BY MAUREEN PARKER for WEEKLY VOLCANO | 9/18/2026
We’re going to start out with a few stats, folks, because apparently the way Americans drink, or don’t drink, is changing.
This year, the share of Americans who say they drink alcohol remained at a record low of 54 percent for the second consecutive year, the lowest reading in Gallup’s trend dating back to 1939. Seventeen percent of Americans say they’ve substituted nonalcoholic beverages for alcohol.
And as of January 2026, nonalcoholic beverages have some serious momentum for what is still a relatively young category. An estimated 25 to 35 percent of consumers are integrating these drinks into their routines, driven by everything from sober-curious lifestyles and the cost of alcohol to better-for-you aspirations and a desire to avoid hangovers. Currently, Gen Z is the generation most actively increasing its consumption of alcohol alternatives.
Me? I’m in a generation that’s TIRED. Tired of the BS and tired of that rich feeling of overconsumption after going outside and having what we like to call “a time.”
I say all that to say this: an amazing woman has an amazing shop on South Tacoma Way called Sober AF Zero Proof Bottle Shop, and I’ve been in it, I’ve purchased from it, and you need to go because she knows her stuff!
First things first: Sober AF means Sober Alcohol-Free. But we ALL know what we thought AF meant from the jump. And owner Stephanie Housden has mostly left that part open to interpretation because … it’s more fun that way.
Walking into Sober AF feels nothing like walking into your typical bottle shop. The interior is inspired by Housden’s bedroom when she was 14 years old. Think: Lisa Frank meets ’80s girly-girl bedroom, splashed with the freedom of a teenager who has finally been handed the interior decorating reins. Basically: COLOR. The gorgeous mural on the front wall, painted by Kaitlin Lloyd, is perfectly on theme with the rest of the space.
But underneath all that color is a business built around an industry that has evolved tremendously. Back in the day, your alcohol-free choices were pretty much O’Doul’s, some questionable nonalcoholic wine, and, well … good luck, beloved. Now? Completely different ball game.
You can hardly scroll on your phone without seeing an ad for some nonalcoholic drink, spirit alternative, or functional beverage promising an adult drinking experience sans alcohol. And in the way that vegetarian and meat-free foods have also evolved over the years, the alcohol-free industry has come a loooooong way. Personally? I think for the better.
Having a brick-and-mortar shop right here in Tacoma makes a difference, because instead of staring at a bottle online wondering, “What the hell is this supposed to taste like?” you have somebody standing in front of you who actually knows. Because apparently, people, THERE ARE CATEGORIES TO THESE THINGS. Shall we?
You have alcohol replacements: products designed to step in for something familiar like bourbon, tequila, or another traditional spirit, just without the alcohol.
Next, there are spirit alternatives. These aren’t necessarily trying to imitate alcohol at all. They have their own flavor profiles, usually with more elevated, adult flavors instead of tasting like juice or syrup. Some are functional beverages containing ingredients such as adaptogens and other botanicals. They’re doing their own thing while still giving you the ritual and experience of having a grown-folks drink.
Then you have functional and infused beverages, which may contain ingredients like kava, CBD, or a low dose of THC.
And yes, nonalcoholic wine and beer are still very much part of the picture, except we have moved waaaaay beyond the O’Doul’s days. Progress!
With years of experience in food and beverage service, Housden knows this world. She’s also tried her hand working in business over the years, including another South Tacoma Way staple, Edison Square, so she’s no stranger to this neighborhood.
But Sober AF isn’t just somewhere to walk in, grab a bottle, and leave. This place has got some THANGS going on. Karaoke. LEGO-building nights. Paint-and-sips. Mahjong tournaments. Drag queen bingo. The point isn’t simply to remove alcohol. It’s also to create a place where sober and sober-curious folks can still go out, socialize, laugh, meet people, and have a whole entire good time, and where drinking alcohol isn’t the price of admission.
And THAT matters. If you’ve spent years associating socializing with drinking, walking into the alcohol-free world can be overwhelming. What do you order? What does it taste like? What the hell is an adaptogen? Why does this bottle look like gin but isn’t gin? And am I supposed to drink this straight or mix it with something?
Housden makes that transition easier and fun, because she can explain what you’re looking at without making you feel like you should already know. Hell, I learned something here myself: There’s a term, “California sober” or “Cali sober,” that’s generally used for someone who doesn’t drink alcohol but may still partake in a little bit of the green stuff. If you know what I mean.
Housden’s vision doesn’t stop at this one colorful spot on South Tacoma Way. She wants to expand Sober AF into other areas and eventually create additional alcohol-free spaces built around completely different themes. One possibility? A sober sports bar, where people can watch the game, yell at the TV, talk trash about somebody else’s team, eat, drink, and enjoy all the social parts of the sports bar experience … without alcohol.
And when you think about it, why the hell not? If we can have neighborhood bars, sports bars, wine bars, cocktail lounges, and breweries all offering different versions of the same basic social experience, why shouldn’t people who don’t drink, or simply don’t feel like drinking that day, have the same variety of choices?
That’s why this movement that Housden’s building is so interesting. Sober AF isn’t asking people to stop going out. It’s creating another way to do that.
Sober AF is also very much a family business, with family members working in the shop. Moose the French bulldog is the shop’s living mascot, and his attendance is apparently NOT optional, because when Moose isn’t there, people have questions. So if alcohol alternatives aren’t enough to get you through the door, perhaps a furry little ball of joy, joy, joy will do it. He’s there almost every day, ready for his public.
What I really like about Sober AF, though, is what the place represents. Here is an alcohol-free business sitting smack-dab in the middle of the South Tacoma Way strip, surrounded by bars and nightlife, essentially saying there’s more than one way to go out and have “a time.”
And yes, that means Housden has her hands full. But she also knows there are people who are looking for exactly what she’s created, and if her plans come together, eventually, there may be a whole lot more places like it.
