Getaway Brings New Options for Nightlife in Greenpoint

GREENPOINT – Getaway sits on Green Street in the middle of Greenpoint, signaled to passersby by the “0%” sign glowing outside. It’s not your everyday bar—this is a bar that serves only non-alcoholic drinks. No low ABV, no kombucha, just 0%.

Getaway is co-owners Regina Dellea and Sam Thonis’ first venture into the hospitality business. The bar, which opened on April 9th, was inspired by Thonis’ brother’s recovery and subsequent sobriety, something that led to the two of them having far fewer places to hang out and talk, especially later at night, the way that they used to.

“We thought about it and, beyond just people who are sober, there are all sorts of reasons for people to not drink. People take breaks and whatever, and those people need spots to hang out too,” Dellea told Bklyner over the phone.

The interior of the space, designed by Cortney Walleston of C.Wall Architecture, features a long bar and green stools, as well as tables with both benches and chairs along the walls. The colors are very muted and friendly, and there aren’t very many sharp edges. All of this was intentional, says Thonis.

“We didn’t have a specific design concept or era in mind, and I’m definitely not a designer, but I knew I wanted it to be not quite as dark as a traditional bar in terms of the colors and the lighting,” Thonis said in a phone interview. “I wanted it to be a bit more comfortable and friendly. We went with a lighter palette. The space when we got here was just a white box, four walls, no character at all, so I knew I wanted to soften it a little bit. We put a bunch of curves everywhere to make it feel a little more comfortable.”

The menu includes an extensive list of options—mixed drinks, shrubs, coffee, teas, and bottles and cans. Many of the items are made fresh in house, including some of the shrubs, something that Dellea says has been popular so far.

The mixed drinks, though non-alcoholic of course, are priced at $13.

“We’re using [almost] all fresh ingredients, we are juicing every single day. We’re making [almost] everything in house. It is really time consuming and costly. Those are kind of the things that we took into account when we came up with the prices,” Dellea said. These mixed drinks include the “Daters Gonna Date,” with medjool dates, peanut butter, lime, banana syrup, vanilla, macadamia nut milk, and Coco Rico soda, and the “A Trip to Ikea,” with lingonberry, lemon, vanilla, cardamom, and cream.

Getaway also has now added a small food menu, including She Wolf Bakery sourdough and house-made hummus, three variations of She Wolf polenta bread grilled cheeses, mixed olives, homemade curry cashews, and Ovenly cookies.

“She Wolf and Ovenly are both local vendors that we really liked and really wanted to work with. Sam has been making curry cashews at home and really, really liked them and always wanted to add those to the menu. I’m an avid grilled cheese eater. So, these were just things that we were excited about and wanted to make for people,” Dellea said.

Although many of their patrons are older, Getaway is not a 21+ establishment. Dellea says that the experience in the space is customizable, based on what the guest wants.

“I think we want their ideal experience to be what they want it to be, so if they want to come here with friends and socialize or celebrate a birthday or an event then that’s great. If you want to come and read a book at the bar or chat with the bartender, that’s great too. It really kind of varies per person,” Dellea said.

Looking forward, Getaway is excited about what is happening in the 0% industry.

“We’re always experimenting with drinks and trying to add new stuff to the menu. There’s a lot of movement in the non-alcoholic space, I think that people are really experimenting with a lot of different non-alcoholic spirits,” Dellea said. “We’ve seen a lot of 0.0 beers that are starting to come out now. We’re just excited to kind of keep trying those things and keep expanding the menu.”

Getaway is located at 158 Green Street, between Franklin Street and Manhattan Avenue, Greenpoint
Hours: Tuesday—Sunday from 5:00pm to 8:00pm