Middle East & Africa | Saudi’s booze-free bars

Bar culture has arrived in Saudi Arabia, albeit without the booze

And the kingdom’s first liquor store has residents wondering if more will follow

Bartender Asabek Mashraboy prepares a drink at "Meraki Riyadh", a pop-up bar in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Cocktail sheikh-erPhotograph: AFP
|RIYADH

IT LOOKS and tastes like a negroni, ruby red and bittersweet with a herbal finish. At 58 rials ($15), it is priced like a negroni too. But it does not kick like one, because this version of the classic Italian cocktail is served in Riyadh, the capital of teetotal Saudi Arabia.

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This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Soda Arabia”

From the February 24th 2024 edition

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