> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://thesort.news/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Issue No. 11: Feeling Sort of Clear - URL: https://thesort.news/issue-no-11-feeling-sort-of-clear/ - Published: 2026-09-03T15:05:39.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-03T15:05:39.000Z - Description: A handful spots across North County doing mocktails, zero-proof cocktails and craft NA beer right — for those who are sober, California sober, or just sober curious. - Author: The Sort - Tags: the-sort-weekly, sort-of-clear, north-county, oceanside, carlsbad, encinitas, leucadia, vista, escondido, drinks ISSUE NO. 11 · NORTH COUNTY, SAN DIEGO # Feeling Sort of Clear Two different readers asked us for this issue in the same week, which we're taking as a sign. Sober, California sober, or sober curious and still want thoughtfully-crafted drink options — this one's for you. We started at Valle, where Chef Roberto Alcocer treats his non-alcoholic pairings as seriously as anything with alcohol in it, and kept going from there: a collection of spots across five North County neighborhoods, and not a pre-batched virgin daiquiri in sight. Sort of Clear · Featured Valle Oceanside We asked **Chef Roberto Alcocer** — the James Beard semifinalist behind Valle, a Michelin-recommended kitchen in Oceanside — to pick one pairing off the non-alcoholic menu. He chose **the Manzanita**: green apple juice, verjus, green grape juice, fennel seed and salt, poured alongside a local rock cod ikejime fillet with a serrano and fennel pollen beurre blanc. The acidity pulls out the fish's sweetness and salinity, while the fennel and serrano echo the dish's aromatics right back. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/0c/cf/0ccf39f2-33b0-4776-aa79-3311ccdf479a/content/images/2026/09/Valle129-2-1.jpg) 📷 credit: Dee Sandoval "To me, the word pairing means a true marriage between the flavors and aromas of the food and the drink … The drink doesn't simply accompany the food; it completes it." — Roberto Alcocer, Executive Chef, Valle 2025 James Beard Award Semifinalist [Get directions](https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=Valle%2C+222+N+Pacific+St%2C+Oceanside%2C+CA&ref=thesort.news) · [Reserve on Tock](https://www.exploretock.com/valleoceanside?ref=thesort.news) Sort of Clear Herb & Sea Encinitas Herb & Sea's non-alcoholic list reads like a real cocktail menu because it is one. **The Pentire N/A Cocktail** comes three ways — spritz, dirty martini, or rosemary & tonic — built on an actual non-alcoholic spirit rather than juice standing in for liquor. **Luke, I Did It Again** keeps things brighter: hibiscus tea, strawberry, vanilla, lemon and soda water. [Get directions](https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=Herb+%26+Sea%2C+131+W+D+St%2C+Encinitas%2C+CA&ref=thesort.news) · [See menu](https://www.herbandsea.com/menu?ref=thesort.news) Sort of Clear Vintana Escondido Vintana's **"Free Spirited"** menu treats zero-proof as its own category, not a substitution list. **The Prickly Without The Pear** leans into Baja flavor — Lyre's non-alcoholic tequila, coconut cream, fresh lime and prickly pear — while **the Garden Gimlet** stays herbal and clean with Lyre's non-alcoholic gin, basil, lime and mint. Order it at happy hour or with dinner; either way, nobody's asking why you're not drinking. [Get directions](https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=Vintana%2C+1205+Auto+Park+Way%2C+Escondido%2C+CA&ref=thesort.news) · [See menu](https://www.dinevintana.com/menu/?ref=thesort.news) Sort of Clear Pure Project Brewing Vista Pure Project treats non-alcoholic beer like an actual style to get right, not a compromise. **Grounded** is an NA IPA built on Citra and Mosaic hops — citrus, resin, a crisp bitter finish — while **Sunsip** is a blonde ale with fresh-baked bread, jasmine and a hint of lemon peel. Both sit under 0.5% ABV and are on tap year-round, no separate ask required. [Get directions](https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=Pure+Project+Brewing%2C+1305+Hot+Spring+Way%2C+Vista%2C+CA&ref=thesort.news) · [Visit the taproom page](https://www.purebrewing.org/location/vista/?ref=thesort.news) Sort of Clear Atelier Manna Leucadia, Encinitas Atelier Manna comes from chef Andrew Bachelier (formerly of the Michelin-rated Jeune et Jolie) and his wife Larah, built around a wellness-cuisine philosophy inspired by the Blue Zones. Their **Vitality Tonics** program — called one of the city's most ambitious non-alcoholic beverage programs by *San Diego Magazine* — aren't really mocktails so much as their own category: force-carbonated, ingredient-driven, built more like a tasting menu than a bar list. **The Sienna** pairs granny smith apple with Japanese barley, marigold miso and citrus; **the Kaffa** runs coffee against cordyceps, koseret and stone fruit. Order one alongside the çılbır and call it a very good morning. [Get directions](https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=Atelier+Manna%2C+1076+N+Coast+Hwy+101%2C+Encinitas%2C+CA&ref=thesort.news) · [See menu](https://www.atelier-manna.com/menu?ref=thesort.news) Sort of Clear Lilo Carlsbad Chef Eric Bost's 22-seat counter, tucked into a former boogie board factory, earned a Michelin star just ten weeks after opening. Its non-alcoholic pairing gets the same care as the wine list — a custom, zero-proof beverage arc built to run course for course through the full tasting menu, not a single afterthought mocktail. [Get directions](https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=Lilo%2C+2571+Roosevelt+St%2C+Carlsbad%2C+CA&ref=thesort.news) · [Reserve](https://www.restaurantlilo.com/?ref=thesort.news) Sort of Clear Misadventure & Co. Vista Misadventure & Co. is tucked into a Vista strip mall with an entrance that's easy to miss on purpose — fitting, for a place called Misadventure. The mocktail to order is the **Old Thymer** — raspberry, thyme, vanilla, lime and soda, finished with fresh thyme. The inside vibe is moody lighting, live jazz, and a cocktail program built around a real mission: their gold medal vodka is distilled from rescued, excess baked goods that would otherwise go to waste. Their tagline says it best: "Saving the world is worth a shot." [Get directions](https://www.google.com/maps/search/?api=1&query=Misadventure+%26+Co.%2C+2420+Grand+Ave+Suite+C%2C+Vista%2C+CA+92081&ref=thesort.news) · [See menu](https://misadventure.co/cocktail-bar/?ref=thesort.news) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/0c/cf/0ccf39f2-33b0-4776-aa79-3311ccdf479a/content/images/2026/09/IMG_1441.JPG) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/0c/cf/0ccf39f2-33b0-4776-aa79-3311ccdf479a/content/images/2026/09/IMG_1443.JPG) Cheers — to whatever's in your glass. — The Sort