Be your own bartender with cocktail kits from local lounges

Just as takeout food has replaced restaurant dining during the spring of staying in, cocktail kits are currently as close as you can get to a bar experience.

Washington bars and restaurants aren’t allowed to sell pre-made cocktails to go, so they’ve gotten creative with kits, which include sealed bottles of liquor plus mixers and garnishes so the thirsty can mix their own at home.

The kits — which range from old standbys to new creations — have become quite a trend in Seattle since the state Liquor and Cannabis Board’s March 24 announcement that establishments with liquor licenses may sell alcoholic beverages in sealed containers.

Olympia cocktail establishments weren’t far behind.

Dillinger’s Cocktails and Kitchen, which closed temporarily on March 20, reopened April 10 to sell a rotating selection of cocktail kits and snacks. Octapas Café, which is offering takeout tapas and family meals Thursdays through Sundays, added kits April 17.

“We took some notes from some of our neighbors up in Seattle that were doing cocktail kits,” said Dillinger’s co-owner Sandy Hall. “It’s definitely picking up some momentum.”

Octapas co-owner Jamie Brayshaw has been having fun creating kits, including one for the Basement of the Alamo, which includes housemade strawberry shrub, mezcal, honey, lime and mint.

“I miss the connections made with guests sitting at the bar and the warm feeling of a full, buzzing dining room,” Brayshaw told The Olympian. “Creating these cocktail kits helps me remember some of the special things about our place and is a way to connect with many of our regulars.”

Octapas also is selling House Bloody Mary and Aperol Spritz kits and plans to offer more options soon.

Dillinger’s is mixing up different kits and snacks each week; the kits must be ordered by 2 p.m. Thursday for pickup Friday afternoon. This week’s offerings include a classic Manhattan with bourbon and two that Hall described as “fruit forward but not too sweet.”

“We’re doing the Saturn, a fun Tiki-style cocktail that has passionfruit, and the Scarlett, one of our originals,” she said. “It has raspberry and lemon and vodka, so it’s very refreshing.”

To eat with those — an important consideration since the law requires that kits be ordered with food — Dillinger’s has flatbread with tapenade, feta, tomato and arugula; smoked pimento cheese spread with crostini; and the ever-popular bourbon doughnut bread pudding.

You’ll need to be pretty thirsty to order the kits, which make a dozen or more drinks and cost $55-$80.

But you won’t need to be a trained mixologist: Instructions are included.

“We provide everything, so you get to be your own bartender,” Hall said.

But are you going to listen to your own troubles?

Dillinger’s Cocktails & Kitchen

• Where: 406 Washington St. SE, Olympia
• Current hours: 3-6 p.m. Friday
• Want some? Order and pay online by 2 p.m. Thursday for pickup Friday afternoon.
• More information: 360-515-0650, http://www.dillingerscocktailsandkitchen.com

Octapas Café

• Where: 414 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia
• Current hours: 4-7:30 p.m. Thursday-Sunday
• Want some? Order by phone or email and pay by phone for pickup in the restaurant.
• More information: 360-878-9333, http://octapascafe.com, info@octapascafe.com

This story was originally published April 22, 2020 at 5:45 AM.