25 amazing Dry January events in London where going alcohol free needn’t be boring
Dry January is often a sombre affair, where abstinence is the order of the day. But London’s bars, restaurants and events organisers seem to be taking a different tack this year: many are spreading the message that going alcohol free needn’t mean losing out on having fun.
The message is that alcohol free drinks can taste great too (and it’s good to support our pubs through the hardest point of the year!) Here are 25 ideas for Dry January that needn’t mean compromising on having a great time.
Go to a funeral for Dry January
Alcohol free booze brand Mash Gang are tired of the idea that Dry January needs to mean missing out. So they’re throwing a ‘death to Dry January’ party with a coffin and hearse to kill off the idea that going alcohol free is boring. Prepare your most dour outfit. 18 January, a yet-to-be-announced pub in Brighton
Mix the perfect dry serve with a TV celeb
Plenty of famous faces have got behind the alcohol free movement by creating their own boozeless spirits. Spencer Matthews, formerly of Made in Chelsea fame, is one of those people. He’s leading an alcohol free cocktail masterclass to promote his brand, Clean Co, one of a series of Frameless Lates running throughout January. Frameless in Marble Arch is the largest permanent multi-sensory experience in the UK. Try alternatives for gin, rum, whisky and tequila at the events, and read our interview with Spencer about the one thing he hates about Dry January here. 24 January (other masterclasses without Spencer run throughout the month).
Grab a pint at the Lucky Saint pub
The UK’s only pub dedicated to low-and-no drinking is open throughout January. It looks like any other smart Marylebone gastro pub only there’s a major emphasis on great tasting drinks that needn’t include poison. (Alcohol’s on the menu too).
The message from London bars: Going alcohol free in 2025 needn’t be boring
A talk about how to drink without drinking
The Pilgrm boutique hotel in Paddington is hosting a ‘how to drink without drinking’ evening to help those of us conditioned to think a glass must have alcohol in it to have fun. The hotel is collaborating with booze free bottle shop Club Soda and the Talk Club charity to tackle moderation and explore some of the best low-and-no options. Four drinks are included on the evening, as are some vegan and vegetarian food. 23 January
Read more: Someone is throwing a ‘death to Dry January’ party with a coffin and hearse
Reinventing the image of alcohol free
‘The High Spirits: Low ABV’ evening at the Archive & Myth cocktail bar underneath the Hippodrome Casino in the West End is challenging our perceptions of what going alcohol free means. Bartenders from across the country will showcase boozeless iterations of signature cocktails in collaboration with some of the leading non-alcoholic brands. Every Tuesday throughout January
First ever ‘legal highs’ menu
As the low-and-no trend continues to snowball, bars are clambering to stand out. The latest PR gimmick is the capital’s first ever ‘legal highs’ menu, a play on the legal highs psychoactive drugs scene of the early 2010s. In reality, plenty of bars offer alcohol free drinks with mood enhancers in, but this group of cocktail bars say their point of difference is an entire ‘legal highs’ menu. Controversially, they’re using the word ‘mocktail’ to promote their drinks, when plenty of the capital’s best bartenders have chosen to avoid it for its negative connotations. The Cocktail Club, venues across London
More interesting tea cocktails at Hijingo
The trend for sparkling tea shows no signs of slowing. Tea gives a bitter, complex flavour profile to non alcoholic drinks, and has become the alcohol-free ingredient du jour for some of the best wine bars in town, including Berry Bros & Rudd. At the Hijingo bingo hall in Shoreditch, their Teatox drink features a blend of Lyre’s Dry Spirit, Dry Dragon tea, kombucha, and lemon, with hibiscus flower. All month
Read more: The 25 best things to do in London in 2025, from theatre to films and bonkers events
Alcohol free comedy club
Like going to the darts, comedy nights have long been associated with alcohol. Comics often perform with a pint in hand, like when Ricky Gervais used to present the Golden Globes, but it’s an old fashioned look some hope to change. The alcohol free comedy club in Bethnal Green challenges you to a night of sober laughter. 26 January, Backyard Comedy Club
More mocktails, despite the controversy
Boxcar Bar & Grill in Marylebone has a new ‘Mocktails that Wow’ menu, and we’ve got our eye on the Boxcar Sour, with Everleaf Marine, green tea and jasmine. All month
Club Soda
Central London’s only alcohol free bottle shop is running a series of events throughout Dry January. Laura Willoughby, one of the bar’s owners, is a stalwart of the low-and-no scene and the sort of person worth listening to if you’re after advice on where to start cutting down or rethinking your drinking habits. They’re also running alcohol free courses throughout the year.
Cocktails in a floating bar
Anchored along the Islington part of the Regent’s Canal, Bruno’s floating cocktail bar was founded by two teetotal brothers. You can get booze if that’s what you’re after, but the alcohol free range is thoughtful and considered and absolutely not an afterthought. (After all, it’s what the owners drink). Get the High Life, with cherry syrup and lemonade.
Tea pairing dinner
The trend for incorporating tea into alcohol free cocktails reaches its apex at this event at the Cornus restaurant in Belgravia. Premium tea specialists Lalani & Co have collaborated with the restaurant to create a five-course menu with paired drinks. Imagine Devon crab with tea from northern India, Scottish cod with tea from south Japan and Yorkshire rhubarb with leaves from the Taiwanese mountains. 16 January
Having just a little bit of alcohol
Zebra Striping – drinking one alcoholic and then one non-alcoholic drink to cut down your intake – is a new drinking trend, and many of the capital’s bars and restaurants are responding by throwing events that promote limiting intake rather than cutting it out entirely. Oriole, the speakeasy in Covent Garden, is premiering their Bulletproof Martini. Costing £5, it is 9% ABV, much lower than the average blow-your-head-off full-alcohol version, and it looks every bit the part.
Other ideas for Dry January
If spending Dry January in a bar feels a little on the nose, embrace the cold or get cultural with one of these other ideas to shake things up.
Go and see Monster Trucks Live
Monster Trucks – yep, those giant vehicles that run over cars while people cheer – are coming to London this January. We’ve no idea either, but if you fancy an evening of completely OTT excess, and probably plenty of screaming Americans watching brightly coloured cars flatten smaller ones, this is surely the left-field ticket. 10 – 12 January
Titanique
The songs of Celine Dion are the focal point in this barmy-sounding new musical about the Titanic. After huge success on Broadway, Titanique is threatening to be the most fun London theatre opening of the year. It might seem a little insensitive, but this off-the-wall story imagining a world in which the diva was on board the HMS when it capsized is sure to be a conversation starter. Playing now, until 2 March
Peter Kay
The hugely talented comedian has evaded the limelight recently, cancelling his tour in 2017 for personal reasons. He made a comeback in 2022 to stage his first comedy tour in 12 years, and this year the man from Greater Manchester returns with a new show landing at the 02 on 25 January, 22 February, 20 March and 4 April
Elektra
Brie Larson makes her West End debut in Elektra, a version of the Ancient Greek tragedy of Sophocles. The Oscar winner from Room and Captain Marvel is collaborating with director Daniel Fish, behind the Young Vic’s barnstorming version of Oklahoma! that stripped away pretty much everything bar the actors and a couple of musical instruments. 24 January
Inside No. 9 Stage/Fright
British Black comedy TV programme Inside Number 9 became a cult hit when it launched in 2014, and a decade on show creators Reese Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton have devised a live theatrical version. It stars both men, who also wrote the original and this stage version. Expect more of the same format: the TV show introduced a new story and fresh characters in every episode, and the only link was that the story is related in some way to number 9. From 18 January
Oliver!
It’s been 15 years since the Charles Dickens classic landed in the West End, the last production starring a comically sublime Rowan Atkinson as Fagin. Everyone loves Oliver!, and Lionel Bart’s adaptation returns with new production from dance supremo Matthew Bourne. Expect an experimental twist on the classic. Playing now, until 28 September
Take in new art at the London Art Fair
120 galleries are showcasing paintings, photography, sculpture and more, and a new Living Art experience is helping guests reframe and rethink their own relationship with art. 22 – 25 January
Experience eccentric theatre at MimeLondon
the London International Mime Festival lasted 47 years until it folded in in 2023, but MimeLondon, by the same creative team, offers a similarly eccentric curation of the sorts of deftly creative theatre that really should get the opportunity to be seen on bigger stages. Shows are on at the Barbican, Sadler’s Wells and the Southbank Centre. 11 Jan – 2 Feb