Where to drink during Dry January

11 more Houston establishments mixing up Dry January mocktails

Brasserie 19's “l’spresso martiNO” is a virgin remix of the popular espresso martini.

Courtesy of The Vivant Agency

Good news for Houstonians committed to going spirit-free this month. Houston’s food and drink scene continues to deliver innovative, zero-proof beverages that ensure Dry January is anything but boring. To build on our previous list of 15 Houston bars and restaurants with Dry January drinks, we’ve rounded up 11 more local spots crafting creative mocktails worth trying — whether you’re exploring sobriety, abstaining to start the year, or simply searching for a unique drink.

Better Luck Tomorrow
Known for its relaxed and welcoming vibe, Better Luck Tomorrow is offering six $9 spirit-free drinks, including a cold brew Old Fashioned. Warm up with a turmeric, ginger, and apricot toddy, or indulge in a hot chocolate enhanced with cinnamon, orange, and lingonberry cream.

Brasserie 19
For those who are up every night thinking about espresso martinis, Brasserie 19 has crafted the “l’spresso martiNO,” a virgin remix of the popular beverage.

Photo by The Vivant Agency

Brasserie 19 offers a “l’spresso martiNO,” a virgin remix of the popular espresso martini.

Coltivare
Coltivare has teamed up with Sipple, a non-alcoholic bottle shop in Rice Village, for a Dry January list of seven cocktails and five beer and wine selections. Mocktails include the “et tu, Brute?” ($13), with the bitter Amaro Lucano Zero balanced by the brightness of Lyre's Italian Spirit and Topo Chico. “In the city” ($13), delivers on winter flavors with Seedlip 94’s aromatic allspice and cardamom notes, combined with vanilla, cranberry, and ginger.

Echoes
For a sweet treat, order the “lady marmalade” at Echoes. This mocktail features espresso, chocolate syrup, and crushed Oreos. Floral flavors are delivered with the “never promised you a rose garden” drink of rose tonic, hibiscus, and lychee. While the “dolce vita” brings to mind an orange push pop thanks to its ingredients of tamarind and melon syrup, mandarin and bergamot soda, and heavy cream.

Guard and Grace
The chilled “burnt sugar espresso” at this downtown steakhouse is a caffeine lover’s dream, with its mixture of espresso and Earl Grey with cinnamon and cream. The playful “rocking cherry blossom” combines tart cherry, lychee yogurt, fizzy water, and pop rocks for a fun, nostalgic sip. Or escape to the tropics without leaving the loop with the “tropical tango,” a vibrant mocktail of pineapple, lime, coconut, and ginger beer.

JŪN
Known for blending the cultural backgrounds of chefs Evelyn Garcia and Henry Lu in both its food and drinks, this Heights hotspot will celebrate its two year anniversary next month. Try the “oye morro,” a creation of Salvadoran horchata, coconut milk, lime, and pineapple gomme syrup, or the “n/a michelada,” a Topo Chico elixir infused with fish sauce, hoisin, chili, and lime.

Late August
Helmed by chefs Chris Williams and Sergio Hidalgo, Late August delivers Afro-Latin fusion cuisine with cocktails to compliment. For January, order the Savannah, a rich beverage of herbed peach syrup and candied ginger beer ($8), or the nopalito, a refreshing beverage of prickly pear, orange juice, and habanero tincture with a Tajin rim ($7).

Lee’s
Formerly the wine bar Lees Den, the newly-revamped Lee’s opened this month next to its sister restaurant Milton’s. For Dry January, enjoy zero-proof beer, wine, or mocktails like the Verjus and aperitivo spritz. For those who want to take the sober party home, pick up Lee’s bottled mocktail, the “St. Agrestis phony negroni,” at the Local Foods Market below the bar.

Milton’s
At this American trattoria, diners are greeted with a glass of rubycello, the house aperitivo designed to stimulate the appetite. To “non-proof” the aperitivo, opt for a zero-proof botanical spirit. Alternatively, indulge in Milton’s “cafe noncoretto,” which can be made sans alcohol and features pistachio milk, brown sugar, and almonds. It is served hot in a frozen espresso cup.

Postino
This is Postino’s first venture into the world of zero-proof cocktails, with the wine cafe launching a lineup of five zero-proof cocktails. Highlights include “the glow-up,” with fresh cucumber, mint, lime, and ginger beer, along with “the mockingbird” made with pineapple, Italian orange, and toasted almond bitters. Non-alcholic wines and beers are also available.

Verde Garden
Known for its 12 frozen, made-to-order margaritas, Verde Garden also has spirit-free options for Dry January. Try the zero-proof tequila creations like the “sugar skull” ($13), with pineapple and watermelon, or the “te adoro” ($12), featuring grapefruit and fruit punch. Or skip the taste of tequila for the “como la flor” ($13) which mixes orange, grenadine, and ginger beer with zero-proof gin.

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bring on the Bacalhau

Michelin-starred Houston restaurant heads to Portugal for new season

Photo by Zach Horst

No conversation about Houston’s best restaurants would be complete without mentioning March, Goodnight Hospitality’s Mediterranean-inspired, fine dining, tasting menu restaurant in Montrose.

For its 12th season, which begins this Friday, August 7, March will take a broad look at Portugal. Over the course of pre-dinner snacks in its lounge, seven courses in its dining room, and take away desserts, chef-partner Felipe Riccio and his team will guide diners through all aspects of Portuguese cuisine, including its trade routes with China, India, and North Africa.

Riccio tells CultureMap that Portugal was the logical follow up to March’s 11th season, which examined northern Spain. He began the research process a few months ago, drawing upon published literature, cookbooks, and his own experiences as a stage at a restaurant in Lisbon. More than a menu update, seasons at March also include changes to the beverage offerings and creating service touches that enhance the experience.

Photo by Zach Horst

Rabbit cozido.

“Portugal is so close geographically to the north of Spain, and there’s a lot of similarities,” he says. “The menu really explores a lot of places outside of the Mediterranean where the Portuguese had influence and were influenced by. It’s all these trade routes.”

Priced at $230 plus drinks, tax, and gratuity, a meal at March begins in the lounge with four snacks, including a peri peri-spiced duck rillette, a delicate tart with lobster and caviar, a tempura-fried fish (peixinhos da horta) and the Macau-inspired porcho balichao made with manilla clams.

As always, March brings premium ingredients to its take on classic dishes. For example, it sources Japanese Almaco Jack for a crudo that’s inspired by Portuguese salt cod (bacalahua). Cozido, a slow-cooked stew that’s a staple of Portuguese cooking, gets reinterpreted as a house made rabbit sauce with foie gras. Riccio acknowledges that diners expect a certain level of luxury at this price point, but diners may not always realize how valuable properly-sourced ingredients are.

“I don’t think it always has to be so overt. I think the majority of people, the experience as a whole delivers that value,” Riccio says.

Similarly, the Portugal menu continues March’s move to a set, seven-course menu instead of giving diners the choice of either six or nine courses. Riccio see that as another sign of the restaurant’s maturity.

“A tasting menu is restrictive. We needed to earn that trust and give people options. I felt like people trust us and we’ve proved we can create an experience,” he says.

Since part of the criteria for a Michelin star is consistency across visits, March’s ability to hold its star while still changing its menu twice a year is a testament to the kitchen’s skill. Add in the server’s deep knowledge of every dish on the menu, its comprehensive beverage offerings, and a dining room that features museum- quality art, and it’s reasonable to think that March might become Texas’ first restaurant to earn a two-star rating. For his part, Riccio would welcome the recognition.

“I think March as an entire experience, as a restaurant day-in and day-out, we can be at that level. We strive to give people that experience to where they have that menu and feel it’s well worth it,” he says. “That recognition. I’ve seen what it means for the team, for the guests, and for the validation of the experience, and, obviously, for my career and the restaurant as a business.”

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