Aristocratically Named ‘Glamorous’ Venue Will Replace a Fun Hotel Bar Downtown

The five-year-old Highball Lounge (90 Tremont St., Downtown Boston), a game-filled bar in the Kimpton Nine Zero Hotel, will close this weekend, bidding farewell with a party on June 16, starting at 5 p.m. Its transition into a new bar called Better Sorts Social Club is the next phase in a $12 million renovation to the hotel.

In 2013, Highball Lounge took over the former KO Prime space, and KO Prime’s former chef and partner Ken Oringer (Toro, Coppa, etc.) collaborated on Highball’s opening menu of fun snacks, including tater tot nachos and Korean fried chicken nuggets. The bar was also known for its playful cocktails (including the signature duckie rose, garnished with a rubber duck), displayed on a menu viewed through old-school View-Masters, and its collection of games, from Battleship to Cards Against Humanity.

Out with the games; in with “glamorous” cocktails, per a press release. Better Sorts Social Club is slated to open this fall in the space.

Better Sorts won’t be the only Boston venue with a name evoking the aristocracy — it’ll join the Brahmin in Back Bay and the Social Register in the Seaport District in putting on airs.

Meg Jones Wall/Eater

• The Highball Lounge Is Becoming an Elevated “Social Club” [BM]
• Highball Lounge [FB]
• Kimpton Nine Zero Unveils $12 Million Renovation [BBJ]
• Highball Lounge Coverage on Eater [EBOS]