Drinking isn’t for everyone, but alcohol is everywhere, especially at social gatherings. So, it’s uniquely rad that Omaha bars are starting to take their non-alcoholic (N/A) beverages more seriously, and even dedicated sober drinking spots are popping up.
If you want to keep your Sober January energy going well into the new year, here are ten spots where you can find great non-alcoholic drinks near you. Just remember that there is still a marginal percentage of real alcohol in the drinks (around 0.5%).
Dry Spokes
Dry Spokes: 1901 Leavenworth St |(402) 281-3906
Dry Spokes is known for offering a premium space for craft mocktails, non-alcoholic beers, and non-alcoholic spirits or wines. They offer a wide variety, and everything is crafted specifically for sober people, making it an ideal spot to take refuge for those looking to maximize their distance from alcohol or casually enjoy a night free from partying.
Located downtown, Dry Spokes opened less than a year ago, in April 2022. The idea behind creating the dry bar was to promote equity for sober people. It’s a rad thing because almost anything you go to these days—such as an amazing restaurant, concert, or open mic—has booze.
Speaking of open mics, Dry Spokes started hosting one weekly, on Thursday, so make sure to check that out, as well as other live musical events. Stay updated by following their social media.
Mercury
- Mercury: 329 S 16th St #3 | (402) 999-7448
Mercury is another downtown bar known for its cocktails, but unlike the others, this one is known for its zero-proof mocktails being just as tasty and dependable. So if you are in the Old Market and want a fancy sober drink, maybe some eats, head inside.
Always one for re-invention, Mercury creates a new drink menu about three times per year. From there, there is at least one creative mocktail that you can pick choose, though there are often two listed.
One such mocktail on their drink menu is the Safeword, made up of three citrus shrubs, grapefruit, ginger, and—wait for it—sparkles. It costs as much as any other cocktail on the menu: $13.
Outside of that, Mercury has a large selection of fresh citrus juice, house-made syrups, infusions, purees, and several Sandhills Elixirs (local N/A spirits). So, they can always make or pour you something zero-proof off the menu.
The Casual Pint
- The Casual Pint: 8718 Countryside Plaza|(402) 919-7468
The Casual Pint is known for offering their thirsty guests prime patio real estate and a consistently wide-range of draft and bottled beers. But the feeling of the bar taking care of you with a refreshing drink in a chill atmosphere isn’t only afforded to those looking to get inebriated.
Now, Casual Pint does offer some mocktails, but the true seller is its N/A selection. Because if you are a fan of non-alcoholic beers, which sport a familiar taste to the real stuff and almost none of the alcohol, they have a unique and comparatively extensive selection of alcohol-free beers.
The Pint, as it is sometimes casually referred to, carries 10-15 N/A beer options on any given day. The bar constantly rotates out its selection, just like they do with their standard beers. Most of the non-alcoholic brews are in the $3-$4 range.
Jake’s Cigars & Spirits
- Jake’s: 6206 Maple St|(402) 934-9633
Jake’s Cigars & Spirits is known in Lincoln and Omaha’s thriving Benson area for being one of the last bars around that you can smoke inside. If you are a cigar connoisseur or just a smoker who wants to smoke indoors, now you can—while also enjoying a sober drink.
For N/A beer, Jake’s Cigar Bar carries two unique breweries: WellBeing Brewing Company (based in St. Louis, Missouri) and Athletic Brewing. They swap out styles from both quite regularly, and both cost 5$ a can. For other non-alcoholic retail drinks, the cigar pub carries Cultiva cold brew coffee, La Croix, and Dram CBD seltzers in rotating flavors.
But Jake’s also has a seasonal menu, which always features at least two N/A cocktails built using the bar’s eclectic collection of juices or syrups. These mocktails make creative use of celery-dill-caraway tonic syrup with Lagunitas hop water and fig cinnamon balsamic syrup with Seedlip and soda.
Krug Park
- Krug Park: 6205 Maple St | (402) 932-0038
Krug Park is typically known for serving Bloody Marys that taste unique, possibly like something you’ve never tried before. Their titular blend is something that fans swear by.
For one sober offering, they carry nitrogenated cold brew coffee, a liquid that’s tasty cold, with super hyper-caffeinated powers. And though the bar does offer some online delivery options, you have to order the nitro coffee directly from the bar if you want to pick up some. It’s made fresh from Archetype Coffee, so it’s most definitely delicious and worth the trip.
But if straight-up N/A beers are what you are after, the bar has several Athletic Brewing (based in Stratford, Connecticut) options in cans, ranging from IPAs to stouts. If you are in the mood for mocktails, Krug Park does not offer an official list, but the bartenders will whip something up for you on the spot.
Berry & Rye
- Berry & Rye: 1105 Howard St | (402) 613-1331
Berry & Rye, located in the Old Market, is known for their cocktails and retro-chic vibe. And though the bar doesn’t have an official menu of non-alcoholic cocktails (or mocktails) in rotation, it is Berry & Rye’s philosophy that your beverage shouldn’t be any less exciting than one that contains alcohol.
And you couldn’t find a better spot where bartenders can whip something up to your liking, as the company is frequently experimenting with new cocktail ideas. Berry & Rye’s bar consistently keeps a mix of ingredients on deck to make N/A cocktails.
What flavors are you most fond of? Once the bartender knows what flavor profiles you are after, they can make you a mocktail, with prices usually ranging from $6-$9.
However, Berry & Rye does have at least one N/A beer, the Boulevard Flying Start IPA.
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema La Vista
- Alamo Drafthouse: 12750 Westport Pkwy | (402) 505-9979
In the age of streaming, some people are taking to movie theaters like never before, breathing some much-needed life into the cinema experience. But the film revival is, fascinatingly, coinciding with a newfound appreciation for sobriety.
After all, for many movie-goers, it is a huge plus if you can order from the bar before or during the flick you are catching. But if you want a non-alcoholic beverage, that can be a bit trickier to find: not only are mocktails scarce in general, but most cinemas do not advertise much more than soda when it comes to knocking back sober drinks.
Luckily, Alamo Drafthouse has you covered, stocking a few N/A beers on deck. Alamo currently features 2 N/A beers: Lagunitas Hoppy Refresher IPA (which is also gluten-free) and Athletic Lite. Both cost $6.00 each.