Popular Nob Hill bar teams up with ‘Miracle’ pop-up for a holiday makeover

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Be honest. How many of you had your Christmas decorations up before the turkey went in the oven for Thanksgiving?

There’s no shame in getting the holiday season started early but a bar in Nob Hill may be one step ahead of you with its first-of-a-kind holiday pop-up.

“I was like, did Santa throw up yet? They were like, ‘Not yet,’ and I’m like, ‘Okay, let’s go more.'”

That’s Kate Gerwin. She and her staff at Happy Accidents in Nob Hill nailed their decorations, all in the spirit of a Miracle.

“I wanted it to be that there isn’t an inch of this place that doesn’t scream Christmas. Everywhere, every table, every spot is festive,” Kate Gerwin said. “The holidays are a time for celebration and getting together, having a few cocktails. What better way to make that happen than to just transform your entire bar.”

Miracle is a holiday pop-up that’s been around for years in bars in big cities across the country – but never in New Mexico.

“We’ve kind of almost shied away from doing it just because it’s overwhelming and it’s tons of decor but, you know, this year we were like, ‘We’re pulling out all the stops, we really wanna show New Mexico all kinds of things that they haven’t seen before,'” Gerwin said.

They transformed the whole place in less than a week.

“We had to pull all – the glassware, all of our juices, all of our specs, everything – all the wells got pulled out, completely break down all the decor, it’s like a completely different bar in here. Like, absolutely everything has changed,” she explained.

Now the drink menu is full of holiday specials only, including the Christmas Cricket. It’s a twist on a classic grasshopper cocktail that we got a sneak peek of.

“It’s like a mint chocolate gorgeous cocoa pandan explosion,” she described. “We also have things like Grandma Got Runover By a T-Rex – hot-buttered rum, mulled wine, egg nog.”

Gerwin takes pride in starting something new that’s typically only taken off in bigger cities.

“It’s New York, it’s Denver, it’s L.A., it’s San Francisco and now it’s Albuquerque, and it’s about time,” she said.

Gerwin sees Nob Hill as just getting started.

“We’re really falling into our identity, we’re really owning who we are, kind of differentiating ourselves from other bars, everyone’s got their unique style,” she said. “Nob Hill is coming back full force and it’s just another fun twist on things.”

From the frosted windows to the holiday T-rex, they’re ready.

“Like they think they’re in Albuquerque but they’re not really sure if they’re at the North Pole like I just want it to be an overwhelming experience of joy.”

Happy Accidents will serve every drink in special holiday glassware that you can purchase yourself. 10% of those sales will go toward a nonprofit called Seva, which works with communities around the world to develop programs preserving and restoring people’s vision.

The bar’s special menu starts Friday and will only be available for six weeks. Then it’s gone until next year, when they plan to bring it back again for the holidays.