Sans Bar

"Reasons to quit: The low is always lower than the high," sings Texas stoner royalty Willie Nelson. Alcoholics know that firsthand. Others, too, are discontent with paying for the lows via hangovers and liver problems. Enter Sans Bar, a sober establishment in Austin started by former substance abuse counselor Chris Marshall.

Sans Bar feels like a calm, diverse house party ("I started my three-month intensive fast on the solstice!" said one health-nut patron while I was there). Serving good nonalcoholic cocktails and using a "pay what you want" model, all it asks is that patrons not be under the influence while there (which, given the Alcoholics Anonymous logo in the window, shouldn't surprise gallivanters).

For Nelson, "The reasons to quit don't outnumber all the reasons" to drink. Others feel differently, so bless the market for providing alternatives for sober revelers—spaces deliberately crafted to eliminate temptation.

Comments

[BigT]

So a vape cellar!

[Jerryskids]

I thought a bar for ex-alcoholics was called a coffee shop.

[Brandybuck]

The teetotalers want tiny little umbrellas in their drinks too.

[Conchfritters]

Whiskey river don’t run dry (in moderation).

[Unicorn Abattoir]

"I started my three-month intensive fast on the solstice!"

I didn't know they let vegans drink here.

[Unicorn Abattoir]

a "pay what you want" model

I'm going to go out on a limb and say the owner isn't a libertarian.

[Halykan]

The lovely thing about the market is that freedom's so simple even hippies can do it.

[nadinekusterz]

Yeah, and I love the fact that nutten graz girls are opened for fun

[loki]

"Why is the rum always gone?"