AUSTIN, Texas -- While there are at least a half-dozen Christmas-themed pop-up bars scattered across Austin for the holidays, there hadn't been a Hanukkah-themed bar - until now.
- Get Lit located near corner of Webberville and E. 7th
- Speciality cocktails the big attraction
The decor isn't over the top - some blue and white balloons, pin-up menorahs, and some blue and white lights - but that's the look bar co-owner Jeremy Murray was going for. He and his business partner had been griping to each other over how over the top some of the other holiday pop-ups were - they didn't want to be that.
Cleverly named - Get Lit - the Hanukkah pop-up bar takes place at Kitty Cohen's in East Austin, a bar that hosts several other pop-up bars throughout the year. Kitty Cohen's is named after Murray's grandmother, honing in on the sort of Boca Raton retirement community vibe. But despite the Jewish sounding last name - Cohen wasn't Jewish and neither is Murray - however Murray's business partner is.
“He was talking about feeling a little absent from his community - he now lives in Dripping Springs," said Murray. "And we just started talking about Hanukkah, and as we just talked about it, it unfolded and just thought - why not?”
Both were unaware that they would inadvertently create Austin's first-ever Hanukkah pop-up bar. Murray said he was impressed with the initial buzz the idea of the bar generated on social media.
"In 15-plus years, I don’t think I’ve ever that kind of response online for any event I’ve ever been a part of," recalled Murray.
The exterior of Kitty Cohen's in Austin, Texas, appears in this image from December 2019. (Matthew Mershon/Spectrum News)
It's the specialty cocktails that are the main attraction of the pop-up. From Latke Punch featuring potato vodka, apple cider, ginger liquor and bitters, to a Manischewitz Spritz which contains Prosecco, Peychaud's and that ever-so-familiar Concord grape wine.
They've also got an Oy Fashioned, Maccabees Knees, and Bubbe's Hot Buttered Rum. The play-on-word cocktails are simple, strong and refreshingly inexpensive compared to other holiday-themed bars.
“I don’t really like to rebrand the classics - I don’t know why anybody would do that to begin with," said Murray. "So what we did was apply products and some creative energy, and that’s where the list came from.”
So in the words of Adam Sandler, "if you feel like you're the only kid in town without a Christmas tree," here's at least one pop-up bar now making Jews and non-Jews alike feel right at home during the holiday season.
The bar is located near the corner of Webberville and E. 7th Street. The pop-up runs through the end of Hanukkah, which ends on Monday, December 30, and is open every night until 2 a.m.
