Washington Nightlife Tests the Limits of Alcohol-Free Bars

As “sober-curious” culture grows, D.C.’s alcohol-free bars are caught between community mission and financial survival

Zero-proof cocktails at Spark Social House in the U Street corridor. (Photo by Gannon Albertsen)

Spark Social House, known as Spark, opened in the U Street corridor in March 2025 as the city’s first fully alcohol-free LGBTQ bar. Founder Nicholas Tsusaki said it built its identity around zero-proof cocktails and community events. But nine months later, he added liquor to the menu.

The decision came even as industry reports from Mintel Group Ltd. showed the nonalcoholic beverage market expanding. The growth of nonalcoholic drinking culture did not guarantee the financial viability of businesses built around it.

“Alcohol is one of the most profitable things that restaurants serve,” said Leah Brooks, an urban economist at George Washington University. “If you take away their most profitable menu item, you have to make it up somehow.”

The shift left BINGE Bar, known as BINGE, as what founder Vergie “Gigi” Arandid called the District’s only fully alcohol-free bar.

The idea for Spark came from Tsusaki’s own experience in queer nightlife. He said he noticed that queer social life in Washington, as in many American cities, often centers on bars and drinking. At the same time, a 2025 Gallup Inc. survey found that alcohol consumption among U.S. adults had fallen to 54 percent, a historic low.

Tsusaki said that shift encouraged him to open a nonalcoholic space designed for all, whether they drink or not.

“We have somebody studying for their PhD while other people are like dancing,” he said.

Jonathan Garcia does not drink. After discovering Spark, he said he went nearly every week last summer, drawn to what he described as a “chill, welcoming environment.”

“Finding opportunities in queer spaces that did not fully rely on drinking as a main form of … building community was really important to me,” Garcia said.

But Tsusaki said the model that made Spark distinctive also made it financially precarious. He operated a two-floor venue with a patio, no kitchen and no liquor revenue. Without either alcohol or food revenue streams, Spark was operating within a narrow margin.

When customers did come, Tsusaki said nonalcoholic beverages were not selling at the volume the business needed. After Spark added alcohol, he said those drinks quickly outsold their nonalcoholic counterparts.

But the shift was not purely financial, Tsusaki said. He said some customers told him they felt judged for ordering alcohol in a sober-only space. Others worried they were taking away a safe environment for people in recovery, he said. The model meant to expand community was, at times, dividing it.

Tsusaki said the decision to add alcohol was shaped by both financial pressure and consumer feedback. He said that while some customers on Instagram commented they felt abandoned by the change, most have not raised objections.

Savanna Capdeville, a friend of Garcia’s, has visited Spark multiple times. She said she initially did not realize the bar served alcohol, but it did not deter her from wanting to come again.

By adding liquor, Spark adopted a hybrid model in which every alcoholic cocktail has a nonalcoholic counterpart, Tsusaki said.

Across town on H Street NE, BINGE is navigating the same economy with a different approach.

Arandid opened BINGE in 2023 as the District’s only fully alcohol-free bar. She said she built the space around craft mocktails, workshops and community events. Unlike Spark, BINGE also serves food, adding an additional revenue stream beyond drinks. Its menu avoids traditional sugary mocktails and instead emphasizes layered flavors, she said.

She said her commitment to keeping BINGE an alcohol-free space is personal.

Arandid stopped drinking in 2017 after a DUI led to court-mandated treatment. When she opened BINGE, she said she designed it with her customers’ sobriety in mind.

“It’s really not just the alcohol that can trigger a relapse,” she said. “It’s also the sugar content, it’s the caffeine content … because it’s a chemical reaction.”

Arandid said that social media has helped the bar attract a loyal base that includes people who are sober, people who identify as “sober-curious” and customers who simply want a night out that does not revolve around drinking.

Alston Feggins discovered BINGE six months after it opened. She said she now drives from Arlington, Virginia, most weeks, bringing friends with varying drinking habits.

“I have friends who have never drank a day in their life. This is their first bar experience that isn’t a club,” Feggins said. “They’re just excited to have a place that is their own.”

Inside BINGE, Arandid said conversation carries without shouting. The absence of alcohol changes the atmosphere. It also reduces the financial cushion. Without liquor revenue to offset costs like rent and payroll, each slow month carries more weight, she said.

“The economical sort of hit that the restaurant industry has taken between federal shutdowns and tariffs … it takes so much grit to stay above water,” Arandid said.

Industry data reflects that challenge. According to TouchBistro Inc.’s 2026 State of Restaurants Report, 68 percent of U.S. operators raised menu prices in 2025, and the share planning to expand nonalcoholic beverage offerings fell to 27 percent from 40 percent the year before, similar to other specialized diet offerings, as restaurants tightened focus on core revenue.

For BINGE, Arandid said that pressure has prompted her to determine whether maintaining a permanent storefront is sustainable. She said a mobile or pop-up model could reduce overhead by eliminating long-term lease obligations while allowing BINGE to travel to other cities like Miami and New Orleans. The goal, she said, is to protect the community she built while adjusting to economic pressure.

This piece was reported in spring 2026 for a journalism course at George Washington University.