Deck the halls and get ready to drink, it’s time to celebrate Christmas- Philly style. Teddy Sourias and Craft Concepts Group are re-opening up Tinsel, the popular Christmas pop-up bar in Center City. Tinsel was sold out every single night last December, and this year promises to be more festive, holly and jolly than ever. Here is everything you need to know about Tinsel, the Christmas pop-up bar in Philly.
Everything you need to know about Tinsel: the Christmas pop-up bar in Philly
Tinsel is the only home-grown Christmas pop-up bar in Philly, and it certainly is one-of-a-kind. The festive holiday dream-land is decked out with lights, trees, fun colors and plenty of Christmas trinkets. The whole atmosphere makes you feel as though you’ve jumped down a chimney Santa-style and ended up at his favorite North Pole hangout.
Everything is themed perfectly for the jolly holiday, including the beverages. Tinsel will offer a full selection of liquor and spirits, Christmas cocktails and all-specialty Christmas beer drafts. Some delicious cocktails include the Gingerbread Man (Northbound Rye and Housemade Gingersnap Syrup), Through the Candy Cane Forest (Pinnacle Vodka, Dekuyper Peppermint Schnapps and White Chocolate Liqueur), Let it Snow (Jim Beam Double Oak and Maple Syrup) and Thin Mint (Fernet Blanco, Borghetti, Espresso Liqueur and Slushi.)
The coolest drink by far is Tinsel’s Snow Globe made with Grey Goose La Vanille and White Cranberry; the delicious beverage comes in a Snow Globe (that you can take home with you) with edible snow. There is also a cocktail made in an ornament and a glass stocking that you can take back with you as well. Be sure to also try the Canned “Good” beverage, the drink comes in a custom Tinsel soup can (another fun souvenir) and partial proceeds for the drink benefit MANNA.
As an added appreciation to all of our favorite Kris Kringle’s, Tinsel is offering professional “mall” Santas during happy hour their first drink for free (if they show credentials and show up in costume.) Hey, even Santa gets thirsty. To keep the vibe festive, DJ Robert Drake (Mr. Christmas) will be spinning some of his holiday tunes with other Christmas favorites on December 10 and 17 from 5-7p.m. Other nights will feature plenty of holly jolly tunes as well.
Brand new this year at Tinsel is the Letters to Santa, these custom Tinsel inspired post-cards offer guests the opportunity to write notes to Santa, send letters home or just simply spread holiday cheer. The first 500 people will enjoy a post-card with live postage, all you have to do is drop your postcard in the “Letters to Santa” mailbox in the main bar area, and Tinsel will get them to the post office.
The decor around the bar is enough to put you in a Christmas craze. There is a brand-new custom bar top that is thirty-three feet long, custom artwork featuring different holiday characters, a giant nine-foot tall gingerbread house, a full-length brick carved winter scene with Santa and his reindeer, gift box inverted chandeliers, a grand staircase leading to the North Pole and much more. Visitors can also check out Santa’s Throne Room that is the perfect spot for holiday photo opps.
Fun holiday events at the Tinsel Christmas Pop-up Bar include a brand-new Jingle Bars Holiday Bar Crawl (Dec.22), a new White Elephant Party where guests bring an unwanted gift from Christmas and swap it for something new, New Year’s Eve/Day celebrations and much more.
Tinsel the Christmas pop-up bar in Philly is located at 116 S.12 St., hours of operation differ on the day. Visit Tinsel on Facebook or Instagram at Tinsel Philly for more information.
