgia and take valuable time away from solving actual issues,” Hudgins said. “Over $4.1 million has already been paid to settle cases like these.

The House Democrats walked out on this bill because they saw it for what it was – undignified, expensive discrimination. It is my hope that when we return to the Gold Dome in January that our colleagues of all

parties focus on bringing solutions to keep the hungry fed, expand access to health care and address the ever-rising cost of living.”

On the first day of his second term in office, President Donald Trump issued an executive order targeting federal recognition of transgender rights across various fields, including within prisons. The order prevents transgender women from being housed in women’s detention facilities and stops federal funds from being used for gender-affirming treatments.

Those rulings are being challenged in multiple court cases.

Atlanta Water Gardens celebrates 30 years of serene backyard designs

Investigation complete in DeKalb police incident with trans woman Photos courtesy Atlanta Water Gardens

By Katie Burkholder

Sasha Swinson (File)

By Stephanie Toone The DeKalb County Internal Affairs Unit has completed its investigation into an incident involving a DeKalb County Police Department officer and a trans woman at Tucker-Reid H. Cofer Library.

The officer, who has been identified as Officer GA Weaver, was issued violations regarding professional image, body-worn camera, off-duty employment, and duty to read/understand/comply with orders, according to a memo from DeKalb County Police Sgt. Joel T. Marshall. The internal affairs department, Marshall notes in the memo, is an administrative factfinding unit that is “not involved with any disciplinary action.”

The investigation report has been placed in Weaver’s employee file, according to the memo.

In October, Sasha Swinson, a Brookhaven trans woman, was allegedly misgendered and verbally accosted by Weaver, who was on duty at the library for early voting. The completion of the investigation makes Swinson hopeful, she

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told Georgia Voice.

“I’m not sure exactly what practical effects this will have, but it is certainly good news,” Swinson said after getting the investigation update on Dec. 8.

Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, counts the close of the investigation as a win even if disciplinary action is not taken.

“This shows that the system worked the way it should,” Graham said.

“Hopefully, the practical effect will be increased attention to proper training.”

The police department had previously provided cultural awareness and “fostering positive community relations” courses through the Georgia Public Safety Training Center for several years, Blaine Clark, DKPD public information officer, said in a statement.

“The DeKalb County Police Department will continue expanding our training programs to ensure our officers are equipped to serve every individual with fairness, empathy, and professionalism,” Clark said.

When you step into the Atlanta Water Gardens showroom on Cheshire Bridge Road, you’re transported into an oasis of ponds, fountains, and beautiful garden fixtures. The company, which celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2026, seeks to bring this same serenity to the backyards of Atlanta.

Co-owner Randle Ross came to Atlanta from Mississippi in 1999 to work at Atlanta Water Gardens, and he immediately fell in love and bought into the company soon after.

“Something about walking in the door of this business, it really does something to your inner being because there’s just a peace when you walk in here, a serenity,” he said.

Ross owns the company with Kelly Keylon, and together they elevate Atlanta’s backyards into garden oases. Keylon handles the retail arm of the company, selling the hordes of plants, benches, birdbaths, fountains, stone art, and garden accessories available both in the showroom and on order, while Ross designs and installs ponds for clients.

Customers will book a consultation with Ross, who says he will go into their backyards and “immediately” know where the pond should go. He’s known among the company as the “stone whisperer.”

“We take stone, and we stack these ponds to make the design of them, and the rocks will actually tell you where they need to go,” he said.

Depending on the client’s space availability and budget, Ross can build ponds small and large, with koi fish,

goldfish, and waterfalls. After installation, he will come up with a maintenance plan with the client. While ponds typically require monthly maintenance, Atlanta Water Gardens offers assistance with bimonthly, quarterly, biannual, and annual plans.

Over the past 30 years, Atlanta Water Gardens has found success offering a distinct service to Atlantans.

“The initial accountant for the business said when it opened that he had never seen a business that took off as fast as this one, because we’re unique,” Ross said. “There’s not a lot of businesses like us.”

However, the life of Atlanta Water Gardens has not been without its challenges. A fire from an encampment under Cheshire Bridge closed the road from December 2023 to May 2024, seriously limiting access to businesses in the area.ve Today, Ross says the current state of the economy and the rising cost of materials has decreased patronage over the last year, but he says the business is

still “plugging along.”

Atlanta Water Gardens is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 2165 Cheshire Bridge Road NE. To learn more, see available products, and book a free pond consultation, visit atlantawatergardens.com.

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News Roundup Lawmakers target gender-affirming care

Starr and Treasure Von-Holland from Atlanta and Ritvik Radjan and Vidya Sinha from Marietta.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill Dec. 18 that would prevent Medicaid from covering gender-affirming care for transgender youth.

The passage of the Medicaid bill came on the heels of a bill that would criminalize doctors who provide genderaffirming care to minors, which was introduced by Georgia’s own Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. Both bills now head to the Senate, where they are likely to fail.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced a broad set of proposed regulatory actions that would sharply restrict, and in effect ban, genderaffirming care for minors, marking the Trump administration’s most aggressive federal move yet targeting transgender health care.

OUT Georgia honors leaders, businesses

Metro Atlanta LGBTQ+ youth named to GLAAD’s 20 Under 20 Four metro Atlanta LGBTQ+ youth advocates have been named GLAAD 2025 20 Under 20 honorees. The list, published with Teen Vogue, includes 20 young LGBTQ+ changemakers who are shaping the world through politics, entertainment, faith, and more. The list includes Niama

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Georgia’s LGBTQ+ business community gathered at Brookhaven City Centre in December for a sold-out night celebrating the accomplishments of the community. At OUT Georgia’s 2025 Community Honors Celebration, leaders, non-profits, and small businesses took home awards for their impact on the LGBTQ+ community. The winners include: ■

Business Leader of the Year: Mitchell Bowling

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Community Leader of the Year: Steven Igarashi

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Next Gen Leader of the Year: Liz Bachmann

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Non-profit of the Year: Lost-n-Found Youth Center

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Corporate Ally of the Year: Chase Bank

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Small Business of the Year: Widlflower Social Media

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New Business of the Year: Tonke Tea

Words Matter Words matter. We know this. Our communities, our neighborhoods, our works of art, our memorials, our bodies, our lives have been subjected to words of harm or healing. Oral. Written. Stuffed into your locker. On billboards. On the dozens of emails daily, blithely or maliciously sent.

Carved into houses and bars and flesh.

REELING IN Words.

THE YEARS In April 2023, Newsweek quoted Charlie Kirk at a Turning Point USA Faith event: “You will never live in a society when you have an armed citizenry and you won’t have a single MARIA gun death…That is HELENA nonsense… But I DOLAN think it’s worth it.

“I think it’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights,” Kirk continued. “That is a prudent deal. It is rational. Nobody (on the left) talks like this.

They live in a complete alternate universe.”

Yes, we do. Even Queers with firearms.

After Kirk’s assassination last September, there was a certain amount of “Karma caught up with him” satisfaction expressed. I didn’t harbor hate in my heart for the named individual. I just hated his agenda, and what he encouraged that was brought to fruition in the world.

Over the last 50 years, I have never shied from community requests for my time, much of it in very public displays of speechifying, essaying, out front and center, where I do battle with identifiable oppressors. I did this in grad school, and went on to be OUT front here at a time when perhaps only 500 souls turned out for Pride.

Despite the changes wrought in succeeding decades, some oppressors stridently still wish we—the queers, the faggotry, the dykes, the scumbags who won’t work, the rats who live outdoors, the (insert du jour objects of hate/ objectification)—would die, maybe at their hands, and burn in their hell.

Before social media, enemies of our people had to meet others somewhere, through newsletters, share readings, listen to speeches, and become members of churches/cells. Now there’s a phone app, or a router and a computer that never shuts down, but beguiles by the hour. Yes, lots of us have constant screen time and scrolling addiction. We know this. we may not know is how true virulence has ratcheted up so asymmetrically.

In an October 2024 article, social scientist Alex Russell cited a 2024 UC Davis study: “Analysis showed that countries with a winner-take-all voting system do tend to display higher levels of anger and hostility between parties, and so do countries with bigger gaps between rich and poor. The U.S. has some of the highest inequality in the world, ranking 4th among high-income countries for its GINI score [a measure of income inequality].”

The polarization caused by income inequality we know. But now there’s language about “affective polarization,” which Russell described as “how political scientists describe anger, distrust, contempt, hostility and even hatred across party lines.”

According to the study’s author, James Addams: “Affective polarization is about feelings, and in particular it’s about very negative, frankly nasty, feelings that people have for the other side.

“If you use your eyes and your ears, you can’t miss just how toxic this political environment is today…we really need to be careful in the same way that if someone is barreling down the highway at 100 miles an hour at midnight in a rainstorm with one of the headlights out.”

J. M. Blazakis at the Center on Terrorism, Extremism and Counterterrorism at Middlebury College, defines “accelerationism: as “the effort to inspire independent followers to engage in violence in ways that broadly destabilize society.”

Really? In November 2024, Skyler Phillipi was charged with affixing an explosive device to an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which he planned to fly into an electric substation located in Nashville “for the purpose of destroying the energy facility in furtherance of his accelerationist ideology.” Skyler found what he needed in an online group called Terrogram.

According to the U.S. State Department, “Terrorgram is a transnational terrorist group that primarily operates on the social media and digital messaging platform Telegram and has been connected to terrorist attacks in multiple countries.

The group promotes violent white supremacism, solicits attacks on perceived adversaries, and provides guidance and instructional materials on tactics, methods, and targets for attacks, including on critical infrastructure and government officials.

The group also glorifies those who have conducted such attacks.”

Joshua Molloy writes in “Terrorwave: The Aesthetics of Violence and Terrorist Imagery in Militant Accelerationist Subcultures,” that sharp and visually appealing aesthetics build subcultural cohesion through the fetishisation of terrorist images. “Terrorwave” is a visual style where the aesthetics of the militant are worshipped, depicting a nostalgic dreamscape characterised by a wistful longing for an imagined fantasy world of violence and hypermasculinity.

In “Hard Reset,” a Terrorgram zine promoting terrorist tactics, future attackers were urged to consider optics and aesthetics: “The day is coming where your face is gonna be on the news in the form of a mugshot or an obituary. If you’re still fat or greasy, that’s gonna be a huge problem.”

The domestic terrorist who shot up a Buffalo supermarket in 2022 claimed in his manifesto that the tactical gloves he wore during his attack were chosen for aesthetic reasons, stating, “if you aren’t trying to look cool, what the f*ck are you even doing?”

What our communities need to be doing is paying closer attention to this kind of writing and language that has been emboldened and pardoned, and prepare ourselves accordingly. Speak out. Speechify.

Write. Use your words.

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

‘Heated Rivalry’ is the gay hockey romance you didn’t know you needed

Courtesy Crave/HBO Max

By John Paul King | Washington Blade Spoiler Alert: “Heated Rivalry” is not about hockey.

The limited series, produced for the Canadian streaming service Crave and available in the U.S. on HBO Max, may look from its marketing like a show about

hockey. It definitely contains a lot of scenes involving hockey – being played, being watched, being talked about – and the story is surrounded by hockey; its two main characters are professional hockey players, and their competition as opposing hockey champions (the “rivalry” of the title) is a major factor that moves the plot.

Even so, if you’re a hockey fan who

Reel Resistance Fellowship grants awarded to filmmakers

By Sammie Purcell Atlanta Pride and Out on Film have announced the five recipients for the 2025 Reel Resistance Fellowship.

Last August, Atlanta Pride and Out on Film presented a special screening of Andy Warhol’s film “Lonesome Cowboys” during a two-day community summit at Agnes Scott College. The summit was funded in part by grants from The Community Corps, South Arts, and Larch Creative Fund, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and Georgia Council for the Arts.

According to a press release, the Reel Resistance Fellowship program is also part of this partnership. The fellowship is a six-month program aimed at empowering LBGTQ+ filmmakers in Georgia to explore the queer community’s history through short-form documentary and narrative films. A $3,000 production stipend will be provided to the selected projects.

Five filmmakers were chosen to create 8 to 10 minute films that spotlight people, places, and movements that have shaped queer life in Georgia. The filmmakers and

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Photo by Katie Burkholder

projects are “Beyond the Doors of 708,” from Malachi King; “The Center of Atlanta (Working Title),” from Carlo Velayo; “Eight Heels and a Hard Truth,” from Aubrianna Escalera; “Meet Us at the Winecoff,” from Jesse Grainger; and “When We Rise in the South,” from Brad Bailey.

“Atlanta Pride is committed to preserving our collective history as a community connector,” said Steven Igarashi, director of communications and community engagement for Atlanta Pride, in the release. “We are excited to partner with Out on Film in this new initiative that will spotlight stories and voices that have been unheard for too long.”

The completed works will debut in June as part of Stonewall Month.

knows nothing about it, and you stumble across it while looking for something to watch, be warned before you press “play” that you are probably in for a big surprise.

Adapted from “Game Changers,” a popular book series by Canadian author Rachel Reid, the show follows the two above-mentioned hockey pros – Canadian Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Russian Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), each of whom is a star player for their respective team – as they compete against each other with puffed-up “alpha” swagger, on the ice and in the media. When the skates (and cameras) are off, however, there’s a different story going on. Despite the jocular animosity of their public relationship, there’s something else brewing between them in private, and it comes to a head when a commercial shoot leads to an unexpected rendezvous in a hotel room.

Well, unexpected for them, at least. We in the audience have seen it coming since that first smoldering glance across the rink.

From there, “Heated Rivalry” continues over a course of years as the two secret lovers use every match, tournament, or Winter Olympics where they compete against each other as an opportunity for more rendezvous in more hotel rooms.

But while their meetings may be all about a release of pent-up passion, the bond between them is based on something more.

In the high-stakes world of professional hockey, there’s not much they can do about that – publicly, at least – without killing their careers; in Ilya’s case, as a Russian citizen and the son of a prominent government official, the situation carries the potential for even graver consequences.

That’s just at the end of the first two episodes, though. The show also explores the story of another hockey player, Scott (François Arnaud), teammate and best friend to Shane, who becomes entangled with smoothie barista Kip (Robbie G.K.) in a whole secret gay life of his own.

If you’re thinking that the idea of a gay love story between two butch hockey players is a preposterous premise for romance fiction, think again – or at least redefine your idea of “preposterous.” It’s a genre that has exploded in popularity among a surprisingly large demographic of romance literature fans who also love hockey, combining the thrill of forbidden love with the drama and excitement of their favorite sport to catapult numerous writers, including Reid, onto the bestseller lists, which was surely a factor in the choice to translate her “Games Changers” books to the screen, courtesy of the show’s queer creator/writer/director Jacob Tierney.

The latter (also co-creator of “Letterkenny,” another popular and queerfriendly Canadian show with a strong hockey presence) delivers it with all the glossy, high-charged passion one would expect – and more – from a romance about world-class athletes in love. Set within the

rarified world of wealth and privilege that is professional sports, the drama takes place against a backdrop of packed arenas, awards ceremonies, elegant fundraisers, and luxury hotels, where the protagonists must play at being enemies while secretly planning their next hook-up with each other.

Which brings us to the thing that really makes “Heated Rivalry” the buzziest new queer show: the sex. The show takes full advantage of its story’s obvious sex appeal – as well as its leading actors’ sculpted, athletic bodies – to serve up some of the hottest onscreen trysts in gay TV memory.

Though they stop just short of being “explicit,” they’re the kind of sex scenes that push the limits of “softcore” right to the edge and make sure we know exactly what’s happening, even if we can’t see the details. Tierney turns those steamy private meetings between Shane and Ilya into set pieces and centers entire episodes around them, because he knows they’re what the audience is there for. Like we said, this is not really a show about hockey.

That said, it’s not really just a story about sex, either. In between those steamy scenes of athletic carnality, there’s a lot of percolating emotion happening – and thanks to the exquisitely tuned performances of Williams and Storrie, whose electric chemistry doesn’t just spark during their lovemaking scenes, but crackles through their every moment together on screen, it all comes across with elegant clarity. Shane and Ilya may want each other’s bodies, but there’s something more they want, too. There’s a tenderness in the way they look at each other, even when they’re smack-talking on the rink, and it infuses their scenes of passion, too, which arguably makes them even more blistering hot.

More than that, it calls to us with its fond familiarity; it’s that heady feeling to which most of us, if we’re lucky, can relate, a sense of yearning, of needing another person so keenly that it feels like a physical sensation.

In other words, it feels like being in love.

Of course, there’s another layer too, which hangs over everything and ultimately fuels all the conflict in the plot: the pervasive homophobia that exists in professional sports, creating an atmosphere in which players are pressured to present nothing but a masculine, definitively “straight” image and any hint of nonheterosexual leanings is enough to destroy a career. That’s not a situation limited only to pro athletes, of course; many of us in the wider world also face the same dilemma, which is why we can all relate to this aspect of their love story, too.

The runaway success of the first season, fueled by a rabid social media fanbase, has already led to an announcement that “Heated Rivalry” will return for an additional two seasons.

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Best Bets

The Amorettes (Provided)

The legendary drag troupe The Armorettes will mark their 47th anniversary on Jan. 17 from 7 to 10 p.m. at The Heretic in Atlanta. The queens will be presenting checks to local LGBTQ+ organizations, including AID Atlanta. Find out more at thearmorettes.com.

Atlanta Pride Night at Cirque du Soleil’s Luzia at Atlantic Station is Jan. 18 at 4:30 p.m. and will raise funds for the organization. Get tickets at tickets.cirquedusoleil.com.

Trans Atlanta Social Club is hosting two events in January: the Monthly Craft Hangout on Jan. 18 and its Wednesday Night Meetup at the H Mart Food Court in Doraville on Jan. 28. Get more details at transatlantasocial. club.

Charis Books & More in Decatur hosts its monthly Meet & Mingle for LGBTQ+ folks age 50 and over on Jan. 17 from 3 to 4:30 p.m. More info: charisbooksandmore. com.

The National LGBTQ Task Force will present Creating Change 2026 will bring together LGBTQ+ leaders, artists, and organizers from across the country, Jan. 21-25 for a virtual festival. Get information at thetaskforce.org/creatingchange.

Lavender Bookshop in Marietta is hosting its monthly Open Mic on Jan. 23, starting at 7 p.m. Bring your poems and stories.

See all events at lavenderbookshop.com.

Atlanta playwright and screenwriter Steve Yockey will have the world premiere of his new play “Bleeding Hearts” at Theatrical Outfit beginning Jan. 28. The pitch-black farce is about the disappearing middle class and how people forget to put themselves in each other’s shoes. Tickets and details at theatricaloutfit.org.

Southern Dyke Alliance will host its Closet to Closet clothing swap on Jan. 21 at 7 p.m. at The Supermarket, where Lavender Lens will also be holding Queer Short Film Night. Get more details on IG @southerndykealliance and @lavenderlensatl.

Out Front Theatre in Atlanta presents Aziza Barnes’ “BLKS” Jan. 29 through Feb. 14. As sharply funny as it is poignant, the play tells the story of three twentysomething New Yorkers hunting for intimacy and purpose in the Big Apple.

Tickets: OutFrontTheatre.com.

Bleeding Hearts (Courtesy Theatrical Outfit)

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| 11

Susan Powter and filmmaker Zeberiah Newman talk ‘Stop the Insanity!’ documentary

By Jim Farmer Throughout the 1990s, Susan Powter was hard to miss. Her weight loss infomercial and her catchphrase, “Stop the Insanity,” were everywhere. With her signature spiked blonde hair, she was well-known as a personal trainer, talk show personality, and author. Then, she pretty much vanished.

Behind the scenes, she had battles with business partners that wiped her out and prompted her to move out of the spotlight to Las Vegas and scrape by as a virtually unrecognizable UberEats driver.

Zeberiah Newman’s new documentary “Stop the Insanity! Finding Susan Powter” reintroduces the former wellness guru to the world.

Newman and Powter spoke to Georgia Voice recently about the new documentary, now available on VOD (including Apple TV, YouTube, and Google Play).

The director looked for Powter for about nine months before he finally found her. After the success of his short film “Relighting Candles: The Tim Sullivan Story,” he made a list of people who he thought would make interesting subjects for a documentary. Powter was on that list.

“I started looking for her, and she was really difficult to find,” he said. “I was hoping she was living on a farm somewhere, off the grid, and with all of her money and happiness. I had a feeling it wasn’t so good.”

Newnan eventually found an old

Instagram account, a fan account that had 5,000 followers. One by one, the director sifted through each follower. One account felt very Susan Powter-ish, with pictures of soups and cauliflowers. Fortunately, the account had a phone number attached.

When he texted the number, he found his subject.

Powter, now 68, was shocked to hear from the director, who wanted to meet her immediately.

“I have been gone for a good 20 years,” she said. “I got a text out of nowhere that said ‘Susan Powter?’ and I just froze. Did someone just recognize me? He said, ‘I am a filmmaker interested in meeting you – I am in Los Angeles and I can drive to Vegas.’ For some crazy reason, I said 10:30 the next day and he said he’d be there with a coffee. We had lunch for four hours, and there’s the movie.”

The years in Vegas had been difficult.

In recent interviews, though, Powter has stressed that while the situation left her financially broke, she was never broken.

“Broke is a given [even though] you can work, and work, and work, Powter said.

“Broken is another thing. I am just grateful that my being did not break me. My teeth did, but my being didn’t, and for that I am grateful.”

The documentary doesn’t fill in all the gaps of what happened over the years, but it does show how society can write off people once they reach a certain age, especially women. When Newnan first met

says that would never happen again.

“I love women. I went from having a husband and a baby daddy, and when I made a ton of money, I hired only women because I was working like a racehorse,” Powter said. “I had a TV show, radio show, books and [other] things. My entire staff was women, and I remember thinking what a lovely way to live.

So I am just lesbian for Susan Powter (Courtesy Obscured Releasing) life.”

Last year, Powter Powter, he was completely taken by what he released a memoir and is doing what she called her “unicorn-like energy.” can to wrest control of her life again. This “She was unlike any other person I had time, though, there will be changes. met before or been around. I was really “[I’ll be doing] every single thing I have struck by just how original she was, but the done once before that most people don’t more I investigated and got to know her have the privilege of doing and a second and spend time with her, I was shocked at opportunity,” she said. “This time, I will how ordinary and common her experience be owning all of my products. There is is, because she is dealing with issues and nothing between us. If you want to do things that millions of Americans are a deal, reach out and call me. I will be dealing with,” Newnan said. “It is especially checking the balance every 35 seconds. It shocking because if it happened to Susan will be done properly this time, with a great Powter, it’s happening to your mom, deal of gratitude.” your aunt, your friend, your coworker.

Her message to others these days is to Everyone.” be a decent human being and let people be Powter identifies as a lesbian and is a who they are. fierce LGBTQ+ advocate. Although she “I support creativity and love,” Powter has been married twice to a man, she now said. “Love is love.”

Filmmaker Ira Sachs talks ‘Peter Hujar’s Day’

By Jim Farmer While out director Ira Sachs was working on the film “Passages” with actor Ben Whishaw, he discovered Linda Rosenkrantz’s book “Peter Hujar’s Day.” He thought it would make an interesting next project for him and Whishaw to collaborate on.

“I knew that we shared an interest in queer history, specifically queer artists like Peter,” Sachs said. “By the time I finished the book, I said ‘Let’s make a movie of this.’”

The film is based on a taped conversation between Rosenkrantz (Rebecca Hall) and trailblazing queer photographer Hujar (Whishaw), in which the artist talks about a day in his life in New York in the 1970s. He tells Rosenkrantz about his daily activities, including his interactions with the likes of Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, and Susan Sontag. “Peter Hujar’s Day” is now streaming at Apple TV, MUBI, and Plex.

The director knew about Hujar and his work before he read the book.

“I had seen his photographs first in the early ‘90s. He died in ’87,” Sachs said. “I knew more initially about David Wojnarowicz, who was his friend and partner and mentee. Once I discovered Peter’s work, though, I pretty much sought it

12 | JANUARY 2026

Rebecca Hall and Ben Whishaw in “Peter Hujar’s Day.” (Courtesy Janus Films)

out whenever I could find it.”

Once he decided to make the film, Sachs’ first stop was The Morgan Library & Museum, where the original transcript of the conversation between Hujar and Rosenkrantz has been archived. He found certain passages that had been edited out of the book and brought them back into his screenplay.

His goal was to shoot the full and extensive dialogue between the two characters. The challenge, however, was how to make it cinematic, especially since the action takes place over a single day largely in

a single room.

“What I had to do was release any idea that this would be exactly like how they did it on the day,” Sachs said. “I did something very different. I broke down the conversation between the two of them into about 25 different scenes. Within the apartment, there are six or seven different locations. So I tried to make the material more cinematic than it might initially appear.”

The director describes the relationship between Hujar and Rosenkrantz as beautiful.

It was a friendship filled with trust.

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“Peter could tell she really cared about him,” Sachs said. “That was inherent in what I learned about the relationship, but it’s also something Rebecca Hall managed to emphasize in her performance. She is telling a story of a woman loving a good friend in a way that is very deep and quite emotional. “ Having worked with Whishaw on “Passages,” Sachs knew that his lead actor had versatility. What shocks him about Whishaw’s performance in “Peter Hujar’s Day” is how he was able to make every word vivid and alive.

“Nothing is lost, and it’s 55 pages of text that he inhabits in such a full way,” Sachs said. “I think it’s a unique part that gives him a lot of room to shine and stretch in a way that maybe he hasn’t always had in cinema.

He’s not frightened by the unknown and it’s like being in a playground with him because he will try anything with an incredible amount of commitment.”

Both Sachs and Hall got to know the real-life Rosenkrantz, and Sachs appreciated the tenderness the actress brings to the role as well as the way she created a story between the two main characters almost without language.

“Rebecca is both technical and free,” Sachs said.

Hujar is widely known for a picture that served as a recruitment poster for the Gay Liberation Front in the wake of 1969 police raid on the Stonewall Inn. He was an integral part of the queer artistic community in the East Village, a community the director calls seminal and unique in the history of American art. Their work was both political and highly personal.

“Artists such as Peter and Charles Ludlam and Jack Smith – these people were making art for each other in a certain way,” Sachs said. “There was a lack of interest in the world outside which I think created a kind of freedom and bravery, because they wanted to impress each other and pay attention to each other. They inspired a kind of creativity that we have not seen in the city since then.”

Sachs believes that Hujar did not receive his due as an artist. He died due to complications from AIDS 13 years after his conversation with Rosenkrantz. He was 53 years old.

“It was way before he should have,” Sachs said. “I think AIDS just wiped out this whole world that I am still receiving so much inspiration from.”

In addition to “Peter Hujar’s Day” and “Passages,” the director is known for queer work such as “Keep the Lights On.” He has succeeded in making work that is personal, but feels for many queer artists, there is not an economic engine to support their work.

“Many of my brothers and sisters who started out making queer cinema have not been able to sustain those careers because of a lack of an economic structure,” Sachs said.

To that end, 15 years ago, he started Queer|Art (queer-art.org), a non-profit in New York that supports artists making queer stories.

“We have to support each other if we are going to make this work happen,” he said. “For me, the work I like best is that which feels specific and personal and intimate and authentic. That is why I was drawn to this [project]. It brings to life a world that to a great extent has disappeared.”

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Blue Moon Campground is an LGBTQ+ oasis in North Georgia

Photos courtesy Blue Moon Campground.

By Katie Burkholder Nestled in the North Georgia mountains, you’ll find several hundred people relaxing by the pool, glamping in RVs, and enjoying the great outdoors.

Given this is a rural, conservative area, you wouldn’t expect that all of these people are members of the LGBTQ+ community. In fact, that is one of Blue Moon Campground’s two rules to visit: be queer and be invited.

Located near Lafayette, the private campground, which opened in August, has already become a beloved retreat for LGBTQ+ patrons aged 21 to 90+. Along with boasting 220 acres of picturesque scenery, Blue Moon welcomes campers with a communal, non-judgmental attitude.

“The property just has a sort of magic, hence the name,” Andrew Kibble, one of

LGBTQ+ with clothing-optional camping or be invite-only with a yearly membership system.

“We’re a gay community in North Georgia, so we don’t want to be a public campground – this is Marjorie Taylor Greene’s district,” Kibble said.

“We want to be able to select and approve who comes here and make sure that everyone is safe,” Henderson added.

In only five months, Kibble and Henderson say they’ve been blown away by the positive response they’ve received, not only from LGBTQ+ people from the major Southern cities like Atlanta, Nashville, Birmingham, and Charleston, but also from LaFayette locals and those from other suburbs like Dalton and Rome.

A sold-out weekend – which is most weekends – will bring about 200 visitors to the grounds. After less

the camp’s four owners, told Georgia Voice. “Once in a blue moon, you find a place that’s magical.”

“Our goal was to make a place where our community could feel safe and loved and welcomed in a place where everyone could come with no judgments whatsoever,” Ray Henderson, another owner, said.

When Kibble and Henderson first embarked on the project with their other business partners, they didn’t set out to open an invite-only campground.

That was a state mandate: either be public and don’t specifically cater to than a year in operation, Blue Moon’s owners are ready to grow. They have a five-stage plan to develop the campground, and they say that over the next couple of years, the property will double in size.

Those who are lucky enough to get invited will fill out a membership form on Blue Moon’s website, in which they’ll affirm they’re LGBTQ+ and list who invited them. From there, the four owners will vet and approve the application. As a member, you’ll be able to book your visits and participate in events hosted throughout the year, including pool parties, bear weekends, yoga retreats, and adult summer camp.

To learn more about Blue Moon Campground, visit bmcampground. com.

JANUARY 2026

| 13

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Charleston’s Lewis Barbecue makes its much-anticipated debut at Ansley Mall

By Sarra Sedghi

Photo by Sarra Sedghi

Charleston-based Lewis Barbecue opened its first Georgia location at Ansley Mall in Piedmont Heights on Dec. 8. The restaurant flanks the Atlanta Beltline, with a blue bridge spanning across a gully that provides pedestrians and cyclists on the trail direct access to Ansley Mall.

A counter-service restaurant specializing in Texas-style barbecue (pit master and founder John Lewis spent his formative years in El Paso and Austin), Lewis Barbecue first opened in Charleston nearly a decade ago. The Charleston location was just added to the Michelin Guide to the American South as a Bib Gourmand.

Lewis told Rough Draft he’s been scouting venues for an Atlanta location for about six years. “I’ve been trying to find a perfect spot that met all the needs that we needed to do to this operation, which is pretty big,” he said.

Lewis hopes his Atlanta restaurant and bar, located in the former Hideaway gay bar space, can function as another gathering spot

John Lewis, founder of Lewis BBQ. (Photo by Lizzy Rollins)

14 | JANUARY 2026

within the sprawling shopping complex bordering Midtown, Piedmont Heights, and Morningside. He’s spent the past six months familiarizing himself with the area and Ansley Mall. Lewis said he eats at neighboring Bantam & Biddy at least twice a week.

The trademark of Texas-style barbecue comes in the commitment to beef. In addition to sliced and chopped beef brisket, Lewis Barbecue offers beef back ribs daily and pastrami, chicken-fried steak, and prime rib as weekly specials.

“I think beef is better than pork,” Lewis said. “I mean, would you rather have a steak or a pork chop if you had to choose one?”

Texas-style barbecue also involves an entirely different cooking process. Instead of cooking over direct heat, pitmasters use offset heat.

“There’s a firebox all the way on one end and the meats are in a different chamber there,” Lewis explained. “It’s all live fire and live wood, but it’s indirect. It’s almost 100 percent combustion on the wood, since you’re not cooking over coals.

So, it’s not quite as smoky.”

Everything at Lewis Barbecue is cooked from scratch, meaning meats spend about 18 hours in the pit. Lewis engineered all the barbecue pits himself.

“They’re specially designed just to make perfect, perfect, perfect brisket,” he said.

The streamlined ordering process consists of stations for cold sides, hot sides, and meats. It’s efficient, but

intentional, like a Buc-ee’s with higher standards. Everything is sold by the pound. Regional Texas ingredients, like green chile (make space for the corn pudding and the barbecue sauce) and pinto beans (add pico de gallo on top), also make an appearance. And yes, you should absolutely spend the extra $1.50 on a hunk of cheddar cheese.

An open-air smokehouse on the roof overlooks the Beltline below. There’s a walk-up window for ordering takeout at the foot of the trail bridge and an outdoor courtyard with seating for more than 200 people.

Bar Lewis, located opposite the restaurant, comes fully stocked with spirits and an extensive selection of bottled sodas, including Cheerwine, Red Rock, and Boylan Bottling Company.

The atmosphere at the bar evokes 1970s-era Texas, with clusters of midcentury furniture pointing inward to form conversation pits, funky folk art on vintage wallpaper, and a terrazzo bar top bordered with paisley-embossed leather.

“Atlanta has one of my favorite food scenes in the country,” Lewis said of opening his first Atlanta restaurant.

“Ansley Mall is a gathering place for all the neighborhoods around it. [The location is] the perfect fit, being right on the Beltline.”

Lewis Barbecue (lewisbarbecue.com), 1544 Piedmont Ave., Piedmont Heights. Hours: Sunday–Monday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Photo courtesy Lewis Barbecue THEGAVOICE.COM

Daddy D’z, Agave and JavaVino announce closures to wholesale. “We want to travel to coffee farms and build further relationships with farmers and roast and distribute the coffee.”

“We’re getting older and we want to focus on what’s most important. We decided that this was the best path for our family,” she added.

The roasting facility in Stone Mountain will remain intact, and JavaVino patrons can still purchase its coffee at the Grant Park Farmers Market and local shops such as Candler Park Market.

JavaVino loyalty program members will be able to transition the cafe’s physical stars into online credit. Kuhl compiled an FAQ page on JavaVino’s

website (javavino.com) for customers with further questions.

Kuhl and co-owner Steve Franklin are currently finalizing the sale of the North Highland space with a new owner who plans to open a similar cafe called At Arbeta. It, too, will serve JavaVino coffee. “[The new owner] reminds me of us when we were coming up with the idea [for JavaVino] and the enthusiasm behind it,” Kuhl said. “I think there was a lot of good energy between us and the buyer, and it worked out pretty nicely.”

“We’re replacing ourselves in the community with somebody that we trust [and who] is a good fit for the community,” she continued.

JavaVino is shifting its focus to wholesale operations. (Courtesy of Heddy Kuhl)

By Sarra Sedghi Three longtime Atlanta restaurants shocked customers with closing announcements in December.

Daddy D’z, located at Memorial Drive and Hill Street, ceased operations after service on Dec. 31. The 35-year-old restaurant is considered an Atlanta classic and was featured on Food Network’s “Sauced.” Owner Christianah CokerJackson told WSB-TV that the landlord is selling the building, but that she hopes to reopen Daddy D’z in another location.

Just a few blocks away in Cabbagetown, the owners of Agave announced plans to close the Southwestern restaurant at the end of January. Agave, which opened in 2000 on Boulevard, launched a GoFundMe fundraiser for the restaurant’s affected employees.

Then, over in Poncey-Highland, the owners of JavaVino announced the Dec. 14 closure of the coffee and wine bar after nearly 22 years on North Highland.

The owners of all three businesses cited industry challenges, such as a reduced customer base and higher ingredient costs, as motivations for the decision to call it quits.

However, unlike Agave and Daddy D’z, however, JavaVino won’t go completely dark. Instead, it will shift to a wholesale coffee business, something co-owner Heddy Kuhl sees as a positive development.

In addition to serving as a cafe and wine bar, JavaVino roasts coffee for local restaurants, along with “green,” unroasted beans for regional roasters. “[This] will actually help us get our family’s coffee and farmer-direct coffee into more hands,” Kuhl said of pivoting

Daddy D’z BBQ (Courtesy WSB-TV) THEGAVOICE.COM

JANUARY 2026

| 15

Team behind Mujo planning Japanese supper club in Buckhead

By Beth McKibben It’s been nearly four years since the debut of Mujo, the Michelin-starred omakase restaurant backed by the Castellucci Hospitality Group. Now, its chef, J. Trent Harris, and the Castellucci family will follow up on Mujo’s success with Koshu Club in Buckhead.

Opening early this year at the 99 West Paces building, Koshu Club takes inspiration from Japan’s Shōwa-era cuisine, often a fusion of Western foods (yoshoku) and traditional Japanese dishes (washoku).

You’re likely already familiar with yoshoku dishes, including omurice (omelet rice), karaage (Japanese fried chicken), tonkatsu (fried pork cutlet), and korokke, a Japanese-style croquette occasionally served atop noodles.

“Jordan [J. Trent] and I had the idea for this restaurant shortly after we opened Mujo,” the group’s President and CEO, Fred Castellucci, told Rough Draft. “We had a clear vision for Mujo as an omakase restaurant, but we wanted to do an a la carte restaurant in line with Japanese tradition, but breaking from it a bit.”

The rise of yoshoku dishes during the Shōwa era (1926–1989) led to a proliferation of restaurants, market stalls, and supper clubs in Japan that highlighted Western-influenced cooking fused with traditional Japanese dishes. The explosion of culinary experimentation seen during the period fit the bill for what Harris and

Castellucci want to achieve with the new restaurant.

At just 40 seats, like Mujo, Koshu Club will offer an intimate dining experience, one Castellucci calls fine dining with flexibility.

Harris has worked on and off as a sushi chef and in Japanese restaurants for more than 20 years, including at Suzume and Shuko in New York City, and under master sushi chef Masaki Saito at Sushi Ginza Onodera in Tokyo. He also worked briefly in China, and led the kitchen at a Michelin-starred Portuguese restaurant in New York City.

“Sushi is my passion, but I love opportunities where I can learn and grow as a chef and try my hand at other cuisines,” said Harris. “Japanese cuisine is not a monolith. There’s a lot of influences from other cuisines and cultures in the country, and they do a very good job of taking elements from those influences and making them very Japanese.”

Harris will lead the kitchen at Koshu Club with Keith Miller as his chef de cuisine. They’re planning a compact menu of around 14 dishes. Rather than literal interpretations of yoshoku foods, Harris and Miller will lean into specific cooking styles to allow for experimentation, while also channeling the vibe and menus of mid-century supper clubs.

For Koshu Club, that means sumibiyaki (meat, seafood, and vegetables slow-grilled over binchōtan charcoal), along with

even the orientation of seating.

Koshu Club should feel sophisticated and special, Castellucci insisted, but not restrained or stuffy, and with just enough high energy that you’re comfortable holding lively conversations during dinner.

“It’s an extremely intimate a la carte, fine dining restaurant where you can be more flexible with what you’re ordering,” Castellucci said. “We want it to be fun, but also a la carte and small to showcase other elements of Japanese food, like the yoshoku dishes, alongside more traditional Japanese cuisine, outside of sushi.”

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sashimi options and other Japanese and yoshoku-style small plates.

“The menu will be a mixture of washoku, very traditional dishes, as well as modern Japanese food, which is much more globally influenced,” Harris said.

“I want to really structure [Koshu Club] almost like a micro steakhouse menu, with a selection of small plates where you pick a protein to be grilled over charcoal, pick a sauce to go with it, and then pick some sides. It allows people to build the meal they want.”

Expect cocktails using Japanese ingredients and spirits, including Japanese gin and whisky. Koshu Club will also feature a deep selection of sake and wine behind the bar. Castellucci had a wine cellar intentionally built into the restaurant’s design.

The bar is an integral part of the experience at Koshu Club. In Japanese, “koshu” [KOH-shoo] refers to both a white wine grape variety grown in Japan and aged sake.

“The club element of the name infers the intimacy and energy we look to create, as well as a nod to Western influences, part of the yoshoku-style of Japanese cuisine,” Castellucci explained.

To achieve the intimacy they’re after at Koshu Club, Smith Hanes Studio will design a serene space that should evoke the “quiet elegance of mid-century Japan.”

Castellucci and his team will then heighten the experience through music, lighting, and

European-inspired coffee shop and cafe At Arbeta will open in the former JavaVino space in 2026. JavaVino closed in December after 22 years, but will continue operating as a wholesale coffee business.

At Arbeta, which translates to “working to achieve something” in Swedish, will bring Scandinavian design and Swedish “fika” culture (deliberate breaks) to North Highland Avenue in the Poncey-Highland neighborhood. The owners want At Arbeta to act as a third space in the community, including for Atlanta’s remote workers.

The new coffee shop honors multiple cultural traditions from across the European continent. The Swedish name nods to Scandinavian design and the country’s work-conducive ethos, fika, according to co-owner and operating partner Rebecca Floyd.

“We draw inspiration from the neighborhood cafes in Europe that become part of the community and everyday life,” said Floyd. “The menu

is also European-inspired, in that the dishes will be very simple, but made with ingredients from local producers, whenever possible.”

Floyd added that At Arbeta blends both modern cafe culture and a flexible workspace under one roof. Atlanta includes one of the largest remote workforces in the country.

“Right now, the only two options for public workspaces are the traditional coffee shops and the modern coworking offices,” she said. “Our concept addresses issues with both of these options.”

At Arbeta aims to provide a productive yet affordable option for Atlanta’s remote workers who may only need coworking space on occasion.

Renovations will see charging ports installed throughout At Arbeta, along with creating work-friendly alcoves and private rooms for video meetings and presentations.

While the space may experience some changes, coffee will remain the same. At Arbeta plans to serve JavaVino’s coffee beans.

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GEORGIA VOICE RESOURCE GUIDE This list of resources for the LGBTQ+ community in Atlanta and Georgia will be regularly updated on our website, thegavoice.com.

LGBTQ+ Arts Organizations

Metropolitan Community Church of Our Redeemer – Augusta 557 Greene St mccoor.com

Atlanta Queer Arts Alliance aquaa.org Atlanta Freedom Bands atlantafreedombands.com

Metropolis Complex – Augusta All-male gay resort 1250 Gordon Hwy metropoliscomplex.com

Atlanta Philharmonic Orchestra atlantaphilharmonic.org Full Radius Dance – DisabilityInclusive Dance Company fullradiusdance.org

Mountain Light Unitarian Universalist Church – Ellijay 2502 Tails Creek Rd mluuc.org

OurSong — The Atlanta Gay and Lesbian Chorus oursongatlanta.org Out Front Theatre Company 999 Brady Ave NW outfronttheatre.com Out On Film outonfilm.org Southern Fried Queer Pride southernfriedqueerpride.com Voices of Note – Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus and Atlanta Women’s Chorus voicesofnote.org Business Organizations Atlanta Business League – Blackowned businesses 931 MLK Jr. Drive SW atlantabusinessleague.org Atlanta Women’s Network facebook.com/ atlantawomensnetwork Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce 270 W Peachtree St NW ghcc.org Greater Women’s Business Council 600 Peachtree St NE #440 gwbc.org Metro Atlanta Association of Professionals maapatl.org OUT Georgia Business Alliance outgeorgia.org Urban League of Greater Atlanta 230 Peachtree St #2600 ulgatl.org Health Organizations The Galano Club, Inc. LGBTQ+ 12-step recovery programs 585 Dutch Valley Rd NE galano.org AID Atlanta 1438 W Peachtree St NW aidatlanta.org Aniz, Inc. Support Services Agency 236 Forsyth St SW #300 aniz.org Emory Hope Clinic 500 Irvin Ct #200 hopeclinic.emory.edu Empowerment Resource Center 230 Peachtree St NW #1800 erc-inc.org

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Athens Pride Feminist Center for Reproductive Liberation 1924 Cliff Valley Way NE feministcenter.org Georgia Harm Reduction Coalition 1231 Joseph E. Boone Blvd NW georgiaharmreduction.org Latino LinQ latinolinq.org LGBTQ Therapist Resource lgbtqtherapistresource.com NAESM, Inc. 315 14th St NW naesminc.org Open Hand Atlanta 1380 West Marietta St NW openhandatlanta.org PALS Atlanta - Pets Are Loving Support 1530 DeKalb Ave NE #A palsatlanta.org Planned Parenthood Marietta: 220 Cobb Pkwy N #500 East Atlanta: 440 Moreland Ave SE plannedparenthood.org Positive Impact Health Centers 523 Church St positiveimpacthealthcenters.org SisterLove, Inc. 1237 Ralph David Abernathy Blvd SW sisterlove.org Someone Cares 1950 Spectrum Cir #200 s1catl.org Status: Home 2700 Cumberland Pkwy SE #220 statushome.org Thrive SS Inc. thrivess.org Outside Atlanta Armstrong University Gay-Straight Alliance facebook.com/ groups/215098925217918 Athens Pride & Queer Collective athenspride.org Augusta Pride prideaugusta.org

Augusta University Lambda Alliance augusta.presence.io/organization/ lambda-augusta-universitys-gaystraight-alliance Boybutante AIDS Foundation – Athens boybutante.org

Nacoochee Presbyterian Church 260 GA-255 North nacoocheepresbyterian.org Oz Campground – Unadilla 50 GA-230 ozcampground.com PFLAG Blairsville pflagblairsville.org PFLAG Brunswick facebook.com/PFLAGBrunswick

Carrollton Rainbow carrolltonrainbow.com

PFLAG Johns Creek pflagjohnscreek.org

Chattahoochee Valley Pride, Inc. – Columbus facebook.com/p/ChattahoocheeValley-Pride-100068922227587

PFLAG Macon facebook.com/PFLAGMacon

Club One – Savannah LGBTQ nightclub 1 Jefferson St clubone-online.com

PFLAG Peachtree City 225 Market Place Connector #1053 pflagptc.org PFLAG Marietta 3755 Sandy Plains Rd pflag.org/chapter/marietta

Colgay Pride of Columbus, GA colgaypride.org

Savannah Pride Center 5859 Abercorn St Bldg 3 savannahpridecenter.org SCAD Queers and Allies instagram.com/scadqanda South Georgia Pride – Valdosta southgapride.com Swiftwaters Campground and Cabins – Dahlonega Campground for women 830 Swiftwaters Rd facebook.com/p/SwiftwatersCampground-andCabins-100069458875646/ UGA Pride Center pride.uga.edu UNG Gender and Sexuality Alliance instagram.com/ung_gsa Unitarian Universalist Church of Augusta 3501 Walton Way Ext uuaugusta.org Unitarian Universalist Church of Savannah 311 East Harris St uusavannah.org Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Athens 780 Timothy Rd uuathensga.org Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Columbus

Common Ground – Athens facebook.com/ commongroundATHGA CSRA Safety Net – Augusta csrasafetynet.org First City Network 109 Seminole St firstcitynetwork.org Forgiving Heart United Church of Christ – Columbus 2946 Grant Rd forgivingheartchurch.com Gay Augusta Guide augusta.gaycities.com Gay Savannah Guide savannah.gaycities.com Georgia Mountains Unitarian Universalist Church – Dahlonega 3155 Morrison Moore Pkwy E gmuuc.org

Southern Fried Queer Pride PFLAG Rome pflagromega.org

GLOBES at UGA uaaglobes.wordpress.com

PFLAG Savannah 1305 Barnard St Box 3057 pflagsavannah.org

High Street Unitarian Universalist Church – Macon 1085 High Street highstreetchurch.org

Queer Student Alliance at UWG westga.edu/academics/universitycollege/ids/gender-studies/queerstudent-alliance.php

Live Forward – Athens 2500 W Broad St Ste 300 liveforward.org

Rome Pride romegapride.org

Macon Pride maconpride.org

Roswell Empowered IG @roswell_empowered

8827 Heiferhorn Way uucolumbusga.org VSU Pride Connection instagram.com/vsu_pride Political Organizations ACLU of Georgia acluga.org Georgia Equality 1530 DeKalb Ave NE #A georgiaequality.org Georgia Log Cabin Republicans georgialogcabin.org THEGAVOICE.COM

Georgia Rural Urban Summit actionnetwork.org/groups/georgiarural-urban-summit-grususaction-ga Georgia Stonewall Democrats georgiastonewall.org Human Rights Campaign – Atlanta hrcatlanta.com Lambda Legal Southern Regional Office 1 West Court Sq Ste 105 lambdalegal.org SPARK Reproductive Justice NOW 1065 Ralph David Abernathy Blvd SW #200 sparkrj.org Stonewall Bar Association of Georgia stonewallbar.org Young Democrats of Georgia LGBTQ Caucus instagram.com/ydglgbtq Religious Organizations All Saints’ Episcopal Church 634 W Peachtree St NW allsaintsatlanta.org Atlanta Friends Meeting 701 W Howard Ave atlantaquakers.org

Emerson Unitarian Universalist Congregation – Marietta 4010 Canton Rd emersonuu.org The Episcopal Church of the Epiphany 2089 Ponce De Leon Ave NE epiphany.org First Existentialist Congregation of Atlanta 470 Candler Park Dr NE uua.org/offices/organizations/firstexistentialist-congregation-atlanta Gentle Spirit Christian Church 1500 McLendon Ave NE gentlespirit.org Hapeville First United Methodist Church 3510 Atlanta Ave hapevilleumc.com Inman Park United Methodist Church 1015 Edgewood Ave NE inmanparkumc.org Kadampa Meditation Center 741 Edgewood Ave NE meditationingeorgia.org New Covenant Church of Atlanta 1600 Eastland Rd SE newcovenantatlanta.com Northside Drive Baptist Church 3100 Northside Dr NW northsidedrive.org

Atlanta Shambhala Center 1447 Church St atlanta.shambhala.org

Oakhurst Baptist Church 222 East Lake Dr oakhurstbaptist.org

The Cathedral of St. Philip 2744 Peachtree Rd NW cathedralatl.org Central Congregational United Church of Christ 2676 Clairmont Rd central-ucc.org Clifton Sanctuary Ministries 369 Connecticut Ave NE cliftonsanctuary.com Congregation Bet Haverim 2074 Lavista Rd congregationbethaverim.org Drepung Loseling Monastery 1781 Dresden Dr drepung.org Druid Hills Presbyterian Church 1026 Ponce De Leon Ave NE druidhillspresbyterian.org

Ormewood Church 1071 Delaware Ave SE ormewoodchurch.org Park Ave Baptist Church 486 Park Ave SE parkavebaptist.com Shrine of Immaculate Conception 48 MLK Jr Dr SW catholicshrineatlanta.org Soka Gakkai Buddhist Center 421 17th St NW sgi-usa.org Saint Mark United Methodist Church 781 Peachtree St NE stmarkumc.org St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church 1790 Lavista Rd NE stbartsatlanta.org

Atlanta Pride Committee St. John’s Episcopal Church 3480 E Main St stjohnscollegepark.org St. John’s Lutheran Church 1410 Ponce De Leon Ave NE stjohnsatlanta.org St. Luke Lutheran Church 3264 Northside Pkwy stlukeatlanta.org St. Luke’s Episcopal Church 435 Peachtree St NE stlukesatlanta.org St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church – Dunwoody 4755 N Peachtree Rd stpat.net The Temple 1589 Peachtree St NE the-temple.org Trinity Center for Spiritual Living 1095 Zonolite Rd NE tcsl.life Trinity United Methodist Church 265 Washington St SW atlantatrinity.org Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta 2650 N Druid Hills Rd uuca.org

Solutions Not Punishment Collaborative snap4freedom.org

Hotlanta Squares LGBTQ square dancing hotlantasquares.org

Southerners on New Ground 1201 W Peachtree St #2300 southernersonnewground.org

Hotlanta Volleyball Association opensports.net/hotlanta-volleyball

SAGE Resources for LGBTQ elders sageusa.org SOJOURN sojourngsd.org Touching Up Our Roots tuorqueeratlanta.org

Lost-n-Found Youth 2585 Chantilly Dr NE lnfy.org

Wilderness Network of Georgia meetup.com/wildnetga Transgender Organizations

LGBTQ+ Sports Organizations

Sigma Epsilon Support group for cross-dressing adults sigmaepsilonatlanta.org/public

All Stripes LGBTQ fan organization for Atlanta United group.chant.fan/allstripes Atlanta Bucks Rugby Club atlantabucksrugby.org Atlanta Poolplayers Association atlanta.apaleagues.com

Trans Housing Atlanta Program transhousingatlanta.org TRANScending Barriers instagram.com/transcendingbarriers

Atlanta Rainbow Trout atlantarainbowtrout.com

Atlanta Tennis Team Association atta.org

In The Life Atlanta 1530 DeKalb Ave NE facebook.com/inthelifeatl

Southern Softpaw League southernsoftpaw.com

LaGender, Inc. facebook.com/lagenderinc

Service Organizations

CHRIS 180 1030 Fayetteville Rd SE chris180.org

National Gay Flag Football League nffla.com

ZAMI NOBLA zaminobla.org

Atlanta Roller Derby atlantarollerderby.com

Charis Circle 184 S Candler St chariscircle.org

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Hotlanta Softball League hotlantasoftball.org

Unity North Atlanta 4255 Sandy Plains Rd unitynorth.org

Atlanta Pride Committee atlantapride.org

Lost-n-Found Youth

Raksha, Inc. raksha.org

Dogwood Invitational Bowling Classic dogwoodbowl.org Front Runners Atlanta frontrunnersatlanta.org Gay Gamers of Atlanta and Friends meetup.com/gaygamers GO Kickball gokickball.com Hotlanta Soccer facebook.com/ groups/34244209984 St. Mark UMC of Atlanta JANUARY 2026

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