Just after ringing in 2024 at midnight last New Year’s Eve, we noticed an end-cap at Target dedicated solely to canned mocktails and sparkling adaptogenic wellness drinks. Even Central Market has a shelf that neighbors cocktail mixers devoted to zero-proof spirits and alcohol-free options alone.
If the “sleepy girl mocktail” trend from TikTok from earlier this year and books released in recent years like Holly Whitaker’s Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed with Alcohol or Sienna Green’s Why Don't You Drink Alcohol?: 101 Ways To Say I Quit Drinking Alcohol Without It Being Awkward (Sort of) are any indication, we seem to have found ourselves in an alcohol-free renaissance of sorts.
More people, especially young adults, are embracing sobriety — or just cutting back — as a form of self-care; regardless of the reason, it’s not always simple to execute. However, Beyond the Bar is trying to make it easier.
Snug Space's social media proves there's a market for it. The place hosts plenty of events from sober karaoke and mocktail making classes (which are very reasonably priced at $20, we might add, for two mocktails and the knowledge required to make them). Other "sober socials" offered include yoga, rock painting and button making. Plus, its drink offerings are infinitely more delicious than sparkling water with a lime or two thrown in it.
When we stopped, the servers were kind and knowledgeable. After going over some preferences, they guided us through options and offered samples. Danny Trejo’s line of zero-proof spirits is carried alongside Monday, Ritual and many more.
We selected a canned drink from Good Spirits called the French Exhale with lemon, lavender, hemp and valerian root, which was a spot-on recommendation. We sampled Monday’s zero-proof whiskey, which convincingly tasted like a mixed drink with a touch of afterburn and notes of coffee. We also detected a touch of what might be licorice root.
We were asked whether we’d like to have our drinks there or to go. The space is so comfortable that we opted to have them there. After our drink was poured into a glass on the rocks and topped off with a paper straw, we sat snugly (pun not necessarily intended) until we were finished without feeling the slightest bit rushed. It felt much like being hosted in someone’s home.
And we're very shy, but the sober karaoke is tempting even to us. You can keep up with Beyond the Bar and Snug Space on Instagram. We'd say it's worth not only a follow, but a visit as well.
Beyond the Bar and Snug Space, 101 S. Sherman St., Richardson. Tuesday – Thursday, noon – 7 p.m.; Friday –Saturday, noon – 8 p.m.; Sunday, noon – 5 p.m.; closed Monday.
