Carl Radke’s non-alcoholic bar and café, Soft Bar, has officially been open for one year, and business has been going well. The Summer House entrepreneur opened the business’ doors on Aug. 27, 2025, and is sharing all that he has learned since then.
Carl shared in a recent interview that he was very excited to build the brand. “Something I was really excited about with building Soft Bar is I wanted to grow brand first and community first, and being able to wrap our arms around the ‘soft’ terminology in Soft Bar, soft drink, soft cocktail — these are all terms that were in our vocabulary,” he told spoke with Us Weekly in an interview published on Aug. 12., adding to the publication, “But no one had wrapped their arms around it.”
“My goal was to really elevate the non-alcoholic industry, and the way I believe in doing that was to build a brand that [has] a mission and a strong foundation,” he said.
Carl Radke shares what he learned from Soft Bar’s first year of business
In growing his brand, Carl told the publication that he has learned so much from his first year of business. “First things first: You’ve got to be willing to be told ‘No.’ You’ve got to be willing to have a thick skin and be really patient,” he admitted.
He continued, sharing his advice for aspiring business owners. “I would start small, and what I mean by that is, if you want to, in theory, start a lemonade drink café, I would say, start a lemonade stand in your front yard first,” he added. “Get your product or service in people’s hands before you make that bigger commitment. Start organically small, locally, get it in front of your close friends and family, and get it in front of other people that don’t know you would be my advice. I think some people get big ideas and you can overwhelm yourself. Be balanced and try to find slow and steady.”
RELATED: Carl Radke Reveals Kyle Cooke Didn’t Invest a Single Dollar in Soft Bar: “Kinda Confusing…”
Carl Radke gives a tour of Soft Bar: see the video
Carl gave BravoTV.com a tour of his Greenpoint, Brooklyn bar and café, showing off all of the exciting elements that make the business unique. When patrons enter the hot spot, they are greeted with the café space, which sells different coffee and matcha drinks. However, once they make their way into the space, patrons can purchase a “soft cocktail” and help themselves to one of the many seats inside.
“One of the biggest things that I thought was important here was community and bringing people together,” he explained in the exclusive tour, as seen in the video above. The bar and café also has a podcast recording studio upstairs where Carl records his podcast, More Life with Carl Radke, and frequently hosts events to bring the community together.
Carl Radke explains how he balances work life and his personal life
In an interview with Bravo back in January 2026, Carl noted how focused he is on Soft Bar’s success, but also noted how he finds balance in his life.
RELATED: Kyle Cooke Explains the Real Reason He Didn’t Invest in Carl Radke’s Business
He shared, “And, you know, separate from Soft Bar, separate from work. I like spending time with my friends. I love my family. I care a lot about food. I’m a big foodie. Very active — running is great, but I do hot yoga. I love movies and documentaries. I also love sporting events. So if you don’t see me filming, you don’t see me working on Soft Bar, you’ll probably see me at a concert or a sporting event here in New York. I love the Brooklyn Nets. Nothing against the Knicks, but I’m a Nets fan… “I love going to hockey games. I love going to basketball. So yeah, I try to really enjoy the fruits of New York City. ‘Cause there’s a lot to do here. Even when you don’t drink.”
See what Carl had to say in a January interview with Bravo Insider about where he spends his downtime.
