New alcohol-free ‘beverage room’ opening in Port Coquitlam

It’s not your average bar: the owners of a new alcohol-free watering hole in Port Coquitlam are calling Bevees an inclusive space for those who don’t drink.

Racquel Foran says the lounge space — she doesn’t want to call it a bar — will have Metro Vancouver’s largest selection of non-alcoholic beverages, with almost 300 products on the shelves so far.

“We’ve got a vast selection of red wines,” she said. “They come from Australia, France, Spain, Chile.”

Foran says Bevees will host guests with plenty of reasons not to drink alcohol.

“Whether that’s for religious reasons, cultural reasons, health reasons, personal preference, there’s been no space for those people to celebrate occasions in the same way that people do with alcohol,” she said.

Former Bartender Nick Devine will soon have mocktails from his East Vancouver company, Edna’s, on the shelves at Bevees, and he says there are increasingly more high-quality options available for those who choose spirit-free beverages.

“It’s gradually becoming more accepted in social occasions and events to not drink, and part of that is making good viable options for those people not to drink,” he said. “I’ve always noticed that the non-alcoholic options have been very much not premium. There wasn’t a lot out there, generic pops, maybe a fruit juice and soda if you were lucky, was usually the options, and that’s still the case today.”

Foran says she’s planning to stock 500 different kinds of non-alcoholic beverages in the next six months, and she’s welcoming people of all ages and backgrounds to try them.

“I think it’s wonderful,” she said. “Now people aren’t going to be left out. So if you have religious or cultural reasons that you don’t want to be where there’s alcohol – now you’ve got a space where you can come and celebrate with you friends. If you’re having a baby shower and you don’t drink, now you’ve got a place with your friends.”

Bevees is located on Lougheed Highway near Westwood Street.