‘Nobody’s doing it around here’: New, unique North Myrtle Beach bar set for grand opening
North Myrtle Beach business owner Jeff Martini touts his newest venture as one of a kind along the Grand Strand.
“Nobody’s doing it around here,” he said, referring to the nuances of new bar 19 Twelve, which is holding a grand opening Saturday.
The concept for 19 Twelve — whose name derives from its address of 1912 U.S. 17 South in North Myrtle Beach — centers around its bourbons, craft cocktails and infused liquors, said Martini, who hired mixologist Logan Jones of Raleigh, North Carolina to spearhead the bar and its specialty offerings.
“It’s a pretty cool little place,” Martini said of 19 Twelve, which is close in proximity to another of his businesses, Midtown Bistro. “A lot of bourbons, a lot of craft cocktails, which are really neat.”
For years Martini and the owner of The Wedding Chapel had struggled to offer enough parking for both entities, and recently Martini bought out the nearby business, allowing him to demolish the reception hall and gut the chapel and rebuild what now is 19 Twelve. He said it took about 14 months to come to fruition.
Martini hopes the new bar brings a “classy, eclectic” vibe to North Myrtle Beach as an establishment the city can be proud of.
“We want to just bring a new vibe, a new feeling for North Myrtle Beach,” he said. “We’re trying to teach people how to drink again.”
Drinks will vary from classic to craft and expensive to more affordable, Martini said.
“We still have our regular house brands, too, for the people who don’t want something expensive,” he said. “We price ourselves accordingly for everyone to be able to come in and have a drink without not wanting to come back for a month.”
The establishment also will offer tapas food, including offerings such as deviled eggs, jalapeno bacon-wrapped shrimp and limoncello risotto and more typical bar offerings such as wings and burgers.
The bar features an upstairs that can accommodate approximately 25 people that is available for rent for private parties, and it has an outside deck featuring two 60-inch flatscreen TVs and a fire pit that overlooks Azalea Sands Golf Club.
“We’ve got some pretty neat stuff here,” Martini said.
The bar held a soft opening Thursday and Friday as it prepares for the grand opening Saturday.
“It’s gonna be cool. It’s gonna be fun,” Martini said. “Hopefully we get it done in a decent fashion. We’ll see tomorrow. I’m sure we’ll have our hiccups, but we’ll overcome.”
Those who check out 19 Twelve should be prepared for something completely new to the Grand Strand, Martini said.
“You won’t find any of these cocktails until you hit Charleston,” he said. “Kind of cool.”
This story was originally published December 27, 2019 at 4:12 PM.
