Published by Jeremy. Last Updated on December 12, 2023.
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If there is any Christmas popup bar that we try to visit at least once every December, it would be Miracle Bar.
To call this holiday pop-up bar popular would be an understatement, as seemingly everyone wants a piece of the action- Miracle Bar is routinely the most popular and can have lines to match.
Thankfully, in subsequent years the bar has moved into larger and larger spaces to accommodate guests, and has truly grown to be the premier holiday bar in the city!
Note: Photos in this article may be from past Miracle pop-up iterations and may not be fully reflective of this year's popup design.
The Miracle Bar is an International Pop-Up
Before we dive into the drinks, we need to take a step back to talk about the pop-up itself.
This one is an international pop-up that can be found in many cities in the USA plus throughout Canada and select cities in England, the Cayman Islands, and Panama.
The bar itself is manned by local bartenders (in Pittsburgh it is managed by the folks at The Warren), but the menu and general setup of the bar is the same no matter where you go- even down to the glassware they use.
A cut of the profits are donated to local charities and tends to raise tens of thousands of dollars each and every year- drinking with a good deed mixed in!
Visiting the Miracle Bar in Pittsburgh
The first thing you'll notice when visiting the Miracle bar is that it is floor-to-ceiling and wall-to-wall Christmas. There is quite literally no space that is not covered with ornaments, lights, tinsel, funny (and some ugly) Christmas sweaters, and ample holiday-themed glasses- of course.
We enjoyed watching people walk into the bar because everyone's reaction was always the same. They looked in, looked at the ceiling, and mouthed ‘wow.'
You probably will, too.
The second thing you'll notice is that it is packed. Even on our weeknight visits, there was hardly much walking around room until about 7 pm when the happy hour crowd started filing out- and even then only briefly until the night time crowd moved in.
That said, no matter when we visit, we've had good luck finding a seat at, or close to, the bar for near immediate service.
Delicious Holiday Themed Cocktails
During our most recent visit to the Miracle popup bar (2023), we were able to sample two cocktails- The Krampus and the Christmas Cricket.
The Krampus was served in an ominous looking Krampus mug (that we just had to buy to take home) and was made with reposado tequila, oloroso sherry, allspice dram, mezcal, ginger, hibiscus, lime, and hellfire bitters. This one reminded us a bit of an Oaxacan Old Fashioned but had some lovely balance of flavors from the nuanced ginger and hibiscus. But be warned- this one packed a bit of heat, too!
The Christmas Cricket featured blanco tequila, vanilla liqueur, minty amaro, coco pandan, cream, and mole bitters. What was fascinating about this one was that it was indeed strong in the mint department, but felt a bit restrained due to the pandan and amaro bringing it back down and tempering what could be an otherwise extreme flavor. Despite its pronounced color suggesting otherwise, this one was a real treat!
As this particular visit came with a stop at Miracle's second pop-up bar in the city, the tiki-themed Sippin' Santa a few blocks away, we did not get to try more on this visit. But several of the cocktails caught our eye including the Snowball Old-Fashioned (made with gingerbread), the Elfin Around #2 (made with Cognac, mulled wine reduction, champagne, and absinthe), and the Yippee Ki Yay Mother F*****r (made with rum, ube and coconut orgeat, and acid adjusted pineapple) to name a few.
In fact, if you are regulars to Miracle bar each season like we are, we would go as far as saying 2023's menu was one of the strongest to date, and we hope to make it back end before the season winds down to try some more that we missed!
Overall, we enjoyed the cocktails and the festive ambiance at the Miracle bar and highly recommend you check it out if you are making a visit to the Christmas festivities in downtown Pittsburgh. This one has become an annual tradition for a reason, and it just keeps getting better and better!
Miracle on 6th is located at 137 6th Street in the Cultural district.
For more things to see during Christmas in Pittsburgh, click the previous link!
