Elevate Kava Bar and Lounge hosts grand opening

Elevate Kava Bar & Lounge held its grand opening in Estero on Friday Night. The kava bar held its soft opening on Black Friday.

Kava and kratom are alternatives to alcohol that have grown in popularity in South Florida.

• RELATED: Elevate Kava Bar, offering an alternative nightlife experience, to open near FGCU

The event featured a white carpet, balloon pillars, DJs, fire dancers, and a pool table for attendees to enjoy.

The location has been under lease for three years, but construction on the bar began in March.

Caleb Warner is the operations manager for Elevate Kava Bar. He said getting to the grand opening was difficult.

“It’s so fulfilling,” said Warner. “It’s like a weight off my chest. Trying to get permitting and inspections from Lee County has been interesting and time-consuming, to say the least.”

Elevate offers 14 extract drink options, eight craft cocktail-style drinks, three martini options, and three blended beverages.

“What really sets us apart is that the extract base is super flavor neutral, said Warner. “You’re able to use the components from everyday cocktails like a margarita or espresso martini or cosmopolitan and create that beverage in a non-alcoholic form that tastes really good with the effect of kava or kratom.”

The bar plans to hold weekly events to draw customers in. These include pool tournaments, poker nights, trivia, and “kava pong” tournaments.

Warner said that he wants customers to be knowledgeable about the products they serve at Elevate.

“Product education is a huge piece for us here,” said Warner. “A lot of the kava bars around here don’t tell you what they’re serving. People get confused with what they’re drinking, so our kava-tenders take pride in educating where our products come from and what kind of effects it’s going to give you.”

Chloe Holmes is a regular at various kava bars in the area and a kava-tender herself. She said that she enjoyed the ambiance of the event.

“It’s super cool. There’s great vibes and great drinks,” said Holmes. “Took a second to even go into the quiet room. That was really cool to see.”

Holmes said that Elevate fills a unique niche in the community.

“I love Mitra-9 more than I like regular house brewed kratom and kava,” said Holmes. “A lot of people opt for that when they go to most kava bars. A lot of people will drive to smoke shops or gas stations to find that, and now we have a whole kava bar dedicated to Mitra-9.”

To consume kava you must be at least 18 years old. To consume kratom you must be at least 21 years old.