The cocktail scene in Dayton has certainly stepped up in 2020. To start the year off The Century Bar moved next door to open a larger bar, with more more seating and featuring Joe Head’s Nerd Bar. Reserve a seat at the nerd bar and Joe will talk all things bourbon with you, share tastes from some of his rare bottles and share his extensive knowledge on the state of the whiskey industry.
Don’t worry, they moved over the historic back bar from the old place, so it still has the feel we’ve grown to love and that has earned this bar national attention and lots of awards and the reputation as one of the top 10 bourbon bars in the country! As owners Diane Spitzig and Joe Head have shared, even though the new location is open, it’s still a work in progress. A 2nd floor cocktail bar should be open sometime this summer and a 3rd floor event space sometime after that.
Now that bourbon is covered, last weekend we welcomed the Soviet inspired RED STAR, in the spot formerly known as Proto Build Bar.
Owner Chris Wire describes Red Star’s Soviet-era themed-decor as an eclectic mix of vintage Victorian and Mid-Century Modern furnishings dripping in red velvet accompanied by historical Russian photography and Cold War, propaganda-inspired graphics. With 2 bar areas and a mix of low tables, it will have a comfortable feel.
Red Star features a full cocktail bar along and with eight select draft beers, an extensive selection of vodkas, and a rotating selection of more than a dozen house-infused vodkas. Flavored vodkas will include strawberry mint, tomato basil jalapeño, mixed berry, vanilla, espresso, apple pie, cinnamon, and a not-to-be missed pickle-infused vodka cocktail. Flights of the infused vodka will be available. Come springtime they may event host some food trucks in the parking lot.
And now in previews Tender Mercy is the next downtown cocktail spot to hit the market. According to their website they are Dayton’s Underground Avant Bar. Created by David Kittredge and Chris Dimmick’s company The Idea Collective, they’ve created a swanky cocktail lounge in the lower level of this Avant Garde building on Third Stree, which will eventually also be home to SUEÑO, a Mexican restaurant. Reservations for tonight and Saturday previews are available via their website. The grand opening is set for March 12 at 4 pm.
According to their website:
“TENDER MERCY HARKENS BACK TO A TRANSFORMATIVE TIME, CELEBRATING THE INDIVIDUALISM THAT COMMANDEERED A GENERATION AND CHALLENGED THE DURABILITY OF OUR CULTURAL MORES. AT ONCE BOTH REBELLIOUS AND ICONIC, THE EXPERIENCE CRAFTS A NARRATIVE OF IMMERSION. INDULGE IN THE CHILL OF THE UNDERGROUND, THE BEAT OF THE BASELINE AND THE TASTE OF SENSUAL DECADENCE. PART GRUNGE, PART GLAMOUR WITH A PINCH OF GROOVY, THE DARK AND SEXY TENDER MERCY ISN’T JUST A COCKTAIL LOUNGE…IT’S YOUR SPOT.”
And there are even more thinks to come, as the Fire Blocks are busy working on some new dining and entertainment spots to be opening soon. So far we like the new nightlife opening in downtown Dayton! So get out and explore and support these locally owned businesses and tell us what you think!