Nonalcoholic bar and restaurant to open in downtown Springfield

An alcohol-free food and drink venture at 314 S. Patton Ave. in downtown Springfield is planning for a soft opening in late July.

Victor McNeary, owner of Omega Dionysus Entertainment LLC, which does business as Vine & Vibes, is teaming up with married couple Bryson and Devan Head, who own Yallternative Eats food truck through their company Sweet & Sour Food Co LLC.

The result will be Vine & Vibes/Yallternative Eats Lounge, said Devan Head. It will operate under the two LLCs of each side of the business, the Head family and McNeary said, but they may create an overarching LLC to own the business at a later time.

They will offer a family-friendly restaurant; a full bar of nonalcoholic beverages including beer, wine and mocktails; live music and entertainment; as well as venue bookings for a wide range of events like birthday parties, weddings, networking meetups and bachelorette parties. On-site catering will be available as well. Seating capacity for the venue is roughly 250 guests, Devan said.

The three businesspeople expect to be fully open in August, McNeary said, and stay open late on weekends until 3:30 or 4 a.m. after alcohol bars close.

“Come in and just know that there is a safe place,” McNeary said.

The investment by the Heads and McNeary to start the business was undisclosed.

They are renting 9,000 square feet on two floors of space at the Patton Avenue location from Tillman Redevelopment LLC for undisclosed financial terms, Devan said. The lounge has a three-year lease with the option to renew the lease for another three years, she added. The downtown venue, which includes a small outdoor patio, was formerly home to restaurants including CB Social House and Hickok’s Steakhouse & Brewery, according to past reporting.

“We’re going to be providing a mocktail lounge, an event entertainment space, as well as a full-scale restaurant upstairs,” Devan said.

The restaurant operation will employ roughly seven to 10 people, she said, while the Vine & Vibes bar will have four staffers, McNeary said.

Devan added that burgers from the restaurant are made with locally sourced beef, and the restaurant’s food items are made with fresh ingredients.

“You come in, have a good time, eat some yummy food, go home feeling not hungover the next day, and then you’re also putting high-quality food in your body,” Devan said.

Yallternative Eats started in mid-2024 when Devan and husband Bryson began the business as a food truck. Bryson had served across southeast Asia as a member of the U.S. Marines.

“The food is amazing, and the No. 1 thing that I noticed over there is America has an addiction to sugar,” Bryson said.

He took that experience into consideration as he and Devan created Yallternative Eats in its food truck form, emphasizing fresh ingredients for dishes as simple as French fries: “Sometimes we have events at 11 a.m., I’m out there at 3 a.m. cutting French fries, getting everything ready, so it’s definitely a dedication to a healthier U.S.,” Bryson said.

“The flavor is immaculate, sure, … so you’ll have a better flavor, a better quality content going into your body, and then on top of that, the nutrients,” he added. Bryson said that in addition to American classic foods like smash burgers and fries, food offerings include funnel cakes, fried Oreos, lemonade, sweet teasand boba drinks. “The idea is Americana,” he said, but he hopes to draw on other cultures to add more dishes, based on foods he experienced while serving in the Marines.

An emphasis on health underlies the business concept now that the Head family is teaming up with McNeary for the downtown brick-and-mortar storefront.

“I just felt that you have enough watering holes in Springfield – matter of fact, all over,” McNeary said. It was evident there was a market niche to provide alternative entertainment and dining for families, churchgoers, people recovering from alcoholism and younger adults who don’t drink alcohol, he said.

In performing market research, McNeary said he came across a study showing that 53% of young adults ages 18-30 don’t drink. “That made me stand up straight,” he said. LendingTree published a March 2026 survey of 2,000 consumers including that data point, also finding that more U.S. drinkers say they are cutting back on alcohol than are increasing their consumption.

McNeary said Vine & Vibes will carry a full bar selection of nonalcoholic beers and wines, as well as zero-proof cocktails with products from Curious Elixirs, a New York-based brand that makes nonalcoholic craft cocktail blends using juices, herbs, spices and botanical extracts.

“We’re carving out a whole new lane,” McNeary said. Live entertainment is on tap as part of the concept, he said, including regular performances by local singer-songwriter Sade Shine. He said he plans to build a stage on the second floor of 314 S. Patton Ave. to put on shows.

McNeary and the Head family began working together recently, they said. McNeary said he had been trying to get Vine & Vibes running, with limited success at another property where he “had a few issues.”

McNeary decided he needed a partner in the business, and that a food element would help bring in people willing to pay for entertainment experiences. In April, he started checking out local food trucks.

“Every last food truck around town was, like, literally no one was there,” McNeary said. “Everything was closed. I’m like, OK, I got one more stop. Let me just try one more.”

But, McNeary said, he found Yallternative Eats open at Metro Eats, a food truck park at 2463 W. Sunshine St.

He asked Bryson, “Have you ever thought about upgrading?”

“The bond started forming, and here we are today,” McNeary said.

Bryson said that he had been working full-bore at the food truck at that time, largely on his own as Devan faced a chronic illness.

“I was basically bedridden for a few months,” Devan said.

So for the Head family, McNeary’s arrival on an April day was literally the answer to a prayer, they said.

“Man, Lord, we need a break,” said Bryson, recalling his words that day. “I cannot keep doing this.”

Bryson said that the business needed to make the leap from food truck to brick-and-mortar restaurant. One main reason was to have air-conditioned space available where Devan could do administrative business for the company.

The three businesspeople said they were very interested in community outreach in terms of working with nonprofit and charitable groups, and McNeary said they are also launching a podcast, 417 The Vine.

“[Bryson is] going to talk about the great quality food that they have here, and I’m going to talk about all of the wines ,and educate them on that.”

Podcast guests will include performers at Vine & Vibes/Yallternative Eats Lounge, as well as guests from community nonprofits, McNeary said.