Sometimes, the hardest part about not drinking isn’t the not drinking itself. While there is an element of chemical dependency on the sugars in alcohol and addiction runs through the neural pathways in your brain, one of the hardest parts about trying not to drink is often giving up the habit. You want to go to your favorite bar. You want to pour yourself a glass of wine at 5PM exactly. Those habits are dependencies too. Where should you go out? What can you drink instead? These Pittsburgh bars and cafés have an answer for Dry January or sober options.
In an interview with writer A.J. Delaurio on the podcast Search Engine, host PJ Vogt and Delaurio laugh about the fact that for sober people in twelve-step programs, Dry January is a little bit like when suddenly weightlifters see that everyone else is in the gym when the new year hits. Doing Dry January is very different than committing to a life of sobriety. But it’s an interesting way to examine your habits. If you’re not drinking this month, consider going to these bars and cafés to meet up with friends and think of cutting out alcohol as a way to seek out new experiences.
Some Tips for Cutting Down or Quitting Drinking, Dry January or Otherwise
- Familiarize yourself with non-alcoholic options. Many popular beer brands like Heineken and Athletic Brewing Company carry a non-alcoholic variety. There are a number of non-alcoholic spirits out there. Try some and figure out what you like and don’t like so you know what to order at bars or restaurants. Or, ask bartenders!
- Find others to relate to your experience. Podcasts, books, and social media can be a way to find ways to contextualize quitting drinking. I write about liquor and wine for a living, but writers and podcasters like Sarah Hepola, Clementine Morrigan, Bridget Phetasy, Katie Herzog, and Paul Gilmartin still offer interesting perspectives to me on why they drank and why they quit.
- If you really need it, get help. Twelve step programs exist for a reason and if you truly feel you are endangering yourself and others with drinking and need to quit, as Alcoholics Anonymous says of their program: “it works if you work it.” The Pittsburgh office of Alcoholics Anonymous makes meeting times available online.
- Find joy in other things. Maybe this sounds obvious, but focusing on the pleasure of eating a hearty meal or a doing a refreshing workout can replace the dopamine hit of alcohol.
- Know your why. The person who wants to lose a little weight has different needs than the person confronting an addiction. Both are real reasons to cut down on alcohol or quit. But knowing why you’re doing it can help guide whether you want mocktails, tea, sparkling water, or need to stop going out for a bit entirely.
Sober Night Out Options in Pittsburgh for Dry January and Beyond
Harold’s Haunt
142 Grant Avenue
Once a month, Harold’s Haunt holds Sober Sunday where the entire bar serves non-alcoholic drinks, turning sober beverages from a menu sideline to the main stage. You can check their calendar for when the next one will be! It’s typically the first and last Sunday of the month, and features drag performances, karaoke, and other all-ages fun. But during regular hours, their non-alcoholic menu is still one of the best and most inclusive in the city.
Goodlander Cocktail Brewery
6614 Hamilton Avenue
Goodlander’s Oolong Seltzer is a personal favorite of mine for times when I’m not drinking. It has zero sugar, but the oolong tea gives it more of a flavor than a simple club soda and lime. Their Roselle is another delicious option if you want a slight fruit kick to what you’re drinking but again, not too much sugar. You can also buy all of these drinks in growlers to-go if you’d like to enjoy them at home.
Jackworth Ginger Beer
6615 Hamilton Avenue
Just across the street from Goodlander, Jackworth Ginger Beer has both alcoholic and non-alcoholic ginger beers. They’re the only ginger beer brewery in Pennsylvania and take pride in the craft of what they make. The extra-spicy ginger beer is especially good if your taste buds are brave. For the month of January, every drink on Jackworth’s menu can be turned into a mocktail. The founder proclaimed on social media “Whether you’re dry, damp, soberish, or not, you’re all welcome here at Jackworth Ginger Beer.”
Bantha Tea Bar
5002 Penn Avenue
Part of Bantha Tea Bar’s ethos was to create a space where people could hang out without drinking. On cold nights when regulars have all gotten out from work, it’s often rowdier than most bars, and though it officially closes at 7, that’s often a suggestion, particularly with live experimental music, art shows, and social meetups after hours. Owner Jack Ball serves kava, a mild stimulant from the South Pacific popular in New York and Florida as an alcohol alternative, as well as artisanal tea.
Fet-Fisk
4786 Liberty Avenue
Fet-Fisk recently made a statement that along with their existing non-alcoholic options sourced from Goodlander, they’ve added a “unique, nonalcoholic, botanical beverage that pairs well with food without skimping on flavor.” Enter Villbrig, “Nordic nature in a bottle” that perfectly aligns with Fet-Fisk’s Nordic-agriculture driven concept. What makes this offering so special is that it lines up with the chef-driven menu, rather than being an outlier. Like wine, Villbrigg tonics offer a sense of terroir and a connection to the earth. Their Fjell 01 is a “wild lingonberries, birch leaves, rosemary, lemongrass. recommended by villbrygg as a refreshing, lightly bitter alternative to red wine.”
61C & Dobra Tea
1839 Murray Avenue & 1937 Murray Avenue
Though these are both cafés, they warrant inclusion because they serve one of the struggles of not drinking: Where can you go after 8PM to simulate that post-meal barhopping? Or maybe you’re just bored after dinner and don’t want to go straight home, but the only things open are bars. 61C stops serving at 9PM, one of the few coffeeshops in Pittsburgh to do so. Just down the street, Dobra Tea serves food and tea until 10, often with guests still there well past that. These are both great after-dinner options in the East End if you want to avoid bars entirely and still have a nice beverage.
The Open Road
3512 Butler Street
The Open Road is a “non-alcoholic bottle shop” that plans to move to a permanent storefront in Garfield, but right now resides in Lower Lawrenceville. Wine Enthusiast, Food & Wine, and Vinepair all agree that the non-alcoholic bottle shop is one way to make sober living more integrated into everyday retail and dining. The Open Road actually launched as a Dry January pop-up bar in January 2020 out of founder Mel Babitz’s desire to still live out the fun of her twenties without drinking alcohol. They’re a fun way to customize what you’re drinking without drinking alcohol.
Katrina Tomacchio’s Pittsburgh Mocktail Meetup
Various locations
Restauranteur Katrina Tomacchio hosts a monthly happy hour-style “mocktail meetup” for non-drinkers and the sober curious. The meetups are free to attend, no RSVP required, and promise fun conversation and new friends. Quitting drinking can be hard, and finding people to talk to about it can be a way to make it easier and more fun.
Story by Emma Riva
Photo courtesy of The Open Road
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