A Breakdown Of How Much Money Was Spent On Booze At The Top Bars, Clubs, Restaurants And Hotels In Dallas Proper Throughout October 2017.

Welcome to Bar Raised, our recurring column that proves that Texans like to spend copious amounts of their income participating in the Great American Pastime. We know this because, as Reddit user BadLemur once pointed out, the Texas Comptroller keeps tabs on that sort of thing and makes all that info public record. Any establishment in the state that holds a Mixed Beverage license must report all sales revenue generated from the sale of liquor, beer and wine at their establishments on a monthly basis. The comptroller, in turn, puts all that info into a conveniently navigable database. And then we break down Dallas’ numbers for you here.

We’re about to put November behind us, but there’s still the matter of settling what establishments around town sold the most booze in October.

While the heavy hitters across town mostly stayed the same as last month, a fresh face joined the fray in a big way: Bottle Blonde. In its first month in operation, this new kid on the block — along with its neighboring sister establishment The Backyard, which operates alongside it under the same licensing umbrella  — sold more booze than all but four establishments around town.

Is that surprising? A little! When Bottled Blonde opened its doors in Deep Ellum in October, it did so in the face of some serious social media shaming for its vaguely enforced (or not enforced at all?) dress code. Like the even-more-problematic  Kung Fu Saloon before it, though, it seems that the negative press didn’t do much to hinder the new spot’s hype.

In fact, only one traditional bar beat out Bottled Blonde in October booze sales — Happiest Hour, which sold just $23,000 more than its newest competitor. Meanwhile, the other three entities to beat out Bottled Blonde last month are all built for hosting big events.

The Hilton Anatole took October’s top spot due to its guests drinking some $1.5 million worth of booze at events such as its Taste Of The Anatole affair. The Omni came in second, selling $1.2 million in liquid courage thanks to its State Fair of Texas Fried Food celebration and other events of that ilk. And the American Airlines Center came in third place on the strength of massive concerts from Bruno Mars, Halsey and Marc Anthony going down as the NBA and NHL seasons also got underway.

Still, it’s not all about those guys! So, without further ado, here are the 20 establishments with the highest gross alcohol sales in Dallas proper for the month of October.

Dallas Establishments With Top Gross Alcohol Sales For October 2017.

  1. SALC, INC. (Hilton Anatole): $1,555,285
  2. OMNI DALLAS CONVENTION CENTER: $1,207,948
  3. LEVY RESTAURANTS (American Airlines Center): $1,194,981
  4. HAPPIEST HOUR, LLC (Happiest Hour Dallas): $839,635
  5. BOTTLED BLONDE – THE BACKYARD: $816,913
  6. DALLAS REGENCY CORPORATION: $682,443
  7. DFB CAPITAL LLC (Katy Trail Ice House): $601,790
  8. CLUTCH BAR AND RESTAURANT: $574,358
  9. MOXIE’S GRILL & BAR: $560,134
  10. NICK & SAM’S STEAK & FISH HOUSE: $529,603
  11. BABY DOLLS TOPLESS SALOON: $521,592
  12. THE RUSTIC: $487,561
  13. LEVY RESTAURANTS (Dallas Market Center): $485,770
  14. JOULE BEVERAGE LLC: $461,566
  15. HOSPITALITY INTERNATIONAL (The Ritz-Carlton): $459,158
  16. HOUSE OF BLUES RESTAURANT CORP: $440,744
  17. THE BOMB FACTORY: $416,949
  18. STIRR: $389,768
  19. COWBOY’S RED RIVER: $389,491
  20. THE LODGE: $386,320

Total alcohol sales in Dallas in October 2017: $73,441,881
Last Month’s Total: $74,784,694

Cover photo by Karlo X. Ramos.

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