Kava Bar Near Stony Brook University: A Night Out Without the Bar Scene

If you are at Stony Brook and want a night out that is not a bar, a dining hall or somebody's apartment, Roots Kava Bar is about 10 minutes away in Port Jefferson village. We are an alcohol-free bar and lounge, and a lot of our regulars are students, grad students and people who work at the university. Here is what to expect the first time you come in.

Where we are

Roots is at 250 East Main Street, Port Jefferson, NY 11777, right on the village's main strip. From campus it is a short drive down Route 25A. Parking and directions are on the visit page. If you do not have a car, the village is walkable once you are here, and the Port Jefferson ferry dock is a few minutes from our door.

What kava tastes like the first time

Honest answer: earthy. Kava is a root from the Pacific islands, and the drink is made from that root and water. It tastes a bit like strong, peppery tea with a muddy finish, and it makes your mouth tingle for a minute. Almost nobody loves it on the first sip. Most people are fine with it by the third. Regulars order it every night.

We serve kava the traditional way, in a shell. You drink it in one or two gulps rather than sipping, then chase it with a piece of fruit or a mocktail. If the plain shell is too much, we also mix kava into drinks that cover the flavor. Ask whoever is behind the bar and tell them it is your first time. They will start you gently.

How to order

The menu is simple once you know the shape of it:

• A shell of kava, the traditional serving. Order one, drink it, see how you feel about the taste, then decide on a second.

• A kava drink, where the kava is built into a mocktail with citrus, ginger or a house syrup. Easier for beginners.

• A kanna drink. Kanna is a South African plant we serve as a tea or mixed into a mocktail. Different plant, different taste, nothing like kava. The kanna page explains it.

• Matcha, coffee or herbal tea if you want something warm while your friends try the shells.

• Mocktails and vegan snacks for anyone who just wants to hang out.

There is no ID check for kava or for anything else on the mocktail side of the menu. If you are unsure, the bartender will walk you through the kava options and pick a starting point. Happy Hour runs 4 pm to 7 pm daily, which is the cheapest time to try a few things.

Study-friendly evenings

A lot of students use Roots the way they would use a coffee shop, except it stays lively later. On quieter weeknights people bring laptops and textbooks, order a matcha or a kava, and settle into the lounge for a couple of hours. The lighting is low, the music sits in the background, and nobody is going to rush you out to turn the table.

If you want to study with a group, the lounge has enough soft seating to pull together for four or five without taking over the room.

Game nights and live music

The other side of Roots is the social side. We run game nights, open mic nights and live music, and there are board games and video games on the shelf every night. Grab a shell, grab a game, and it turns into a very different kind of night out than the usual. Check our socials or ask at the bar for what is on this week.

Bringing a group

If you have a club, a lab group, a floor or a friend group that wants to come together, we host groups up to 40 with no minimum and no deposit. Birthdays, end-of-semester nights and team hangouts are all common. Call (934) 259-8902 or use the private parties and events page and we will hold the space.

Why a kava bar at all

Our owner has been a practicing herbalist for 13 years. Kava has been drunk socially in the Pacific for centuries, and kava bars in the United States grew out of that tradition. The idea is a place where people gather around a bowl and talk. That is what we are trying to run in Port Jefferson: a spot where you can go out, meet people, play a game, hear some music and drive back to campus after.

Make a night of it

Port Jefferson is worth the trip on its own. Main Street has restaurants, the harbor and the ferry, and Roots is right in the middle of it. Come for dinner in the village, walk over for a shell and a game, and head home when you are ready.

Roots Kava Bar, 250 East Main Street, Port Jefferson, NY 11777. Phone (934) 259-8902.