Leah S.

I drove past this place multiple times, but since the sun was out I thought I'd stop in to try some of the slushees I kept hearing so much about. Sadly, the slushee machine was down, but the Rainbow Brite was a nice substitute with a scoop of sherbet on a hot day. There's a limited food offering and lots of games to play while you enjoy your cocktail or beer (they have a decent draft selection). Parking in the lot across the street is reasonable also.

Maggie S.

Totes two thumbs up Chill Vibe. (casual and cute) Strong drinks. (I ordered the rum & Cheerwine cocktail- IT. IS. STRONG.- opted for piña colada in super cute tumbler for second round) Fun stuff. (good music and fun games for all) Good food. (mediterranean street food served hot & fresh from Forty Thieves food window in back of bar.) Definitely check this place out! Also, parking is available directly across street and the street car stop is right at the front door, so you have no good excuse not to stop in.

Megan B.

Visiting Holiday Spirits was most definitely not a holiday for me. I went on a Sunday night when the bar was slow, so I was expecting to just chill back and take in the space...and the space definitely needs to be taken in. The whole concept of the bar is confusing and has no real feel to it. The logo is brightly colored with a toucan but the space does nothing to reflect a "holiday" bar. Not even a dive bar, as it's advertised. There's a strange, huge Oklahoma sign with moss hanging from it. When asking the barbacks what the story was behind it, my group was essentially told it was big and filled up space. There are a few, retro neons with more greenery but it seems strangely out of place amongst the old pictures of people and creepy old toys and baby dolls hanging at the bar. Overall, the space feels like it has no personality and random things were thrown all over the place. The bar was another debacle. I get that Holiday is new, but they have a ton of errors and kinks to work out. When we tried to order drinks, especially the house cocktails, our bartender pretty much told us that they didn't have half of the liquor. Or beer. How does a bar run out of High Life? Yikes. Anyways, I proceeded to get the Cinnabon cocktail and waited...and waited. I couldn't imagine how long it would take to get a drink on a busy Friday night. I finally got my cocktail, and wished I didn't. Usually I don't ever send back drinks but between my partner and I the tastes we got from the Cinnabon cocktail were "plastic" and "chlorine". We thought maybe something was off so we asked the bartender to get something else. That's when things got even stranger. The bartender was pushy and asked what was wrong. When my partner explained the bad taste he literally took out a straw to take a taste of the drink. What...why? I'm a firm believer of the customer is always right, even if it is frustrating. Believe me, I wanted to like this cocktail and not send it back. After haggling with the bartender he said he would check with his manager if he could give us another drink. Another sour taste left in my mouth by Holiday. Finally we did manage to get another cocktail which was better, but switched to drinking canned beers after. My party did stay and play some pool which was enjoyable and ordered fries from the in-house food, Forty Thieves, which were delicious. I really hope that Holiday can work out their opening fumbles and create some sort of cohesive environment for people to enjoy, but I probably won't be back soon.

T ..

Holiday Spirits is a new and fun dive bar at the corner of Race & Liberty. If you know this part of OTR, you might be surprised that they picked a location a bit removed from the core of where people spend time in OTR on the weekends today, largely around Vine / Main and then up north by Findlay Market and Rhinegeist. Holiday is about halfway between those two and a block north of Taft's. I think they've figured out the perfect location to bridge the gap between NorLib and SoLib. Speaking of OTR's expanding core, you should also check out the recent bars and restaurants on Court St just south of OTR proper if you haven't already. Holiday Spirits has pretty much everything you would want in a neighborhood bar figured out from the start. It's nice that the owners are seasoned in OTR already running favorites like Senate, Pontiac, and Abigail Street. They've got a good variety of cocktails and beer (draft and can) reasonably priced. The Mediterranean food from neighboring restaurant Forty Thieves (see separate review) is quite tasty, fast, and convenient with a window to order inside, and is also run by the same owners. Entertainment like skee ball, darts, and pool tables are available. The number of bars with pool tables in OTR is pretty small so I'm especially excited for that part. Everything was operating smoothly and service was very quick -- some of the best in OTR without a doubt. Looking forward to future visits here!

Tabitha W.

The Forty Thieves/Holiday Spirits combo can be a little confusing. I guess Forty Thieves is actually just limited to the food window, and Holiday Spirits owns all the interior space. We ordered drinks at the bar first and then made our way up to the food window. We were mostly here to grab a bite to eat, so my husband I just shared the Curious George Cocktail. Very unique. I would definitely come back!

Aditi R.

Holiday Spirits is Fun. I'd give this place that. Right in OTR, this place is at Race St, which is kinda away from the hustle and bustle of Walnut and Vine. I went on a Sunday, so this place hardly had anyone in. The place is decently sized, with a good bar area, couple booths, and some games on the other side. The decor, however, feels like a fusion of random things. There's a pink colored couch, and a hoarding saying "My diet starts tomorrow". I don't get why it's within the same space. They have a couple specialty cocktails, and a few beers on tap. My friend got a cocktail 'Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica.' containing gin and prosecco. I wanted a vodka fresca. But, they didn't have fresca, so I got the vodka tonic. The vodka tonic was good, though it had more tonic and ice, than vodka. The cocktail was interesting and refreshing. The clove after-taste very present. Service was alright. We were promptly tended to, and handed drinks quick. The price point was pretty average per OTR standards too.

Alexander P.

I came here during the 2019 Opening Day parade - it was airy, lively and fun! Holiday Spirits occupies a trendy space at the corner of Race & Liberty that was in sore need of some love. It's half historic remodel/ bar and half "game room" -- with a pool table, skee ball, darts. I loved the exposed brick and open feel of the older section (didn't love the laminate bar top, though), for me the new section looked a bit unfinished, the walls are still cinder block and there's not much going on. I can tell Holiday Spirits is one of those places that gets better after some time, so I will be checking back!

Heather L.

Great new little bar with food on the far edge of the developed section of OTR. We arrived later on in the evening with a party of 6 and were waited on immediately. I got the frozen hurricane which was delicious... not too sweet and just the right amount of alcohol. We were able to order food from the adjacent food window (forty thieves) and that was ready very quickly. We posted up outside on the patio as it was a nice night. The vibe and atmosphere here is great. It is super casual and relaxed, although I don't think id go as far to say it is the dive bar they were going for, thats not a bad thing. You cant "create" a dive bar, it just is. There is skee ball (although not cheap to play) and several other games. Plenty of space to sit on couches, near the games, at the bar, or the generous outdoor patio. We will definitely be back, this place is worth venturing a little further out for.