Moon Mountain, an "alternative culture" bar, will debut in downtown St. Pete this September
/Kava and kratom bars have popped up all over St. Petersburg and Pinellas County in recent years as people seek nightlife options that don’t involve alcoholic drinks. But Moon Mountain, opening this September on the Jannus Block in downtown St. Pete, has taken a different approach — adding craft beers to its beverage menu.
Moon Mountain will be launching at 204 1st Avenue North, formerly home to Hoots, a fast-casual restaurant by Hooters.
In case you haven’t stumbled into one of the many kava bars in St. Pete, kava is a plant from the Pacific Islands with roots that, when ingested, have a relaxing effect on the body, ease tension, and alleviate stress. The feeling is very similar to an alcohol buzz, but without the hangover. However, despite having a similar effect, mixing kava and alcohol is not recommended.
Dubbing itself “The Original Alternative Culture Bar,” Moon Mountain was founded in 2013 and has locations in Brandon and Winter Haven.
“Moon Mountain is your destination for exceptional beverages and a welcoming atmosphere,” according to the company’s website. “We are a full-service retail store and botanical bar serving kava, coffee, botanical tea, loose leaf teas, craft beer, CBD, and vape products.”
The company also said it strives to “foster an active, healthy, creative, and community-based lifestyle.”
The Moon Mountain kava menu includes a traditional kava blend as well as a variety of kava mocktails, such as a Kava Mule, Kava Sunrise, Island Mojito, Kylelada, Sparkling Kosmonaut, La Paloma, and more. For $70, a group can order an 80-ounce ceremonial bowl of kava.
For coffee drinkers, the Moon Mountain coffee menu features an extensive array of both hot and cold options, whether you’re in the mood for a cappuccino, mocha, caramel macchiato, or even a dolce de leche, which consists of Ghirardelli caramel sauce infused with brewed coffee and steamed milk, topped with whipped cream and caramel sauce.
The cold coffee choices include traditional options such as an iced latte and simple cold-brew coffee, as well as chilled shaken espresso, chilled brown sugar oat milk espresso, and “The Afterburner” — house-made cold brew coffee with a shot of espresso, served cold without ice.
But wait, there’s more — Moon Mountain offers a selection of “Cryocinno” frozen coffee beverages. These items incorporate ingredients such as Crunch Berries, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Oreo cookies, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and Ghirardelli chocolate and vanilla.
Not into coffee? Try the tea menu for your caffeine fix. Customers can cool off with an iced tea, iced tea latte, iced matcha, or lemonade, or warm up with a hot tea, hot tea latte, or hot matcha latte.
Moon Mountain also offers locally sourced craft beers, and there are daily specials such as BOGO kava on Mondays, BOGO botanical tea on Tuesdays, and all-day happy hour on Thursdays.
For more information and updates, follow Moon Mountain on Instagram.
