Durham business features cocktails without alcohol, a taste of the islands

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- One Durham business is stirring up something just a bit different: Cocktails minus the alcohol and adding the kava root, transporting you straight to Hawaii.

"It just chills you out and makes you feel nice and mellow and relaxed," said Zoey Best, owner of Da Kine's Kava.

Best and her husband previously lived in Hawaii and decided to come back home to Durham. They opened Da Kine's Kava in July during the height of the pandemic.

"It was very scary but again, it was just this opportunity that we felt like we couldn't pass up, and at the same time, it was either the smartest thing or the dumbest thing we'd ever done," Best said.

The star of the show in these cocktails is the kava concentrate. It is made from a root native to the Pacific and perfect for pandemic stress.

"A lot of people use it as an alternative to alcohol because it takes the edge off in a very similar way but without the nasty side effects. There's no hangover, you're not acting weird, your're still functional, you can still think straight," Best said.

It's been almost a year since they started the business, but now the doors are wide open, and they're ready to welcome people to Durham's first non-alcoholic bar.

"We really wanted to bring the aloha to Durham, and we've sort of figured out that the aloha is here - they might just not call it that. But it's there," Best said.

If you want to get your first taste of kava, they are open every day except Monday, and they've just extended their hours to stay open until 10 p.m.