1833 Craft: The Hidden Non-Alcoholic Speakeasy Bringing Craft Cocktails (Without the Hangover) to Sugar House

There's a 100-year-old house on 1100 East in Sugar House where something quietly revolutionary is happening every Thursday night. Behind forest-green walls and vintage lucite shelves, a former climate scientist is smoking cocktails with a technique so precise it'd make any mixologist jealous. His sister—a designer who bought this entire building three days after a coffee shop conversation—spins vinyl records from their grandparents' collection. And here's the thing that'll make you look up from your phone: not a single drop of alcohol touches these drinks.

Welcome to 1833 Craft, Salt Lake City's only non-alcoholic speakeasy, where the cocktails are as meticulously crafted as any you'd find at Water Witch or Bar-X, but you can drive home after three of them. One customer raved about how Matt is a great bartender with really unique drink offerings, and how the fire pit lit outside created the perfect Thursday evening atmosphere.

How a Conversation at Roots Coffee Became Utah's Answer to the Sober-Curious Movement

Matthew and Kelly LaPlante aren't your typical bar owners. Matthew's a climate scientist and professor at Utah State University who used to report for The Salt Lake Tribune. Kelly's a sustainability consultant and designer who runs The Eclipse House, a stunning event space that houses 1833 Craft in its front room. Neither of them set out to revolutionize Salt Lake City's nightlife when Kelly moved to Utah last year—they just wanted a decent non-alcoholic drink.

The siblings had their lightbulb moment at Roots Coffee & Co. just up the street, lamenting how terrible most non-alcoholic options were at bars. Kelly described her frustration perfectly: whatever she ordered off the nonalcoholic menu was basically soda or juice with sparkling water, or if it was inventive, just a pure sugar bomb. She felt like there had to be something better.

Three days after that coffee shop meeting, Kelly did what any reasonable person would do: she bought a 100-year-old house just a few doors down and started transforming it into Salt Lake's first non-alcoholic speakeasy since Curiosity closed in September 2023. The name—1833—references the year the Word of Wisdom was given to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but this isn't just an LDS space. It's designed for everyone: people in recovery, designated drivers, pregnant folks, anyone who wants Thursday night without the Friday morning regret.

Their customers are a beautiful mix of people who have never drunk alcohol, those who do drink but are taking a break, those who don't want a hangover on a weeknight, and those in recovery, Kelly explained on Good Things Utah.

Inside the Zero-Proof Cocktail Experience: Smoked Drinks, Hydroponic Herbs, and Nine-Month Recipe Development

Walking into 1833 Craft feels like stumbling into your coolest friend's speakeasy—if your coolest friend happened to have impeccable taste in mid-century furniture and a thing for 1920s aesthetics. The walls glow with deep forest-green paint, warm lighting creates intimate pockets of conversation, and those vintage lucite shelves shimmer with bottles of non-alcoholic spirits from brands like Dhōs, Trejo's, and Lyre's.

Matthew is an artist behind the bar, where he garnishes and crafts drinks with precise science. And he's not messing around with simple substitutions. Take the "Libre Libre"—their play on a Cuba Libre that took nine months to perfect. It's built with herbal cola, dark cane, freshly squeezed lime, and mint that Matthew pulls from their hydroponic garden in the basement. Yes, you read that right: they grow their own herbs specifically for these drinks.

The most popular cocktail? "The LBGT"—a vivacious play on a classic gin and tonic, with hints of lavender and juniper. Made with Dhōs Gin Free, a botanical non-alcoholic spirit from Oregon, it only takes one sip to realize how refreshing it is. This is the gin that actually transformed Matthew and made him think they could pull off this whole concept.

The menu changes every three months, and here's where it gets interesting: they offer something called "The Bartender's Affections." Give Matthew three English words—any three words—and he'll craft two drinks based on them. One for you, one for him. The best creation becomes next week's special. It's like improv comedy meets mixology, and customers are obsessed with the gamble of it.

Want something rich and contemplative? Try the cinnamon espresso martini that they featured on local television. Craving something with bite? The current menu includes drinks with Trejo's non-alcoholic tequila (with vibrant citrus and sweet roasted agave notes that give way to a warm, peppery finish), Kentucky 74 bourbon alternative, and even Athletic Brewing's Run Wild IPA mixed with bourbon-smoked vanilla.

The strategy behind it all, Kelly explained, is don't try to make nonalcoholic spirits behave like alcoholic spirits—enjoy them and appreciate them for what they are. It's this philosophy—honoring the ingredients rather than faking alcohol—that makes 1833's drinks taste like intentional creations rather than sad substitutes.

The Speakeasy Vibe: Vinyl Records, Family Art, and Why Thursday Nights Matter in Sugar House

There's always a record spinning from the collection curated by the siblings' grandparents, parents, younger brother, and even some customers. This isn't Spotify on shuffle—it's a carefully curated sonic experience that changes the whole energy of the room. Sometimes it's jazz, sometimes it's rock, but it's always intentional.

The space itself tells a family story. Art hangs on the walls and merchandise is on sale: candles made by their cousins Jaclyn Joslin and Amanda Steiner, and pottery from Matthew's wife, Heidi. This is the opposite of a corporate bar concept—it's siblings creating a third space for a community that desperately needed one.

And about those Thursday nights: when Curiosity closed in 2023, Salt Lake City lost its only dedicated non-alcoholic bar. Owner Raegan Plewe announced with a heavy heart that the establishment was closing its doors after struggling with financial setbacks and her mother's life-threatening brain tumor diagnosis. The void was real. 1833 Craft opened in December 2024 and started with Thursday evenings from 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM, creating a weekly ritual for folks seeking social connection without alcohol. Starting in September, they expanded to Fridays too.

Sugar House—Salt Lake's walkable, bar-dense "Second Downtown"—was the perfect neighborhood for this concept. You can stroll from Wasatch Brewery to The Ruin to 1833 Craft and choose your own adventure. The location inside The Eclipse House at 1398 S. 1100 East puts it right in the heart of the action, just steps from Roots Coffee where this whole idea started.

Salt Lake's Sober-Curious Scene: Why 1833 Matters Beyond the Drinks

Here's something you might not know: Salt Lake City ranks #7 among U.S. cities in sober curiosity movement adoption, with 53.9% engagement. Utah has a fascinating relationship with alcohol—the state has the lowest overall drinking rate, yet paradoxically, 39.9% of drinkers report binge drinking. It's all or nothing, and 1833 Craft is trying to create space for everything in between.

Part of the reason that people drink alcohol is the social experience of having a drink together, Kelly said. It's community. It's being in a third space. It's being someplace with other people and enjoying some experience together. Alcohol does not have to be a part of that.

The non-alcoholic spirits they use aren't your grandma's Shirley Temple mixers. Dhōs Gin Free is crafted by Ransom Spirits in Oregon with real juniper berry oil, citrus, and botanicals—all cold-pressed to maintain flavor intensity with vibrant essences of fresh pine, juniper berries, dried citrus, candied lemon, fresh spearmint, and wet earth. It offers a unique combination of hot and cooling sensations on the palate, starting with warming spice and fading to refreshing menthol and licorice root on the finish. It has zero calories, zero sugar, and that characteristic gin bite.

Trejo's non-alcoholic tequila brings rich, grassy agave character with citrus brightness—actor Danny Trejo, who's been sober for over 50 years, spent months developing the flavor profile with food scientists and mixologists. The overwhelming feedback was that it tasted amazing, quickly becoming a fan favorite at his restaurants.

The result? Cocktails that feel like an event, not a consolation prize.

Planning Your Visit to 1833 Craft

Address: 1398 S. 1100 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84105 (inside The Eclipse House in Sugar House)

Hours: Thursdays and Fridays, 5:00 PM - 10:00 PM (check Instagram @1833craft for special events)

What to Order:

• First-timers should start with "The LBGT" (their signature lavender-juniper gin and tonic)
• Adventurous souls must try "The Bartender's Affections" (give Matthew three words and see what happens)
• Coffee lovers will obsess over the cinnamon espresso martini
• The "Libre Libre" showcases their nine-month recipe development process

Insider Knowledge:

• They sometimes light the fire pit outside for cozy Thursday evening hangs
• The menu rotates every three months, so there's always something new
• Drinks are $10 each—craft cocktail pricing without the liquor markup
• The space doubles as an event venue, so check availability if you're planning a group visit
• Parking is available on the street in residential Sugar House

Pro Tip: Get there early on Thursdays if you want a seat at the bar to watch Matthew work his magic with the smoke machine and hydroponic herbs.

Why This 1920s House Might Be Utah's Most Important Bar

In a state famous for its complicated relationship with alcohol, 1833 Craft is doing something radical: proving that bar culture doesn't require booze. That the craft, the community, the conversation, and the ritual of a well-made drink can exist entirely on their own terms.

1833 Craft is also a great location for a first date, Kelly noted on Good Things Utah, because the vibes are good and there are no worries about inebriation. It's this kind of practical magic—creating spaces where social anxiety doesn't require liquid courage—that makes the place matter beyond its Instagram-worthy aesthetic.

Since Curiosity closed, leaving a gap in Salt Lake's sober scene, 1833 Craft has become the only dedicated non-alcoholic bar in the city. It's filling a crucial need for a growing demographic of people who are rethinking their relationship with alcohol, whether that's for a night, a season, or a lifetime. And they're doing it with such craft and intention that even the cocktail snobs at traditional bars are taking notes.

The LaPlante siblings aren't just mixing drinks in a cute old house. They're reimagining what nightlife can be in a city that's always existed between extremes. One Thursday evening at a time.