The 12 Bars of Christmas

If you want to find holiday fun on the Outer Banks, you do not have to look far to find it. There’s something going on every day and night in December, as you can see here. With Christmas parades, home tours, light shows, Santa visits, seasonal fundraisers, holiday markets and more, the Outer Banks is alive with traditional celebrations and events all month long.

When it comes to your holiday eating, drinking and convivial celebrating, there’s something new in town: The 12 Bars of Christmas. Running from November 30 to December 31, it’s a collection of Christmas-themed pop-up bars in Kill Devil Hills, Nags Head and Manteo.

The 12 Bars of Christmas is an expansion of the Outer Banks’ OG Christmas pop-up bar, Jingle 12 at Lucky 12 Tavern in Nags Head. Lucky 12 Tavern owner Mark Ballog started Jingle 12 in 2019 after discovering the Christmas pop-up bar concept in Nashville. He liked the idea and brought it back to the Outer Banks, transforming Lucky 12 into a month-long Christmas extravaganza with a new name, a creative holiday-themed food and drink menu and an explosion of vintage Christmas décor inside and out. The next year he expanded the concept with private backyard structures for gathering: an igloo, a ski lodge and an ice-fishing shed.

The concept of the pop-up bar proved very successful for Lucky 12, so in 2022 Ballog invited other local restaurants to join him. Bonzer Shack, Mama Kwan’s Tiki Bar and Grill and Goombay’s Grille and Raw Bar joined in on the fun. For 2023, Ballog invited even more restaurants to come on board.

“I’ve had a lot of success with this and thought there was enough business to go around,” Ballog says. “I’m just trying to help out my fellow restaurant owners, boost the winter economy and offer stuff for people to do. There are a lot of homeowners here now in the off-season, and a lot of new people who live here now, plus all their friends and family who are in town visiting.”

Eight more restaurants joined up, and the 12 Bars of Christmas was born. Each establishment has a temporary name change, new food and drink menus, over-the-top holiday décor, special events and a charity that they will support. Each location is family friendly (unless it’s late night) and there are always non-alcoholic beverages to enjoy.

Ballog says the idea is to go all out. He told each restaurant to expect to spend between $8,000 and $10,000 on décor, graphic design, menus, signage and more. Each restaurant devised a new menu, logo, theme and decorating concept, and from the looks of things, every restaurant has gone above and beyond. Collectively, the 12 pop-up bars have a website, 12barsofchristmas.com, that gives the information you need about each place. As far as decorating, Ballog alone says he has spent 150 hours decorating over the last week, with at least 12 staff members pitching in additional hours to help. New this year is the idea to support charities with the Passport program. Proceeds from each pop-up bar will support a different charity.

Here are the restaurants participating and their pop-up names, charity and events:

Jingle 12

Location: Lucky 12 Tavern, 3808 S. Virginia Dare Trail, Nags Head

Theme: Vintage Christmas décor and private outdoor gathering spots: igloo, ski lodge, ice fishing shed; reserve early!

Charity: OBX Room in the Inn

Events:

Dec. 3: Jingle 12 Brunch

Dec. 4: Jingle Market

Dec. 6: Toys for Tater Tots

Dec. 11: Adult Gingerbread House Contest

Dec. 16: Hanging with Santa

Photo: Toys for Tater Tots at Jingle 12 collects toys for the Toys for Tots program.

McAllister’s Corner

Location: Two Roads Tavern, 3105 N. Croatan Highway, Kill Devil Hills

Theme: Home Alone-themed pop-up with makeshift booby traps, junk food and rubbish TV.

Charity: Outer Banks Forever

Events:

Dec. 7: Movie and Game Night

Dec. 8: 3rd Annual Merry Market

Dec. 21: Movie and Game Night

Dec. 31: Oyster and Pig Roast with Hot Sauce Band

Holly Jolly Christmas

Location: Jolly Roger Restaurant, 1836 N. Virginia Dare Trail, Kill Devil Hills

Theme: A misfit wonderland where every day is a pirate Christmas

Charity: Interfaith Community Outreach

Events

Dec. 1: Ugly Sweater Contest

Dec. 2, 9: Santa’s Workshop Crafts for Kids

Dec. 10: Christmas Music Bingo

Dec. 14: Christmas PJ Party

Dec. 18: Sip N Paint

Dec. 21: Bad Santa Party

Nightly: Karaoke, DJ or Trivia

Goombrrrr’s

Location: Goombay’s Grille & Raw Bar, 1608 N. Virginia Dare Trail, Kill Devil Hills

Theme: A frozen winter wonderland with the Yeti and the Christmas Island of misfit toys

Charity: Fleet’s Fighters

Events:

Dec. 5: Sip, Savory & Shop Market

Dec. 12: Wreath Decoration and Half Price Wine Bottles

Dec. 19: 2^nd Annual Bad Santa Party

Photo: Festive specialty food and cocktails are the hallmarks of the 12 Bars of Christmas.

The Broken Candy Cane

Location: Bonzer Shack, 1200 S. Virginia Dare Trail, Kill Devil Hills

Theme: Your favorite Christmas villians’ hangout: Grinch, Burgermeister, Heat and Snow Meiser, Bumble Snowman

Charity: Surfrider Foundation, Outer Banks Chapter

Events:

Dec. 6: Live Music in the Grinch’s Lair

Dec. 9: Grinch Scavenger Hunt and Ninja Bread Cookie Decorating

Dec. 13: Live Music in the Grinch’s Lair

Dec. 16: Grinch Scavenger Hunt and Ninja Bread Cookie Decorating

Dec. 17: Last Minute Holiday Market

Dec. 20: Live Music in the Grinch’s Lair

Jack Frost’s Cheer & Burger Joint

Location: Jack Brown’s Beer & Burger Joint, 800 S. Virginia Dare Trail, Kill Devil Hills

Theme: Festive AF, beers, burgers and cheer

Charity: Mustang Music Outreach Program

Events:

Dec. 6: Holiday Market Benefitting Motorcycle Toy Run

Dec. 13: Holiday Market Fundraiser for Outer Banks Hotline

Dec. 15, 16: Late Night with DJ Gustavo

Dec. 21: Silent Disco

Christmas Vacation Station

Location: Outer Banks Brewing Station, 600 S. Croatan Highway, Kill Devil Hills

Theme: A Griswold’s Christmas

Charity: Beach Food Pantry

Events:

Dec. 2 Brew and Arts Holiday Market

Dec. 2: Lunch with Elsa, Anna and Olaf; Oyster Roast; Live Music with Hot Sauce

Dec. 9: Oyster Roast, Ugly Sweater Contest, Live Music with Hot Sauce

Dec. 15: Griswold Costume Party Contest

Dec. 16: Lunch with Elsa, Anna and Olaf; Oyster Roast

Dec. 22: Naughty and Nice Costume Contest

Dec. 23: Lunch with Elsa, Anna and Olaf; Oyster Roast

Dec. 30: Lunch with Elsa, Anna and Olaf; Oyster Roast

Dec. 31: New Year’s Eve Party with Funkamungus, balloon drop, champagne toast

Mama Klaus’s

Location: Mama Kwan’s, 1701 S. Croatan Highway, Kill Devil Hills

Theme: Hula-day themed treats and cocktails

Charity: Surfing for Autism

Events:

Dec. 3: Mama’s Merry Market

Photo: Special merch is available at each of the 12 Bars of Christmas.

Sandy Claws

Location: Blue Crab Tavern, 1180 Colington Road, Kill Devil Hills

Theme: Christmas in Colington. Nightly fires and s’mores, special events

Charity: Outer Banks Hotline

Events:

Tuesdays and Fridays: Santa Claus visits

Dec. 1: Live Music and Food Truck

Dec. 9: Live Music with Hot Sauce

Dec. 15: Live Music with Blue Crab Boys

Dec. 17: It’s a Sandy Claws Christmas Party

Aww Shucks

Location: Bluewater Grille & Raw Bar, Pirate’s Cove Marina, 2000 Sailfish Drive, Manteo

Theme: Classy Christmas with oysters

Charity: Dare County Special Olympics

Events:

Dec. 10: Visit with Santa

Dec. 13: Visit with Santa

Dec. 16: Visit with Santa

Deck the Hulls

Location: Outer Banks Distilling, 510 Budleigh Street, Manteo

Theme: Nautical heritage of Roanoke Island at Christmas

Charity: North Carolina Coastal Federation

Events:

Dec. 1: First Friday Market

Dec. 8: Banana Hot Buttered Rum Class

Dec. 13: Wrecks and Rum

Poor Rudolph’s

Location: Poor Richard’s Pub, 305 Queen Elizabeth Avenue, Manteo

Theme: North Pole Watering Hole

Charity: Outer Banks Relief Foundation

Passport Challenge

The Passport Challenge supports local charities. You can purchase a $5 passport at any of the 12 pop-up bars. To complete the challenge, collect 12 stamps on your passport, one from each of the 12 locations. Turn your completed passport in to any of the bars and you’ll receive a 12 Bars of Christmas ornament and be automatically entered into three gift card giveaways ($300, $600 and $1,200 packages) to be held after New Year’s.

Photo: Hopping on the Charlie Brown Christmas Bus is a fun and safe way to tour several of the 12 Bars of Christmas in one night.

VIP Bus Tour

The Charlie Brown Christmas Bus (aka the OBX Party Bus & OBX Party Shuttle) is offering pub crawls of the 12 Bars of Christmas. Each route (Charlie’s yellow route, Peppermint Patty’s green route, Snoopy’s red route, Lucy’s blue route) offers stops at three bars. Wearing festive gear is encouraged. Many of the routes are already sold out, but there are a few still open so book now.

For everything you need to know about the 12 Bars of Christmas, visit 12barsofchristmas.com. And be sure to check out our Daytime and Nightlife pages for more holiday events.