Because the alcohol-free class continues to develop, the enchantment of spirit-free sips has ushered in a necessity for devoted areas for having fun with these drinks. At so-called sober bars (aka dry bars), friends can discover zero-proof spirits in inventive blended drinks whereas gathering in areas that also really feel like cocktail bars. Nobody asks “Why aren’t you consuming?” however “What are you consuming?” And menus embrace a considerate collection of alcohol-free wine, beer, and libations crafted with the identical consideration to element as these in cocktail bars. This listing of venues across the U.S. contains pop-up bars and bottle retailers that serve on website.
California
Bar Nuda (Venice)
Bar Nuda could not have a brick-and-mortar location but, however they’re benefiting from being untethered by popping up in classic retailers, artwork studios, and even a mezcal room. Final month they served up spirit-free drinks for the LA Opera at a Santa Monica Pier occasion. “We’re at all times searching for inventive and intentional methods to collaborate and introduce ‘non-alcoholic’ areas to our communities,” Pablo Murillo, Bar Nuda co-founder says. “Our aim is to redefine an evening out and create a social secure area.” Bryant J. Orozco, previously of Mírame Beverly Hills and Madre Oaxacan Restaurant, creates drinks just like the Serenity Now! combining Drømme Calm, azahár, cold-brew barley tea, and coconut milk.
Ocean Seaside Cafe (San Francisco)
This sober-friendly hub situated in San Francisco’s Outer Richmond District makes it additional straightforward to seek out one thing scrumptious and zero-proof to imbibe. The café serves espresso and sandwiches alongside spirit-free takes on the Martini, spritz, French 75, in addition to beers and wines. Store the bottles or discover choices through the tasting room. There’s additionally an occasion area/invite-only lounge referred to as Temperance the place proprietor Joshua James hosts tastings and mixology lessons. These desirous to deliver the alcohol-free social gathering dwelling can join a wide range of month-to-month subscriptions—spirits, beer, or wine—which include advantages resembling limitless completely happy hours, reductions, and membership mixers.
Shirley’s Temple (Lengthy Seaside)
Named after the iconic drink, this new Lengthy Seaside, California, dry bar is a trendy spot the place the sober-curious can get pleasure from compelling spirit-free sips. Proprietor and bartender Essie Evans was bored with the uninspiring choices out there to those that don’t drink alcohol. Her bar opened in September however she’s aiming to develop her drink menu and replace it seasonally. For October, she made Ghouls & Glamour with housemade blackberry and sage syrup, lemon, Ghia soda non-alcoholic aperitif, and activated charcoal.
Florida
Bandbox (Orlando)
What began as an Artwork Deco-inspired artwork gallery advanced into an alcohol-free tasting room and bottle store when proprietor Kevin Zepf determined he wished to supply his friends NA alternate options. Now he presents a big selection of choices, together with a Spicy Margarita made with Ritual Tequila; bitters and tonic flights; CBD drinks, and wine and beer in his reservations-only tasting room.
Wildcrafters (Jacksonville)
Jacksonville’s first spirit-free bar, which opened its second location in August, has the vibe of a cocktail bar with stay music exhibits and an extended listing of inventive blended drinks. Sip on zero-proof takes on traditional cocktails, resembling a Clover Membership with Monday gin and a Manhattan with Ritual whiskey or Lyre’s American Malt. Or attempt the kava cocktails.
Georgia
The Sober Social (Atlanta)
Reasonably than working remotely from a espresso store, why not a dry bar with a menu of intriguing blended drinks? Positioned in an workplace and occasion area in downtown Atlanta, this intimate espresso and dry bar invitations friends to socialize or work over alcohol-free wine, beer, kava drinks, and “Sober Tails” like its booze-free takes on the Espresso Martini and a hibiscus Margarita. The bar has a social work membership with a day cross that features free Wi-Fi, an alcohol-free drink, and early entry, in addition to a month-to-month membership with further advantages.
Illinois
Bendición Dry Bar (Chicago)
Bendicíon’s aim is to create an area the place folks can get pleasure from a booze-free night time out. Reasonably than mixing drinks, they invite their clients to easily get pleasure from their bought drinks within the lounge. They host month-to-month occasions like a range present, e-book membership, and workshops. The shop carries a variety of no-alcohol beers, spirits, wines, and mixers from manufacturers owned by ladies and marginalized communities.
The Different Facet (Crystal Lake)
What began out within the early 2000s as a warehouse for storing equipment was reworked into Illinois’ first sober bar. Again then, recovering addict Chris Reed had leased the area for his building firm. However he and his buddies would additionally meet there after their 12-step conferences and referred to as it The Different Facet. Practically twenty years later and the idea has graduated to a espresso store in a extra central a part of city. They maintain restoration conferences in addition to welcome the group to socialize over espresso and drinks resembling Pica Pica, made with Seedlip Grove 42, tamarind, lime, pineapple, and jalapeño.
Kansas
Nostalgia Room (Lawrence)
Former bartender Emily Kate Johnson began her journey to sobriety in 2020 and pursued her dream to open her personal dry bar. Final December, she debuted Nostalgia Room, a comfortable spot embellished with classic furnishings the place she serves well-crafted NA takes on classics and signature drinks made with native elements and spirit alternate options. Her Martini is made with a mix of gin alternate options, Lyre’s blanc vermouth, natural tincture, plum vinegar, and olive brine.
Michigan
Oak Park Dry (Oak Park)
Kenny Showler opened Berkley Espresso/Oak Park Dry in 2021 as a mixture coffeehouse and dry bar to ease folks into the thought of the alcohol-free bar, the place one enterprise helps the opposite. Along with pour-over espresso, espresso drinks, and ice-blended coffees, the bar serves NA beer on faucet in addition to zero-proof canned and bottled beer, wine, plus NA variations of traditional cocktails. Keep for the stay music and a spirit-free Mai Tai or Amaretto Bitter. Peruse the bottle store to check out recipes at dwelling.
Nebraska
Dry Spokes (Omaha)
Mi-Ya Mata first obtained the thought to open a sober bar after listening to an NPR interview about Sans Bar in Austin, Texas. Caught at dwelling through the pandemic, she explored cocktail making utilizing the plethora of alcohol-free spirits beginning to hit the market. But it surely was her spouse, Leah, who satisfied her to open up Dry Spokes. The unique idea was merely as a spirit-free bottle store till the couple realized that most individuals wouldn’t know combine the choice spirits in drinks. Now the brick-and-mortar bar homes a small bottle store together with an area for stay occasions and socializing. The cocktails characteristic NA spirits like Monday mezcal in a Paloma and Clear R rum in a Darkish & Stormy.
New York
Hekate Café and Elixir Lounge (New York Metropolis)
This women-empowered neighborhood vacation spot is a specialty tea store and New York’s first sober bar, opened by Abby Ehmann, who additionally owns the bar Fortunate throughout the road. Drop by for comedy exhibits, e-book occasions, or perhaps a tarot card studying. Spirit-free sips embrace beer, Curious Elixirs bottled drinks, and cocktails like a spritz with Lyre’s Italian Spritz and NA Prosecco.
Hear Bar (New York Metropolis)
To see how a few of the finest bartenders round are utilizing NA spirits in cocktails, cease by one in all this buzzed-about sober bar‘s pop-ups. Hear Bar from founder Lorelei Bandrovschi hosts three to 4 occasions a 12 months, resembling a Sober October/Halloween blowout and an annual alcohol-free cocktail competitors. Their on-line menu, which is made by a who’s who of the cocktail world—together with menu director Pamela Wiznitzer, Jack McGarry, and Aaron Polsky—is only a pattern of the varieties of drinks they make, since they construct particular menus for every occasion. For many who don’t wish to watch for an occasion, order one (or all) of their cocktail tutorial movies from the web site to learn to make drinks by the likes of Shannon Tebay and Eamon Rockey. (Check out a Rockey NA cocktail right here.)
North Carolina
Umbrella Dry Bar (Raleigh)
This former pop-up dry bar partnered with backyard middle Norwood Gardens and constructed a spot on its grounds the place folks can get pleasure from nonalcoholic drinks, together with wine and cocktails like a marionberry sage collins, all whereas perusing the crops. The bar will open its personal brick-and-mortar retail area and dry bar, the primary of its type in Raleigh, this winter in time for Dry January.
Ohio
Verbena Shoppe, Cafe & Dry Bar (Cleveland)
Having taken over a former tea store in Cleveland’s Hingetown neighborhood, Verbena serves tea, drinks, and lunch bites through the day, then switches to a dry bar with drinks and appetizers within the night. The intimate however ethereal area options full seating, a bar space, and a bottle store. The “free-spirited cocktails,” as proprietor Molly Cheraso calls them, highlight NA alternate options like an Outdated Common with Spiritless Kentucky 74 bourbon and a Pimm’s Cup with Seedlip Backyard and Pathfinder.
Oregon
Wilderton Tasting Room (Hood River)
In July, Wilderton debuted the nation’s first NA distillery and tasting room. Created as a hub to coach these unfamiliar with NA alternate options and what to do with them, Wilderton hosts distillery excursions that finish with a go to to the tasting room. There, guests can discover a guided tasting and check out bottles in NA cocktails or a spritz flight, which features a Mai Tai spritz made with the bittersweet aperitivo, orgeat, and pineapple seltzer.
Pennsylvania
The Volstead by Unity (Philadelphia)
For founders Robert and Arielle Ashford, a dry bar was the right complement to their wellness enterprise, which consisted of a yoga studio, restoration middle, and vegan restaurant. The vegan restaurant and zero-proof bar, Philadelphia’s first, was created as an inclusive spot for non-drinkers to socialize over St. Agrestis Phony Negronis and NA Outdated Fashioneds. But it surely’s additionally welcoming to these in restoration or previously incarcerated, using them and paying a dwelling wage.
Texas
Sans Bar (Austin)
In 2017 Chris Marshall, a former dependancy counselor, arrange one of many nation’s first sober bars behind a hair salon in order that these in restoration would have a spot the place they may really feel a way of group. Now he’s taken Sans Bar throughout the nation, popping up in Portland, New York Metropolis, and LA. He’s trying to franchise the idea, however he additionally teaches programs on how these can begin their very own NA model or bar. The brick-and-mortar location in downtown Austin is open on Fridays and choose Saturday nights. For $25, it’s all-you-can-drink from the NA cocktail menu, which options drinks resembling a “Sans”-garita and an Outdated Common with Ritual Whiskey.
Washington, DC
Binge Bar
Like Mi-Ya Mata of Dry Spokes, Vergie “Gigi” Arandid was impressed to open her personal sober bar after studying about Austin’s Sans Bar in an airline journal on the way in which to the Dominican Republic. And in February, she launched a Filipino bistro and DC’s first alcohol-free bar in D.C.’s artsy H Road Hall, giving these searching for NA alternate options to the close by bars a spot to go. Company can get pleasure from drinks—just like the Inexperienced Apple Mule with a gin different, muddled mint and inexperienced apple, lemon, inexperienced apple puree, and ginger beer—whereas snacking on Filipino bites, resembling lumpia and seitan adobo. It’s now one in all Conscious Mixology creator Derek Brown’s favourite spirit-free locations to drink on the town.
Wisconsin
Inmoxicated (Racine)
As somebody who doesn’t drink alcohol, Shannon Goodman understands the challenges of desirous to socialize with buddies at a bar, so she based Inmoxicated, an 18-and-over “sobar” and bottle store in downtown Racine. By providing an alcohol-free inclusive area with karaoke, recreation nights, and month-to-month “soberversary” events, she hopes to normalize one’s choice to not drink. Whereas the bar serves spirit-free cocktails, together with an NA tackle the Wisconsin Outdated Common, the bottle store is touted as providing the area’s “largest and most various collection of alcohol-free drinks and alcohol-free beverage alternate options.”
