Starting 2025 with Dry January? Whether you just need a break from alcohol after too much holiday indulging or are trying to stick to those resolutions for healthy behaviors, these mocktails are here to help.
Ginger lemongrass, 100 Sails Restaurant & Bar at Prince Waikiki
Mocktails are a staple on the beverage menu at Prince Waikiki’s 100 Sails Restaurant & Bar, according to beverage manager Deon Togami, who says that the same amount of thought and effort in creating cocktails is given to mocktails.
“We started with adding two mocktails on our menu — the hibiscus ($9) and the ube ($9),” he says. “The hibiscus is a combination of housemade hibiscus syrup infused with lemon and local yuzu. Our ube mocktail is a beautiful creation with Hamakua Coast ube, lime and ginger beer.”
Ginger-lemongrass is the newest mocktail on the eatery’s menu. It features local ginger that’s simmered and infused for two days, and then incorporated with housemade lemongrass syrup and topped with fresh lemon juice and club soda, resulting in a bright, refreshing flavor, according to Togami.
“It is a standard for food to be farm-to-table, and we would like to do the same with beverages being farm-to-glass,” he says. “Approaching beverages featuring local farms and/or purveyors is difficult, but it makes a difference for our local business owners with the thought of being ‘local first.’"
Reverie, Pai Honolulu
The most popular mocktail at Pai Honolulu is the reverie ($10) — a refreshing combo of raspberry, lychee, lemon, elderflower and a butterfly pea tea float — according to director of operations Justine Lee.
“The mocktails were created for seasonality or to be a mocktail pairing with a dish,” she says. “We featured mocktails pairings for our course menus for New Year’s Eve, and hope to incorporate mocktail and cocktail pairings into our regular course menu offerings. The mocktails are also made in collaboration with the kitchen, utilizing ingredients chef Kevin Lee has created or sourced for his menu.”
The current mocktail selection ($10 each) also includes appleberry tea (passionberry tea, apple cider, lemon and cinnamon) and Kealani-Kolada (pineapple, coconut, lime, and blue curacao).
Fun fact: The dreamscape — butterfly pea, watermelon, elderflower and lemon — is usually on the restaurant’s summer menu, but it can be made anytime upon request.
Lilikoi pop, Merriman’s Honolulu
Merriman’s Honolulu is famous for its mai tai, but the restaurant also offers two mocktails. Lilikoi pop ($7) is a refreshing combination of lilikoi syrup, lime, mint, soda water and lilikoi foam.
Meanwhile, the zero-proof Mai Taipog ($10) includes passion-orange-guava juice, housemade macadamia nut orgeat, lime and honey lilikoi foam (which contains egg white). This is the eatery’s non-alcoholic take on the popular mai tai.
Strawberry fields, DECK.
DECK. Waikiki is known for its scenic views of Diamond Head — and its mocktails are equally photogenic. The eatery’s non-alcoholic line-up ($12 each) includes peach please (peach syrup, basil, guava and lemon), morning glory (watermelon, strawberry and basil shrub, ginger syrup, lime and ginger beer), Ilima (pineapple juice, lime, mint, simple syrup and ginger ale), strawberry fields (matcha, oat milk and strawberry puree) and How Cool Are You? The latter — raspberry, watermelon, strawberry, cucumber, guava, lemon and salt — is the most expensive option because it comes in a tiki mug for you to take home.
Peach please and strawberry fields are the most popular options, according to Chase Kroger, DECK.’s head bartender.
“We added mocktails to the menu in 2021 to give people an option to have something other than just juice or soda,” she says. “We have been adding at least one seasonal mocktail to our holiday line-up, so guests can expect something similar for Valentine’s Day.”
The Pretender, Mahina & Sun’s
Bar czar (yes, that’s his title) Christian Talbi first created the Unplugged (non-alcoholic) cocktails in late 2023. The selection ranges from Mr Brightside ($10) — turmeric shrub and lemonade with fresh mint — and limonata ($10), a creamy Brazilian limeade, to tropic thunder ($12) with kalamansi and lilikoi and the pretender ($12).
The latter, which is a non-alcoholic twist on a penicillin cocktail, is the most popular option because of its smoky flavor.
Mahana Sands, Moku Kitchen
Mahana Sands ($9) is one of several non-alcoholic refreshments available at Moku Kitchen. It’s made with agave; lemon, pineapple and cucumber juices; and a splash of soda water, according to bar manager Tylor Pacheco.
“Mahana means warmth/warm weather in Hawaiian,” he says. “The mocktail is named after a green and beach on the Big Island. We source our lemon and pineapple juice locally from Govinda’s Juices, and we juice the cucumbers in house.”
Kelli Shiroma Braiotta can be reached at kelli@alohastatedaily.com.
