Business · Companies · 3 hrs ago
Los Angeles Fine-Dining Restaurants Expand Non-Alcoholic Pairings
Fine-dining restaurants in Los Angeles are offering more elaborate non-alcoholic drinks to accompany tasting menus.
The trend involves restaurants including Providence, Kato, Somni, Sushi Nakazawa and Jacaranda.
Diners, especially younger people, are drinking less, and some restaurants say a large share of their guests now choose alcohol-free pairings.
At one Sushi Nakazawa location in Los Angeles, 25 percent of customers opt for non-alcoholic drinks, compared with 5 percent at its original Manhattan restaurant.
Restaurants are drawing on kitchen techniques such as fermentation and infusion, while improved methods for removing alcohol have helped preserve wine’s flavor.
These programs take work and can cost nearly as much to run as alcoholic pairings, but restaurants with tight margins see them as a way to serve more guests and earn revenue.
The field is still developing, with chefs and drinks teams continuing to experiment.
Los Angeles fine-dining restaurants are expanding non-alcoholic drink pairings as more customers seek alcohol-free options.
Restaurants including Providence, Kato, Somni and Jacaranda are developing elaborate pairings using techniques such as fermentation, clarification and infusion.
At Somni, up to half of diners on many evenings choose non-alcoholic pairings, while they account for about 20 percent of pairings at Jacaranda.
Restaurants see the programs as an alternative revenue source, though their costs can approach those of alcoholic pairings.
Improved dealcoholization technology has helped preserve the character of wine in non-alcoholic drinks.
- Who
- Los Angeles fine-dining restaurants and their customers.
- What
- Restaurants are expanding non-alcoholic drink-pairing programs.
- When
- The article was published on October 11, 2026; some programs have developed over the past two years.
- Where
- Los Angeles, including Hollywood, West Hollywood and downtown.
- Why
- Customers are driving demand, and restaurants are developing the programs as alternative revenue streams.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
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A few years ago, it may have felt austere and stripped, and now it tastes like a dead ringer for the real thing.
Serious cocktail programs began appearing in fine-dining spaces, according to Kato bar director Austin Hennelly.
Sushi Nakazawa beverage director Dean Fuerth said he was discouraged by the non-alcoholic products then available.
Providence bar director Kim Stodel has been creating elaborate spirit-free progressions.
The Hollywood Reporter published its article on non-alcoholic pairings at Los Angeles restaurants.
- Providence
- Three Michelin stars; its spirit-free progressions have been developed over the past two years
- Somni
- Up to half of diners on many evenings choose non-alcoholic pairings
- Jacaranda
- Non-alcoholic drinks account for about 20 percent of pairings
- Sushi Nakazawa, Robertson Boulevard
- 25 percent of clientele opt for non-alcoholic beverages at its five-month-old outpost
- Sushi Nakazawa, Manhattan
- 5 percent of clientele opt for non-alcoholic beverages at the original location
Sources
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