Delaware holiday pop-up bars offer seasonal surprises

Bars and restaurants across Delaware are embracing the holiday season with festive pop-up concepts.
These seasonal spots feature elaborate decorations, special menus, and Christmas-themed cocktails.
Some pop-ups, like Blitzen in Wilmington, appear annually in otherwise vacant spaces.

It’s that time of year when local bars, restaurants and breweries go all in on the holiday season, looking to draw customers in with fanciful decorations, special menus and Christmas-themed pop-up concepts.

Some of Delaware’s seasonal pop-ups are just rebrandings of established spots, while others open independently just for a month before disappearing until next winter.

While plenty of barrooms and restaurants across the state hang lights in a nod to the holidays, some really go for it.

Here is a taste of what’s out there in The First State as the countdown begins to Santa Claus’ big night.

Blitzen, Wilmington

Blitzen is one of those pop-ups that appear out of nowhere. For 11 months out of the year, 220 W. Ninth St. sits dark and empty, a sad reminder of the fun that the holiday season can bring. But that all changes each November when the Wilmington pop-up holiday bar Blitzen suddenly comes to life just like when you flick the switch on an animatronic Santa Claus. Blitzen opened Nov. 20 with its fanciful wall-to-wall decorations and special menu filled like a stocking with a festive drink menu with offerings such as Resting Blitz Face ($13; vodka, lemonade, cranberry juice and club soda) and Moose Milk ($13; butterscotch liquor, egg nogg). There’s also a small bites menu with O’ Christmas Cheese ($10; fried cheese curds and dipping sauce) and Grinch Fingers ($9; deep-fried green beans with dipping sauce). This year, the bar is open Wednesday through Saturday from 4 p.m. to midnight. Note: It’s closed for Thanksgiving. Its final day in operation for the 2025 season is Dec. 20.

Santa Claws at Starboard Claw, Dewey Beach

When your restaurant has “Claw” in its name and a major holiday featuring a character named “Claus” is coming up, there’s only one thing to do. For several years now, the bar at Starboard Claw (1818 Coastal Highway) reimagines itself as the Santa Claws bar with decorations everywhere. The special drink menu has a dozen concoctions, including the Peppermint Clawtini ($15; vodka, coffee liqueur, peppermint schnapps and cold brew) and Prancer’s Punch ($12; Hornitos Reposado tequila, pomegranate juice, spiced simple syrup and orange and lime juice.) In terms of snacks, you can munch on seven specialty appetizers and desserts ranging from a Baked Brie and Salami Sled ($13; a petite wheel of Brie wrapped in puff pastry with cranberry-lemon marmalade, cornichons and crostini) and Winter Caprese Wreath ($13; blistered hothouse tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, arugula, Extra Virgin Olive Oil and aged balsamic.)

Holidays at The Hammock, Crooked Hammock Brewery

Crooked Hammock Brewery (36707 Crooked Hammock Way, Lewes and 316 Auto Park Drive, Middletown) gets in the spirit once again at its twin locations through Jan. 4. You’ll find artificial snow falling outside on Friday through Sunday from 5 to 7 p.m. Try their homemade Crooked Hot Cocoa, classic-style or with flavors such as butterscotch, peppermint or coconut. You also can spike it with booze. Also on the menu is a fruity Jingle Berry mixed berry sour beer. And on Sundays, there’s a “Holly Jolly Brunch” from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with snowflake crafts for kids, a snowfall every hour and food items such as Santa’s Sizzlin’ Skillet, the Silent Bite Burger and Biscuits on Blitzen. A special brunch with Santa Claus will be held Dec. 7 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Also on Sunday is “Sunday S’mores” with free s’mores for kids 12 and under from 4 to 7 p.m. And at its Lewes location, check out a decorated Christmas tree built from beer kegs.

The Sleigh Bar at Klondike Kate’s, Newark

If you decide on a night at Klondike Kate’s (158 E. Main St.), you’ll get more than a flood of college memories served alongside beers and cocktails. In recent years, Kate’s has been taken over by its ornate Christmas pop-up concept The Sleigh Bar, which opened in mid-November. It’s such a big effort that the bar closes for an entire day and night so its “elves” can decorate. This year’s theme is “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” and the experience comes with a pair of special menus: one with holiday-themed appetizers of Mummy Dogs ($14; beef hot dogs wrapped like a mummy in crescent dough) and Holiday Egg Rolls ($19; egg rolls stuffed with turkey, gravy, stuffing, cranberry sauce and potato) and another with festive drinks Jack Skellington ($12; Western Son raspberry vodka, blue curaco and lemon and pineapple juices with a sugar rim and an edible snowflake.) There’s nearly 30 specialty items, also including desserts, shots and mocktails, created just for The Sleigh Bar. Don’t forget to take a selfie in the giant sleigh in the middle of it all.

Yueltide Cantina at Big Chill Surf Cantina, Rehoboth Beach

When it comes to a locals’ bar in Rehoboth Beach, there aren’t many as cozy or fun as Big Chill Surf Cantina (19406 Coastal Highway), even at the height of the summer season. Hosting local musicians, including longtime beach favorites Lower Case Blues, it can still somehow feel like an escape from the beach scene tucked away off the highway, even with its surf theme. This time of year, it transforms into Yuletide Cantina, a Christmas-themed bar with plenty of decorations, special cocktails and holiday cheer. Each year, they host a big Thanksgiving Eve party for locals and those returning home for the holidays, which kicks off at 8 p.m. Nov. 26. There’s an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party slated for Dec. 5 and a Cantina Claus party (their version of Santa Con) on Dec. 20 with everyone dressed as Santa, Mrs. Claus, an elf or one of Santa’s reindeer.