Sober Travel Guide: Where to Drink in Minneapolis Without Alcohol
The Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul have a real, if hard-won, alcohol-free scene. Minnesota's first non-alcoholic bottle shop, Marigold, anchors South Minneapolis, and the metro's first kava lounge, Zen Room, sits in downtown St. Paul. The deepest spirit-free menus, though, live inside the Twin Cities' celebrated restaurants: chef Ann Ahmed's Khâluna and Gai Noi each run dedicated zero-proof lists (Khâluna's is famously longer than its cocktail menu), Earl Giles literally began as a non-alcoholic elixir company, and Gavin Kaysen's Demi and Spoon and Stable, North Loop's Dario, and Sean Sherman's Indigenous Indígena by Owamni all treat zero-proof seriously. Craft bars Parlour, Stargazer, and Bar + Cart round it out. Several of the best rooms sit across the river in St. Paul.
North Loop
4 notable spots in this area.
Dario
★★★★★?Dario is an Italian restaurant with global influences that opened in Minneapolis's North Loop in early 2024, led by chef Joe Rolle and beverage…
Order: New Age Outlaw · No. 75
Full details →Parlour
★★★★★?Parlour is a craft cocktail and burger bar in Minneapolis's North Loop, opened in 2013 below sister restaurant Borough by the local restaurant group…
Order: NA Parlour Old Fashioned · Phony Negroni
Full details →Demi
★★★★★?Demi is James Beard Award-winning chef Gavin Kaysen's intimate North Loop tasting-menu restaurant, opened in early 2019 next to his flagship Spoon…
Order: Temperance Pairing (8 zero-proof courses)
Full details →Spoon and Stable
★★★★★?Spoon and Stable is the North Loop flagship of James Beard Award-winning chef/owner Gavin Kaysen, opened in 2014 inside a 1906 former horse stable.…
Order: Toasted Oak · Solstice
Full details →
Northeast Minneapolis
3 notable spots in this area.
Stanley's Northeast Bar Room is a casual neighborhood bar and gastropub on University Avenue NE in Northeast Minneapolis, housed in a building more…
Order: NAz Rita · Blood Orange Mock Mule
Full details →Stargazer
★★★★★?Stargazer is an intimate, walk-in-friendly cocktail bar in Northeast Minneapolis that opened in December 2024 in the former Dangerous Man Brewing…
Order: Purple Phase · It Was All Yellow
Full details →Hai Hai
★★★★★?Hai Hai is chef and co-owner Christina Nguyen's Southeast Asian street-food restaurant in Northeast Minneapolis, opened in 2017 with business partner…
Order: Mot · Hai
Full details →
Summit Hill, St. Paul
2 notable spots in this area.
Hyacinth
★★★★★?Hyacinth is a 40-seat Italian and Mediterranean kitchen on Grand Avenue in St. Paul's Summit Hill, opened in August 2018 by chef Rikki Giambruno…
Order: Spiritless Spritz · Final Say
Full details →Red Rabbit
★★★★★?Red Rabbit is an "uncomplicated, authentic Italian" restaurant — pizza, pasta, and oysters — owned by Luke Shimp, the restaurateur behind the Red Cow…
Order: Spirit-Free Old Fashioned · Spirit-Free Martini
Full details →
Armatage (SW Minneapolis)
1 notable spot in this area.
Colita
★★★★★?Colita is a Tex-Oaxacan restaurant from chef Daniel del Prado's DDP Restaurant Group (the Martina and Bar La Grassa team), open since October 2018 in…
Order: Rosas · Naranjitas
Full details →
Bloomington
1 notable spot in this area.
9 Mile Brewing Co.
★★★★★?9 Mile Brewing Company is Bloomington's first brewery, located in a James Avenue South business park near the Mall of America in the southern Twin…
Order: NA Peach Passionfruit Sour · Athletic Brewing NA beer
Full details →
Cathedral Hill, St. Paul
1 notable spot in this area.
W.A. Frost and Company
★★★★★?W.A. Frost & Company is a Cathedral Hill institution that opened in December 1975 inside the historic 1889 Dacotah Building, originally home to…
Order: Wilfred Spritz · Blueberry Buzz Tonic
Full details →
Downtown (Guthrie Theater)
1 notable spot in this area.
Indígena by Owamni
★★★★★?Indígena by Owamni is the new Guthrie Theater home of chef Sean Sherman's James Beard Award-winning Indigenous restaurant, which closed its original…
Order: Amikomin · Oginii-Waabigwan
Full details →
Downtown St. Paul
1 notable spot in this area.
Zen Room Kava Lounge
★★★★★?Zen Room Kava Lounge is widely cited as Minnesota's first kava bar, a fully alcohol-free social space on West Kellogg Boulevard in downtown St. Paul.…
Order: Mud Water · Warm Spiced Chai
Full details →
Kingfield (South Minneapolis)
1 notable spot in this area.
Marigold
★★★★★?Marigold is Minnesota's first dedicated non-alcoholic bottle shop, opened by hair stylist and Honeycomb Salon owner Erin Flavin in late 2022 on…
Order: Three Spirit Livener · Ghia Lime & Salt
Full details →
Kingfield (SW Minneapolis)
1 notable spot in this area.
Khâluna
★★★★★?Khâluna is chef-restaurateur Ann Ahmed's upscale Laotian flagship, opened in 2021 at 40th and Lyndale in SW Minneapolis's Kingfield neighborhood. The…
Order: Last Love · The Elixir
Full details →
Loring Park
1 notable spot in this area.
Gai Noi
★★★★★?Gai Noi is chef Ann Ahmed's acclaimed Lao restaurant, opened in May 2023 in the former 4 Bells space on Harmon Place, overlooking Loring Park in…
Order: Guava Mule · Star Boi
Full details →
Lowertown, St. Paul
1 notable spot in this area.
Dark Horse Bar & Eatery
★★★★★?Dark Horse Bar & Eatery is a Lowertown, St. Paul neighborhood bar and restaurant that spent a decade serving the district before closing in February…
Order: Ginger Beer · Squirt
Full details →
Macalester-Groveland, St. Paul
1 notable spot in this area.
Bar + Cart
★★★★★?Bar + Cart Restaurant and Lounge opened in the former Khyber Pass Cafe space on Grand Avenue in St. Paul's Macalester-Groveland neighborhood, a…
Order: White Fox · Up In Smoke
Full details →
Northeast Minneapolis (Logan Park)
1 notable spot in this area.
Earl Giles Restaurant & Distillery is the flagship home of Earl Giles, a Minneapolis brand founded in 2015 by hospitality veterans Jesse Held and…
Order: NA Old Fashioned · Paez
Full details →
Plan your visit
Best day for sober nightlife
Fridays and Saturdays bring the strongest crowds at most NA-friendly venues. For quieter experiences and easier walk-in seating, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings are ideal.
Combining venues
Most Minneapolis venues in North Loop are within walking distance of each other, making a 2-3 stop evening on foot realistic.
NA brands available across Minneapolis
Verified from individual venue menus. Not exhaustive — house-crafted programs without commercial brand assignments are common.
Frequently asked about visiting Minneapolis sober
The Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul have a real, if hard-won, alcohol-free scene. Minnesota's first non-alcoholic bottle shop, Marigold, anchors South Minneapolis, and the metro's first kava lounge, Zen Room, sits in downtown St. Paul. The deepest spirit-free menus, though, live inside the Twin Cities' celebrated restaurants: chef Ann Ahmed's Khâluna and Gai Noi each run dedicated zero-proof lists (Khâluna's is famously longer than its cocktail menu), Earl Giles literally began as a non-alcoholic elixir company, and Gavin Kaysen's Demi and Spoon and Stable, North Loop's Dario, and Sean Sherman's Indigenous Indígena by Owamni all treat zero-proof seriously. Craft bars Parlour, Stargazer, and Bar + Cart round it out. Several of the best rooms sit across the river in St. Paul.
New venues in your area
Tell us where you are and we'll email you when we add or verify a great non-alcoholic spot near you. About one short email a week. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.