The Vibe Is on at Formula One-Themed Cocktail Spot Dryver Bar in Buckhead

Cocktail bar Dryver Bar is now open inside Yeppa and Co. at Buckhead Village, and it’s definitely vibey, especially if you’re into bright neon lights and Formula One racing set off by Ferrari’s signature red hue.

Accessed by ringing a bell on the side of Yeppa and Co., cocktails and food at Dryver Bar take inspiration from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and Modena, known as “motor valley” as the birthplace of luxury car and motorcycle brands Ferrari, Lamborghini, Pagani, and Ducati. The bar also spotlights co-owner Pietro Gianni’s passion for professional car racing and Formula One and features an interactive racing experience with TVs tuned to the sport. The floor features a starting line and placemats made from tire tread. Old oil barrels were repurposed into stands for tables and a former bread oven was incorporated into the bar’s entrance.

With seating for 45 people, including six seats at the bar, reservations are highly encouraged. Walk-ins are welcome, if space is available. Dryver Bar will open on race days outside of its normal operating hours, following the hours of Yeppa and Co., which opens at 11:30 a.m. daily. Folks should follow the bar on Instagram to stay updated.

Dryver Bar is led by longtime beverage director Jose Pereiro, known for his crafty drink creations at Gianni and Stephen Peterson’s other Atlanta restaurants, Storico Fresco and Forza Storico. For Dryver Bar, Pereiro created a tight list of ten cocktails, some using agave spirts like raicilla, sotol, and bacanora, and with names leaning into Formula One and car racing terminology. The Grand Prix mixes vodka with coconut, cocoa, and a strawberry sphere using the spherification process, which molds liquid into a perfectly round ball. The Paddock Club sees gin and mezcal mixed with St. Germain liqueur and clarified cantaloupe. Brake Balance combines bourbon and Disaronno with pineapple shrub, honey, and lemon juice.

In addition to original cocktails, Dryver Bar serves classics like the Aviation, a cold Irish Coffee, and a Negroni, along with non-alcoholic mixed drinks and Italian beers and wines, many hailing from the Emilia-Romagna region. A small food menu is also in the works.

Gianni and Peterson aren’t done opening restaurants at Buckhead Village this year. The partners recently closed wine bar Storico Vino at the complex and plan to replace it with Mexican restaurant Pachengo’s at the end of July. A few popular dishes from Storico Vino, like the penne alla vodka, beef and tuna carpaccios, and Tajarin pasta, are now on the menu at Storico Fresco.

Pachengo’s will offer both lunch and dinner and feature tacos and breakfast tacos, burritos, and tostadas, along with tequila cocktails and a tight selection of wines from countries around South America. Gianni calls the menu and the vibe at Pachengo’s “easygoing” and a chance for many of the restaurant group’s longtime employees to tap into their roots and serve food they love cooking and eating.

Jose Pereiro

Jose Pereiro

Open Wednesday - Saturday, 7 p.m. until late. Reservations highly encouraged.

306 Buckhead Avenue, Atlanta. dryveratl.com.