YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – A downtown bar is using holiday spirit to push back against the summertime blues.
Ryes Craft Beer & Whiskey, 124 W. Federal St. (second floor), has transformed itself with a Christmas look that will be on display until the end of summer.
A Christmas tree stands next to the fireplace, which is festooned with lights. The cabinets behind the bar and the large window that overlooks West Federal Street are also decorated with twinkling lights and tinsel.
It’s all a way to flip the script on the scorching hot temperatures that have gripped the Mahoning Valley for most of July.
“We wanted to bring a little magic and mischief to the middle of summer,” said Jordi Dando, general manager of Ryes, and its first-floor sister bar, Imbibe. “It’s the perfect excuse to be festive, drink merry and escape the heat for a few hours.”
Imbibe did not change its decor.
Dando said business has been slow at the bar this summer, and she was looking for a way to freshen it up.
“I think Christmas lights in the window could draw people in,” she said.
The Christmas in July pop-up bar at Ryes is open from 8 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. There is no cover charge, and reservations are not necessary.
Pictured at top: Natalie Pankewicz, bartender, and Jordi Dando, general manager, inside Ryes, which has been decked out with a Christmas look.