Miracle on Gay Street Pop-Up Bar

Only three days until Christmas!! And one more week to check out Miracle on Gay Street the Christmas-themed pop-up bar which has taken residence at The Citizen's Trust (11 W Gay Street). I went here with my husband and some friends a couple weekends ago and we had a great time. I will warn you now there is usually a long wait to get in. We did go on a Saturday night, so it might be shorter other nights (heard Friday was just as long though). The bar itself wasn't that full, but we were told they didn't have enough bartenders on staff, and they also like it keep it from being overcrowded. We heard a lot of complaints from other patrons about this, however we had no problem putting in our name and number and heading to another nearby bar for drinks until they texted us. At least you don't have to wait in line in the cold! Plenty of other things to do while you wait. One other thing - the door is locked. Again, not sure if it was just that night or if they do this to keep it from being overly crowded. If you knock and wait a second you will be let in. I liked the exclusive feel of it, and I actually appreciated their approach of keeping the bar from overcrowding because there was plenty of room to move around without getting bumped into, drinks came very fast and we had no issue getting seats at the bar as soon as we walked in.

Miracle pop-up bars take place all across the country. I absolutely love the idea. However, I expected the place to be completely decked out in Christmas decorations. Like Rolf's German restaurant in NYC level of holiday spirit. Miracle definitely had lots of gorgeous Christmas decorations and The Citizen's Trust is a fairly large space, but again just expected it to be more over the top.

The drinks however? Definitely met my expectations and then some. We tried most of the drinks on the menu. I will highlight my favorites below. They are not only delicious but super festive and presented perfectly. The bartenders were also extremely friendly and attentive.

The Snowball Old Fashioned was my favorite. No shocker there as Old Fashioneds are one of my favorite drinks to begin with. This one had Butterscotch Rye, spiced brown sugar, wormwood bitters and orange zest. If you love Old Fashioneds like me just imagine one infused with all your favorite holiday flavors. And order one. Now.

The Christmas Carol Barrel. Presentation perfection. This one had aged rum, aquavit, Amaro, pumpkin pie, lemon and Angostura bitters. I worried it was going to be too sweet for me but it really wasn't! Flavorful with a kick and mmm crushed ice.

Koala-La La La, La La La La comes with an actual miniature stuffed animal koala bear wearing a tiny "Miracle" sweater. I mean can you get cuter than that? This drink contained gin, pine, dry vermouth, lime, eucalyptus syrup and orange bitters. It was tart and delicious. Probably my second favorite on the menu!

The Christmapolitan was damn good too. Shoot. Maybe this was my second favorite? Its too hard! This cocktail featured vodka, elderflower, dry vermouth, spiced cranberry sauce, rosemary, lime and absinthe mist. Yum.

Last was the Run Run Rudolph in yet another festively adorable glass. It contained gin, mulled wine puree, lemon and Prosecco. Nothing says holiday drink like mulled wine. Okay maybe eggnog which was also on the menu. However, this one was a touch too sweet for me. I am very particular about mulled wines and tend to only like the dryer more spicy versions. If you like sweet though definitely try this one out! I don't think it was OVERLY sweet, but I prefer boozy, spicy and/or tart.

Drinks range from $10-13 price point. Honestly cheap for all handcrafted cocktails. They also had naughty and nice shots for $5. Love. Overall we had a great time. Also ran into a lot of other friends there as this pop-up has become a holiday destination!