The lounge at Spark Social House. Photograph courtesy of Shua Goodwin.Spark Social House. 2009 14th St., NW. “What do you call a gay bar with no alcohol?” asks a sign near the corner of 14th and U Streets. “Spark Social House.” Now housed in the former Gibson space, the country’s first LGB TQ+ non-alcoholic bar/café officially opened its doors on Saturday, March 8. Co-owners Shua Goodwin and Nick Tsusaki hope that Spark will serve as a gathering place for members of DC’s queer community—to watch Golden Girls, share a tea-and-pastries set for two, or knock back spirit-free “dirty horchatas” on the patio. Goodwin and Tsusaki’s paths began to frequently cross while Tsusaki, who had just concluded eight years of service in the United States Navy, was bartending at gay bars and leading LGBTQ+ bar crawls around DC. Goodwin, born in South Carolina, had moved to DC to work in Republican politics—she switched to Democratic work once she came out—and was serving as a board member of the Capital Pride Alliance. When Tsusaki mused about opening a bar of his own, Goodwin was the first business partner that came to mind. “She was even in my PowerPoint deck,” he says. For both Goodwin and Tsusaki, opening Spark made sense. After all, they’d both noticed an absence of alcohol-free social spaces for the queer community—especially places with the same atmosphere as a bar or club. “We have over 20 gay bars in the city, but there’s all these people staying home because there’s no place for them,” says Tsusaki. “I want all the other bars to succeed, and so I thought, ‘What can I do that’s more complementary?'” His answer was a day-to-night concept, with classic coffee, tea, and juice drinks as well as zero-proof cocktails, wines, beers, and adaptogen-infused beverages. Starting at 8 AM, the place functions as a cozy, all-ages coffee shop with plenty of charging outlets (Tsusaki and Goodwin hope guests will bring their own food, buy a coffee, and work in the café). After 8 PM, the bar turns 18+ and hosts programming like $10 n/a wine tastings, discounted college nights, and sapphic social hours. The patio of Spark Social House. Photograph courtesy of Shua Goodwin. Spark’s seven-drink cocktail menu, created by Shakers alum Salina Flores and Mindful Drinking Fest co-founder Maria Bastasch, features twists on classics like the “New Fashion,” with vanilla, honey, and red wine vinegar; the “Jalapeño Business,” with orange juice, cayenne, Tajín, and zero-proof tequila; and the “Coco Cabana,” with coconut milk, honey, and cucumber. “By calling it a ‘social house,’ it gave us a lot of liberty to put random things in the menu that normally you wouldn’t see together,” says Tsusaki. “Our biggest focus was on making a space for connection, not necessarily substituting [alcoholic beverages].” One of Spark’s larger goals, Tsusaki says, is to bolster other local businesses. Its menu features coffee from Takoma’s Lost Sock and Pentagon City’s Commonwealth Joe, as well as the a “mushroom elixir” from Dupont Circle’s YANA Wellness Center. And Goodwin and Tsusaki say that their target clientele isn’t solely the sober community. The co-founders hope to see people both start and end their nights at Spark, whether they need a wellness shot before a bar crawl or are searching for a more intimate place to chat with a new connection from BUNKER. “There’s no pressure,” says Goodwin. “It’s about being able to truly have a space that is going to be easy for everyone, whether they do or don’t drink.”The post An Alcohol-Free LGBTQ+ Bar Opens in the U Street Corridor first appeared on Washingtonian. ...read more read less