The Virgin Classics
Virgin Paloma
The paloma — not the margarita — is Mexico's most-ordered tequila cocktail, and the alcohol-free version proves how durable the template is. Fresh grapefruit juice supplies the drink's entire personality: bright acidity up front, floral perfume through the middle, and a pleasantly bitter grip from the pith on the finish. Lime sharpens that acidity into focus, agave nectar rounds off the bitter edges, and a stream of cold sparkling water stretches it all into a tall, quenching highball. The salted rim is doing real work, too — salt suppresses bitterness and makes the grapefruit taste riper than it is, which matters even more in a mocktail with no spirit to fill out the mid-palate.
This is the drink for taco night, a hot patio afternoon, or any zero-proof menu that needs something tart and grown-up next to the sweeter options. One point of technique worth being stubborn about: squeeze the grapefruit yourself. Bottled juice loses the volatile citrus oils that make a paloma smell like a paloma, and the drink turns flat and candy-ish without them. Salt only half the rim while you're at it, so every sip can be taken with salt or without.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Total
- 5 min
- Makes
- 1 drink
- Calories
- ~100 per serving
Ingredients
- 3 oz (90 ml) fresh grapefruit juice (about 1/2 large grapefruit)
- 3/4 oz (22 ml) fresh lime juice
- 1/2 oz (15 ml) agave nectar, or to taste
- 3 oz (90 ml) chilled sparkling water or club soda, to top
- Ice cubes, to fill
- Kosher or flaky sea salt, for the rim
- Lime wedge, for the rim
- Grapefruit wedge or half-wheel, to garnish
How to make it
- 1
Salt the rim
Run the lime wedge around half the outside rim of a chilled highball glass, then roll the moistened edge through a small plate of kosher salt. Salting only half keeps every sip optional.
- 2
Dissolve the agave
Add the grapefruit juice, lime juice, and agave nectar to the glass and stir until the agave fully dissolves. It combines far more easily before the ice goes in.
- 3
Add the ice
Fill the glass to the top with fresh, solid ice cubes.
- 4
Top with soda
Pour in the chilled sparkling water and give the drink one gentle lift with a bar spoon to integrate it without knocking out the bubbles.
- 5
Garnish and serve
Perch a grapefruit wedge on the rim and serve immediately, while the soda is at full fizz.
Bartender’s notes
- Ruby red grapefruit makes a sweeter, rounder paloma; white grapefruit is sharper and more bitter. Taste the juice before committing to the full 1/2 oz (15 ml) of agave.
- Everything cold: chill the glass, the soda, even the juice. With no spirit in the glass, warm ingredients melt ice fast and the drink dilutes into blandness before it's half finished.
- A grapefruit soda shortcut works in a pinch — skip the grapefruit juice, agave, and sparkling water and top the lime juice with 4 oz (120 ml) of a good grapefruit soda — but the fresh-juice build has far more aroma.
- For a cantarito-style riff, add a squeeze of fresh orange and serve in a clay cup; the earthenware keeps the drink noticeably colder in the sun.
Variations
- Zero-proof tequila paloma: stir 1 1/2 oz (45 ml) Ritual Zero Proof Tequila Alternative, Free Spirits The Spirit of Tequila, or Lyre's Agave Blanco into the citrus base for the agave-and-white-pepper backbone of the original.
- Spicy paloma: muddle two or three thin jalapeño coins with the lime juice before building, and swap the plain salt rim for a chili-lime salt.
- No squeezing required: Parch makes agave-based sparkling mocktails in the paloma family — pour one over ice with a salted rim and a grapefruit wedge for a two-minute version.
Bottles that make it better
Non-alcoholic brands from our directory that fit this build — each page lists where to find them near you.
Ritual Zero Proof
0.5% ABV or less
Chicago-based, restaurant-favorite NA spirit line. Their Tequila and Whiskey alternatives are built to disappear into Margaritas and Old Fashioneds.
Where to find Ritual Zero Proof →Free Spirits
Less than 0.5% ABV (approx. 0.2%)
Distilled non-alcoholic spirits with added B-vitamins and amino acids. Spirit of Tequila and Spirit of Gin are the workhorses of the lineup.
Where to find Free Spirits →Lyre's
0.5% ABV or less (individual spirits test under 0.3%–0.4% ABV)
Award-winning NA range that mirrors classics: American Malt (whiskey), Italian Orange (Aperol), Dry London Spirit (gin). The widest classic-cocktail toolkit on the market.
Where to find Lyre's →Parch
Less than 0.5% ABV (non-alcoholic)
Arizona-born non-alcoholic agave canned cocktails inspired by the Sonoran Desert, made with organic blue weber agave, prickly pear and desert botanicals, and dosed with adaptogens instead of alcohol.
Where to find Parch →Rather have it made for you?
These verified bars and restaurants pour virgin paloma-style builds from their own zero-proof menus — no shaker required.
Old City Kava Company
Old City
Old City Kava Company is a fully alcohol-free kava and kratom lounge that opened in December 2025 at 40 S. 2nd Street in Philadelphia's historic Old City. Founded by Luca Kobza and Adam Lagner, the 1,900-square-foot space is built as a bar alternative for the sober-curious, with roughly 60 seats across a bar, two-tops, and jewel-toned couches, a small board-game collection, and rotating contemporary art for sale. The drink program centers on 16-plus kava-, kratom-, and botanical-tea-based mocktails, including the Lemongrass Paloma, the Old City Red Eye (kava, kratom, ReAnimator cold brew, oat milk, agave, vanilla), the Old Citywide, the Cucumber Basil Cooler, and Maple Masala. By day it doubles as a coworking cafe serving ReAnimator coffee, Random Tea Room teas, and Funky Fresh kombucha; it stays open until midnight on weekdays and 2 a.m. on weekends.
De La Playa Records & Leisure
Highland Park
De La Playa Records & Leisure is a fully alcohol-free hybrid record shop and community space in LA's Highland Park, opened in mid-2024 by three co-founders with roots in Long Beach and the Harbor area: John David Preap ("Bles"), Diego "Fuego" Guerrero, and Jon Paul Lourenço. The shop pairs thousands of vinyl records — hip hop, reggae, jazz, cumbia, salsa, funk, house — with a retail selection of 100-plus non-alcoholic beverages, including Greek- and Italian-style amaros, NA IPAs, de-alcoholized wines, and ready-to-drink cocktails. On weekends, the founders run "Bar Non," a made-to-order zero-proof cocktail stand on the patio (think an NA rum build with ube, cinnamon, maple, and black walnut, or a non-alcoholic Paloma with hopped grapefruit bitters), alongside guest DJ sets, listening parties, and vendor events. The founders deliberately chose to stay alcohol-free — one of LA's clearest dedicated-NA anchors.
Katana Kitten
Greenwich Village
A split-level Japanese-American cocktail bar in Greenwich Village from Masahiro "Masa" Urushido, a perennial fixture on The World's 50 Best Bars list. Its menu of highballs, boilermakers and signature cocktails runs alongside a named no-ABV drink, non-alcoholic beer, and classic highballs that can be made alcohol-free with Seedlip.
The Campground
West Bottoms
The Campground is an intimate aperitivo cocktail bar and restaurant in Kansas City's Historic West Bottoms, opened December 3, 2018 in the former Genessee Royale Bistro space. It grew from a 2012 backyard cocktail-party hangout into a brick-and-mortar known for woodsy, foraged-leaning craft cocktails, a natural-wine list, and seasonal small plates. Its zero-proof program is genuine and built into the printed menu: a dedicated "N/A Options" section mirrors the bar's spirit-forward style. The non-alcoholic Gimlet pairs an N/A blood-orange aperitif with wild mint, white sage, and lemon; the N/A Spritz layers that aperitif with non-alcoholic sparkling Pinot Noir and soda; and the N/A Margarita and Paloma are built on Strongwater (Denver) zero-proof spirits. Best Day Brewing NA lager, Topo Lupo hop water, and Casamara Club soda round out the lineup. The Campground was a 2024 James Beard Award semifinalist.
Public Records
Gowanus
Public Records is a plant-based restaurant, cocktail bar, and hi-fi music venue in Gowanus, Brooklyn, opened in April 2019 by musician Francis Harris, designer Shane Davis, and hospitality director Erik VanderWal. It occupies a 1910s building that served as the ASPCA's Brooklyn headquarters for decades, and the all-vegan kitchen nods to that history. The campus spans several spaces, including The Atrium restaurant-lounge, where the bar program runs alongside an extensive cocktail list. The Atrium menu carries a dedicated "Zero-Proof" section of fully built spirit-free cocktails rather than an afterthought mocktail or two. Current named options include the Palomar (NA mezcal, elderflower cordial, spiced grapefruit shrub, lemon balm, soda), Not For Rita (NA agave spirit, spiced grapefruit shrub, lime, agave, damiana), and Press For Time (coffee, cinnamon-lapsang-sorghum syrup, vanilla-coconut cream whip, reishi, orange), plus housemade sodas.
Armadillo Den
South Menchaca
Armadillo Den is a three-acre outdoor entertainment complex on Menchaca Road in far South Austin, opened in December 2020 by partner Brett Berry. The two-story bar is a neighborhood gathering spot known for live music seven nights a week, five rotating on-site food trucks (including Biggie's Yardbird, Via 313, and Los Danzantes), a large off-leash dog park, yard games, and a 13-foot LED TV wall for watch parties. Visit Austin recognizes Armadillo Den for its award-winning draft mocktail program — a relatively rare commitment in Texas, where most NA options are made glass-by-glass rather than poured from a tap. Signature NA cocktails include the Frescadillo Paloma (pink grapefruit, sea salt) and Ford's Ranch Water (Thai basil sparkling water, cucumber). The space is kid-friendly until 6pm Monday through Friday, and the dog-park-and-food-trucks setup makes it one of South Austin's most family- and group-friendly bars regardless of whether you're drinking alcohol.
Frequently asked
A highball or collins glass is standard, filled to the top with ice so the drink stays cold and lightly diluted. In Mexico the paloma often arrives in a cantarito, a rustic clay cup that insulates well and adds a faint mineral note. Whichever vessel you use, salt half the rim so drinkers can choose each sip.