Updated May 10th 2024 – What are alcohol-free bars? Exactly what you think: it is a type of bar that does not serve alcoholic beverages! Other names for it are: Temperance Bar / Dry Bar / SoBar / Liquor-free Bar / Sober Bar / Teetotal Bar / Zero-proof Bar and Booze-free Bar.
Alcohol-free bars were quite popular back in 2021, when I originally wrote this article, as you can tell by the long list below. And I can understand why: it is SO nice to have a place where you can chill/hang out/meet people in a fun social setting, without any pressure or temptation to drink!! And to nót be surrounded by annoying drunk people –> Yep, they’re annoying and yep, I used to be one of them🤣
These bars are all open to both drinkers and non-drinkers, although I guess it is mainly a heavenly option for us non-drinkers. Below a list with all alcohol-free bars that I could find, organized by continent, so that you can locate the ones closest to you easily. Here we go…
EUROPE
Let´s start with all alcohol-free bars in the UK:
Rawtenstall —> In the UK you can find the oldest Temperance Bar around: Mr Fitzpatricks! This bar (see pic) was established in the late 1800s by the Fitzpatricks. They built a family-run chain of shops all over the UK that sold non-alcoholic drinks, herbal remedies and cordials. All brewed to the original recipes they brought from Ireland! Mr Fitzpatricks is still going strong and run by new owners nowadays. They are now also focusing on their Cordial range which you can find here.
Liverpool —> The Brink – The Brink has taken alcohol out of the mix and provides a truly welcoming, creative and intelligent space where people from all backgrounds and walks of life can dine, hang out, socialise and relax. They also offer fresh food with a great range of delicious non-alcoholic drinks. And since The Brink is a recovery social enterprise, all profits go directly back into the community to fund support for those who have suffered through alcoholism and addiction.
Nottingham —> Cafe Sobar – Cafe Sobar is a social enterprise run by local drug and alcohol recovery charity, Double Impact. They opened this place to help support their vital work with people whose lives have been devastated by addiction. It is a safe social space for people in recovery and their families and friends. Cafe Sobar offers superb food and a big selection of 100% alcohol-free drinks.
London —> Redemption Bar – This was a vegan resto-bar in the heart of the West End. Unfortunately, after over 8 years of trading, they had to close down their London restaurant, due to significant effects of the pandemic.
Londen —> Brewdog AF – This was the worlds first alcohol-free beer bar, with 15 taps pouring low-and-no craft beers in the centre of London. Unfortunately, after opening their second booze-free bar (in the US this time), they decided to close them. Brewdog still offers a lot of alcohol-free beer options in all their existing bars though.
Then the Alcohol-free Bars in the rest of Europe…
Ireland
Dublin —> The Virgin Mary Bar – The Virgin Mary opened its doors in May 2019. A gorgeously designed club-like bar that offered lots of high-quality non-alcoholic concoctions. It is the only alcohol-free bar I ever visited (so far!) and I was really impressed! There was a great atmosphere and the two alcohol-free cocktails that I tried were delicious. You can find a post on my Dublin visit here… Unfortunately The Virgin Mary closed its doors in 2023. Their online shop is still going though!
Germany
Berlin —> Zeroliq – Zeroliq is unfortunately closed now. It offered buzzy drinks with zero booze in a cosy atmosphere. Zeroliq had more than thirty non-alcoholic craft beers on offer plus a selection of premium wines, as well as cocktails and long drinks. What a shame…
US
The next place we visit is the US… ✈️
San Francisco, California —> Ocean Beach Café – A café by the beach opened and run by Joshua James after he discovered the life of not-drinking… Currently building the largest non-alcoholic beverage selection in the US (his words and it looks like he´s well on his way!). This community-driven hub also offers great food made from scratch & fresh roasted coffee.
Greenpoint, Brooklyn, NY —> Getaway Bar – A coffeeshop and alcohol-free general store with an elaborate drinks menu (varying from non-alcoholic spirits, wines and beers to Rosemary Lattes & Coffee Tonics – Yum!).
NYC —> Listen Bar – Listen Bar is a booze-free bar that went virtual after the pandemic. Now they are popping up all over NYC, and are offering online alcohol-free cocktail courses and virtual events. Listen also has an online shop with a good selection of alcohol-free drinks.
Jacksonville, Florida –> Wildcrafters – Jacksonville’s first non-alcoholic bar! Wildcrafters serves kava (nope not Cava, the Spanish sparkling wine!), teas, and booze-free craft cocktails for those who want a night out without the hangover.
Crystal Lake, Illinois —> The Other Side – The Other Side is a Sober bar in downtown Crystal Lake. The venue offers a relaxed atmosphere for people in recovery or living a sober lifestyle. Here you can enjoy a fun night out with likeminded people away from the pressures of drugs and alcohol.
Austin, Texas —> Sans Bar – The mission of Sans Bar is to create a safe and inviting atmosphere for people who want to have a good time without alcohol. Open on Fridays from 6pm-12pm, they are offering live music, karaoke, drag bingo, dance parties and more!
St Charles, Missouri —> The Mocktail Lounge – The founders of The Mocktail Lounge, Brandi and Jessica, saw a need for a swanky 40´s themed Mocktail Lounge, a place where everyone is welcome and drinks are fabulous. So that´s what they opened! Unfortunately the lounge is now permanently closed.
Fort Meyers, Florida —> Apothecary – Apothecary was created with the idea to bring awareness to the movement of conscious drinking. They offered a wide selection of spirit-free cocktails featuring zero-proof liquors by companies like Lyre’s and Ritual. Besides that they also served Kava, Kratom, Kombucha, CBD Seltzer, and Nitro Cold Brew. Unfortunately the Apothecary is now permanently closed.
Denver, Colorado —> Awake Denver – This was Colorado’s first sober bar and non-alcoholic bottle shop that opened in May 2021. Awake was a coffeehouse and non-alcoholic bottle shop by day and a sober bar serving zero-proof wine, beer and cocktails by night. Unfortunately Awake closed its doors in 2022. They said they might re-open on a new location.
Stuart, Florida —> Drink SoBar – They used to offer Sober pop-up events in Florida, but are currently rebranding into offering alcohol-free drink options on events that offer alcohol.
Davenport, Iowa —> UnImpaired – A Sober bar that offered high-quality non-alcoholic cocktails, all masterly crafted with non-alcoholic substitutes. They opened in September 2020, but both dry bar locations in Iowa City and Cedar Rapids, which were touted as alcohol-free social alternatives to the local nightlife scene, are both currently closed, and the future of the business overall remains unclear.
AUSTRALIA
And last but not least: Australia!
At the end of April 2021 Australia’s first-ever alcohol-free venue opened, in Brunswick:
Brunswick –> The Brunswick Aces Bar – Originally Australia’s first non-alcoholic bar based in Melbourne. They are now serving a rotating menu of 0% and full-alc beers, wines, cocktails, along with a range of bar snacks, all curated by the team behind Australia’s first zero alcohol gin, Brunswick Aces. It’s the only place (or so they claim!) where every drink on the menu is available in non-alcoholic and alcoholic options.
So, this was it for now… Hopefully many more will open in the future! I’m aware that quite a few of these establishments closed their doors in the few years since I wrote this article (9 out of 19 actually, which is 47%!), which is so very sad. Online sales of non-alcoholic drinks are BOOMING though (the alcohol-free segment in the US is currently $630 million, and is growing 30% year on year!), so let’s see where the alcohol-free bars are heading the coming years…
Happy Dry Bar hopping Sober Gang!🍸💕✨
PS: In 2015, New Zealand opened their first alcohol-free bar, called the Tap Bar (which stood for The After Party). But unfortunately the people in Auckland weren´t ready for this and the bar went out of business five weeks after it opened… Maybe 2024 is a good year to try it again?
