If you combine the 30% of young people choosing not to drink with designated drivers, you already end up with a large swathe of people looking to socialise without alcohol. When it comes to bars perfect for a designated driver, Brighton, well-known for its acceptance and love of alternative lifestyles, is leading the charge.
Discover Bars in Brighton offering Mocktail and Alcohol-free drink Options perfect for a designated driver
Changing trends have led to a boom in non-alcoholic drinks in our supermarkets, and now bars and restaurants are offering more interesting choices to customers than a soda with lime. It is probably about time too as non-drinkers are frequently frustrated by having to choose between a fruit juice or the only non-alcoholic beer on the menu.
Brighton is one of few UK cities with its very own non-alcoholic bar – located in Kemptown. And that’s probably the perfect place for our list of bars for designated drivers to begin.
Torstigbar
Whether you’re teetotal, doing Sober October or driving for the night, the first place you should visit is Brighton’s first low-alcohol bar and bottle shop. Torstigbar takes soft drinks to the next level by offering a heady mix of cocktails infused with mood-boosting extracts such as CBD, lion’s mane, naturally occurring caffeine and ashwagandha. The bar provides not only a tasty beverage sophistically presented but drinks that can leave you with a buzz or a sense of calm.
When you’ve been used to a small selection of non-alcoholic drinks, the menu can at times make you feel like you are in an exclusive health retreat or coffee shop in Amsterdam, rather than a bar. The creative choices on offer are endless with the bar even providing Guinness O on draught, the only non-alcoholic draught machine in the country.
There is an extraordinarily large range of non-alcoholic beers and ciders too, which will delight those often stuck with Becks Blue or Heineken O.O. Cocktails include the delightfully tasty Bliss (CBD chocolate spice) and a host of rum, gin, whisky and vodka alternatives. You can even add 8mg of CBD to any drink for an additional fee.
Torstigbar is run by couple Luke and Emmi Cousins, who after quitting the heavy-drinking scene of London, decided to set up a bar that clearly cares and caters for non-drinkers. They also care about local manufacturers and despite its Danish name (which means thirsty), the ambition is to keep to local British brands, with around 75% of its range coming from the UK.
Situated on a quiet residential road, there is a peaceful vibe about the venue with plenty of board games available. It’s the strange sort of environment that welcomes both a sole traveller reading a book as well as a group of people wanting a more lively evening. The exciting menu makes it somewhere you’re likely to meet new people as the sight of your beautiful drink arriving provides a great conversation starter. Therefore, Torstigbar feels like the kind of bar where you may leave with a new favourite drink, as well as a new friend.
Location: 45 George St, Kemptown, Brighton and Hove, BN2 1RJ
Website: www.torstigbar.com
Nautilus Lounge
Only a two-minute stroll away from Torstigbar, Nautilius Lounge is another perfect destination for a designated driver. In the heart of Brighton, the bar’s cocktails are so good they were recently commended in Bravo Awards’ Top 10 in Brighton.
With a fun, nautical, 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea vibe, the basement bar ramps up the sophistication with dedicated table service. If you picture large old-fashioned maps of the world, colourful Tiffany lamps and cosy, retro leather sofas, you’ll start to envisage the bar created by proprietor Steve Lee.
Lots of love and care has been put into the bar’s mocktails with delicious options including a Virgin Mary, Espresso Mocktini, Pure Pinacolada and a Black Forest Cocktail. The mocktails and other low alcoholic beverages such as Adnams Ghost Ship 0.5 and Becks Blue can be consumed with a selection of Nautilus Nibbles to go on the side.
As well as a range of mocktails, there’s also a range of entertainment available at Nautilus Lounge with a Quiz Night on Monday, an Open Mic night on Sunday and entertainment evenings on Thursdays. The bar is closed on Tuesday and Wednesday for private hire, but every Friday and Saturday resident musicians are to be found tinkling the ivories of a much-loved Baby Grand piano.
Address: 129-130 St James Street, Brighton, BN2 1TH
Website: https://nautiluslounge.com/
Gungho!
Putting sustainability and local produce at the heart of its offering, GungHo is another unique, must-visit cocktail bar in Brighton. Passionate about zero waste, local foraging and intelligent pairings, owner Julien Barnett and his team have created a bar that has won numerous awards for its drinks. From green strawberries to chicory root, seasonality is extremely important and at GungHo nothing goes to waste with ingredients such as coffee grinds and mint stems all having a second use.
The drinks menu is split into three subcategories: Revised Disco Drinks, Seasonal Cocktails and The Apothecary. Filled with soft drinks exploiting powerful plants for hedonistic and other beneficial effects, The Apothecary is where the designated drivers are most likely to look.
Drinks come under attention-grabbing categories such as aphrodisiac, anti-inflammatory and serotonin-boosting and include ingredients such as lion’s mane, cacao, turmeric and kombucha. More traditional options such as elderflower, lemon, ginger and Italian Orange are also available.
As well as effort being invested into making drinks sustainable, the interior of the bar runs on the same zero-waste principles with the bar being powered by renewable energy and built from reclaimed woods. Low-lit Neon lights manage to create both a fun atmosphere inside the bar but also the right mood for intimate drinks and an escapist feel.
Address: 36 Preston Street, Brighton, BN1 2HP
Website: https://restaurantsbrighton.co.uk/gung-ho-brighton/
Brewdog Brighton
There are not many bars in Brighton offering such a wide selection of non and low-alcoholic beers than craft specialists BrewDog. Leaving their mark in the off-trade market, BrewDog’s Nanny State and Punk IPA Alcohol-Free have been familiar brands on supermarket shelves for years.
However, step into BrewDog in Brighton and there’s much more than that on offer – with 13 beers available at a 4% or lower ABV. These include fruity options such as Framboise (2.5% ABV), Cassis (3.5% ABV), Pink Lemonade (4%), Cherry on Top (4%), Timmerman’s Strawberry Lambicus (4%), Pineapple Punch (4%) and Dead & Berried Mixed Berry (4%). The lowest alcoholic drinks are Nanny State, Punk IPA and Lost Alcohol-Free – all at 0.5%.
However, the drinks are only part of the attraction at BrewDog’s with the fun cinema-style menu boards, sleek bar and trendy craft drinkers also part of the appeal. And BrewDog also provides some finger-licking food that is perfect to go with their beers, including burgers, world-famous wings and loaded fries – as well as plant-based alternatives.
An all-you-can-eat wings deal is available for customers on Wednesdays as well as 2-4-1 vegan options on Mondays. Bottomless brunch is hosted on Saturday and Sunday until 4 pm with bottomless pints of Punk IPA, Punk AF or Prosecco thrown into the mix.
Address: Hectors House, 52-54 Grand Parade, Brighton, BN2 9QA
Website: https://www.brewdog.com/uk/brewdog-brighton
Heavenly Desserts
Perhaps not your traditional bar, but certainly a place where a driver or teetotaller can get their taste buds humming. Located on London Road, there is an endless list of tantalising drinks available at this high-end desserts restaurant.
Despite being part of a chain of over 50 locations in the UK, each Heavenly outlet is unique in its interiors, décor and identity. There is a refined, elegant evening feel to the establishment that places it somewhere between the restaurant and bar space.
Once you’ve chosen your sundae or cake of choice, there is an extensive range of signature iced drinks that include the likes of an Iced Rose & Lychee Martini, Espresso Crème Martini, Saffron Spanish Iced Latte and a Pistachio Spanish Iced Latte.
That’s just the beginning of the drinks menu, which also extends into a decadent choice of milkshakes, smoothies and a range of craft mojitos and lemonades. Watermelon, pomegranate, and passion fruit are all flavours of non-alcoholic mojitos available.
One of the advantages of going to Heavenly Desserts over the previously mentioned bars is the fact it has a much wider selection of warm drinks on offer. Regular hot chocolate, espressos and flat whites are available alongside more daring choices such as a dirty chai or saffron latte.
There is also a selection of tea infusions which include Earl Grey, peppermint tea and a host of other flavours. Whether you are a dessert lover, drink lover or both, all your creamy wishes and dreams will be satisfied here – and with purely non-alcoholic drinks on the menu – you will also be the perfect chauffeur for your friends on the way home.
Address: 119 London Rd, Brighton, Brighton and Hove, BN1 4JH
Website: https://www.heavenlydesserts.co.uk
