Tinsel to become Halloween-themed bar this October

Serving boos and booze in Midtown Village

In Nightmare Before Tinsel, a Halloween-themed bar in Center City, there will be an area with hundreds of creepy doll heads. Dare to explore?
Courtesy of/Kory Aversa

Teddy Sourias' pop-up Christmas bar, Tinsel, is transforming into a Halloween bar for October.

Called the Nightmare Before Tinsel Halloween Pop-up Bar, it will feature costumed bartenders, fall beers, creative cocktails and lots of spooky details. The space will be filled with Halloween props, decorations and photo opportunities that range from scary to funny to retro.


RELATED: Haunt is another pop-up Halloween-themed bar in Center City


"Nightmare Before Tinsel is inspired by all sorts of nightmares and the many things that go bump in the dark," said interior designer Anne White.

There will be spider webs, green slime, skulls, masks, zombies, hundreds of creepy dolls, murals paying homage to famous horror characters, bodybags and décor inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's frightening stories.

"We have been working away to bring you a brand new pop-up experience unlike anything done in a Philadelphia bar before. Tinsel has quickly become a popular part of Philadelphia's holiday tradition, and we wanted to continue to test our creativity," said Sourias, who also owns Blume, Tradesman's, BRU Craft & Wurst, U-Bahn, Uptown Beer Garden and Finn McCool's Ale House.

In 2017, Tinsel took over a former jewelry shop to bring holiday cheer to Midtown Village, and returned bigger and better last winter. For the new Halloween concept, the space was enlarged again by removing the staircase.

As for what's on the drinks menu, there will be beer on draft and in cans, plus themed cocktails. Try the Candy Corn, Vampire's Kiss, Caramel Apple, Undertaker and more. The speciality drinks will be between $12 and $16. Beers will be $7 to $8.

Nightmare Before Tinsel (116 S. 12th St.) will open on Thursday, Oct. 4, at 4 p.m. Check out a sneak peek below.

Courtesy of/Kory AversaGo ahead and take a selfie in the room of 1,001 eyes.

Courtesy of/Krystal SpencerInside Nightmare, there will be vintage décor inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's frightening stories.

Courtesy of/Kory AversaLook for a skull wall inspired by the famous catacombs of Paris.


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