Help Bendición Dry Bar Launch in Chicago

Hi friends, thanks for taking the time to read this. My name is Cristina, and I am the owner and creator of Bendición Dry Bar.

 

 

 

 

 

Bendición Dry Bar is looking to be one of the first Alcohol-Free Bars & Community Spaces in Chicago, a city with Malört and Fernet in its veins.

We're here to challenge the belief that you need alcohol to have fun or be the life of the party.

 

Our main goal is to create a safe and fun environment where people can come together for dance parties, date nights, have community classes, host recovery meetings, and create those deeper connections we all need and crave - without the expectation or societal pressure to include alcohol.

We’re inviting you to try something not often expected of us in bars - To remember the night. To make memories you won't forget. To be Present.

 

 

 

(pictured above is a portion of the menu we offered at an event)

 

As someone who is actively recovering from alcoholism, I'd like to share why this space is needed, not just for me but for this community and others like me:

 

Bendición was born out of a need for an alternative to the usual Chicago nightlife options currently available.

 

I had been in active addiction for over ten years, and after trying multiple times to get sober over the years, I always went back to drinking because I felt lonely and left out. On a cold February night in 2020, walking home from the bar crying at 3AM and being a little over 2 months sober, I knew there had to be something better for us - somewhere we didn’t feel excluded for not drinking, somewhere it didn’t feel awkward asking for a mocktail, somewhere we didn’t feel alone.

 

I want to create this space for my sober community in the hopes of providing the option to others that I wish I had at the time. Bendición can be where all who are sober, sober curious, or sober for the night come to celebrate their friends and milestones, to have a fancy night out, for those “treat yourself” days.

 

 

 

(Poster from speaking engagement at Sober Voices Flow 2021)

 

What we've been doing so far:

 

 

 

 

 

 

The funds raised in this campaign will go towards:

 

 

*I will require all bar staff to take Crisis Training classes. Although nothing we serve will contain alcohol, I know that certain beverages can be triggering to those in recovery. I want to ensure that we are always ready to help and provide safety.

 

 

 

We will also be working on providing rewards (shirts, pins, "Friends & Family" invite for soft opening, etc) for all who donate to this campaign. Please keep an eye on your emails for updates on these as they'll be rolling out soon.

 

Thank you again for taking the time to read this and for contributing to our campaign. This truly is a passion project, and we hope to see you all soon at our bar!

Instagram: @bendicion_drybar
Website: CoastDryBar.com (we are still waiting for the domain switch over)
Email: [email redacted]