Toronto just got a no-tipping non-alcoholic cocktail bar
Published April 29, 2024 at 10:32 am
A new cocktail bar just opened in Toronto, but it’s not like all the others: they don’t serve any alcoholic beverages.
Free Spirit is pioneering an alcohol-free restaurant and bar concept at Riverdale Hub. Not only that, they’re also a no-tipping establishment that pays their staff a living wage.
They’re serving zero-proof wine, beer and cocktails alongside a menu with vegetarian, vegan and meat options.
They have zero-proof Guinness, Heineken, Corona and Collective Arts beers, Chardonnay, Reisling and sparkling wines, cider and kombucha. Cocktails include all your classic favourites, just minus the alcohol: you can get a Bloody Mary or Caesar, espresso martini, mojito, mule, spicy margarita, smoked rosemary Old Fashioned or an “Abstinence on the Beach” with cranberry raspberry juice, orange juice and peach puree garnished with blood orange.
The restaurant serves a light, wine-bar-style menu of boards, salads and flatbreads. Options for boards include charcuterie, cheese, hummus, fruit or dessert, for salads you can choose between Nicoise or Caesar, and flatbread options include potato, artichoke and rosemary, caprese, or an avocado toast variety.
They also serve cafe fare like coffee, tea, smoothies and baked goods.
Free Spirit is located inside the art gallery at Riverdale Hub, which is a not-for-profit social enterprise. The 100-year-old building was actually renovated about 10 years ago to become the greenest building in East Toronto thanks to geothermal pumps, a green roof, solar panels, and the kitchen and bar’s low energy appliances.
An emphasis is placed on locally sourced and organic ingredients, and during the growing season more often than not garnishes may come from the rooftop garden. Many dishes are even served on boards made out of a nearly 150-year-old maple in the local area that had to be cut down by the City.
Free Spirit is now open at 1326 Gerrard Street East.