Sans Bar is serving good, clean fun (really!): Best of KC 2019

Sans Bar’s booze-free bashes have been a hit. // Photo courtesy of Marissa K Webb Photography.

Our annual Best of Kansas City 2019 issue is out now. Go grab a copy. Alternatively, you can browse the results of the readers’ poll here. The issue also includes a list, compiled and written by The Pitch’s editorial staff, shouting out some of our current favorite things about KC. We’ll be publishing these items online throughout the month of October.

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Melissa Saubers rang in 2019 by introducing Kansas City to Sans Bar, an alcohol-free pop-up party with live music, tasty treats, and mocktails. In a way, it was the culmination of a journey she’d begun three years ago, when she decided to quit drinking in a metropolis where booze has long been central to the culture. Turns out, there’s a good amount of Kansas Citians out there like Saubers—people who want to socialize (or flirt) with other sober adults in a setting devoid of boozy temptations and drunken behavior. They come in all kinds: those in recovery, allies to somebody taking a break from alcohol, teetotalers, even just the sober-curious. The plan for Sans Bar (it was founded in Austin, but KC is its first outpost) was to pop up every couple of months somewhere. But less than a year later, they’re already doing events once or twice a month across the metro—Hagoyah, Plexpod, Unity Village, and Thornhill Gallery have hosted events, to name just a few. Tickets tend to run around $20, which includes food, craft mocktails, and usually some live music or other entertainment. (And some, like the alcohol-free lounge at the Plaza Art Festival, are free.) Saubers hopes to eventually find a permanent location for Sans Bar, but in the meantime, follow ‘em on Facebook to find out when the next party is.