With America is still stuck in one of the biggest recessions since The Great Depression, days and nights of eating out have been hard to come by. We get it, so we pulled out some of the hottest restaurants and bars out of our little black book that has some of the happiest of happy hours around. Whether the hotspot is a chill bar to hang out with your friends or it’s an upscale restaurant to lure in a love interest, we got your back!
-Bluestar Bistro & Wine Bar: 1209 N. Noble St. Chicago, IL 60642 | Contemporary American Cuisine
-Happy Hour: 5pm – 7pm Monday – Friday
Besides the fact that Bluestar Bistro & Wine Bar was 2012’s OpenTable.com Diner’s Choice, Bluestar offers great food and over 30 different types of wine that only the classiest of the classiest devour. Just because the dishes here are fancy and high-end, the prices are for everyone, whether you consider yourself classy or casual. Try their $2 Tapas and special priced wine and beer everyday during happy hour. Bluestar is the perfect place to bring your date to impress them without hurting your wallet and pride. For more information visit them at www.bluestarbistrowineandbar.com.
Dragonfly Mandarin: 832 W. Randolph St. Chicago, IL 6067 | Chinese Restaurant
Happy Hour: 5pm – 9pm Monday
Voted the best Chinese restaurant in Chicago by citysearch.com, Dragonfly Mandarin offers a WIDE range of Chinese food and cocktails. You haven’t heard the best part yet though – every Monday from 5 to 9pm you can eat all the Alaskan King Crab your stomach can handle. That’s right: every Monday is all you can eat Alaskan King Crab night. Not only is this a place you can bring your entire family on family nights, but you can come here with your friends or even your love interest as the second floor turns into a sexy and intimate lounge on weekend nights. With the two different scenes, great food, and great cocktail choices, you can’t go wrong dining at Dragonfly. For more information, visit them at www.dragonflymandarin.com.
Cactus Bar & Grill: 404 S. Wells St. Lobby Chicago, IL 60611 | After-Work Bar
Happy Hour: All Day Monday, Tuesday, & Friday
While the name of the bar & grill might sound dangerous, it’s actually the perfect watering hole for sports lovers and/or those that want to relax and unwind after a stressful day at work. What attracts these two types of crowds? The easy-to-eat and easy-to-love bar food and its very affordable special prices that are available everyday are the main reasons that keep people coming back again and again. For their drink specials, they have $4 Microbrew beer on Mondays, $3 Draft beers and $11 pitchers on Tuesdays, $20 beer buckets on Thursdays, and $6 Patron shots on Fridays. For food, all appetizers are $3.95 after 5pm and $1 sliders on Mondays. These ridiculously low prices are guaranteed to give anyone a rewarding satisfaction after your home team loses/wins a game or after a grueling day at work. For whatever reason, Cactus Bar & Grill will definitely put a smile on anyone’s face.
The Saloon Steakhouse: 200 E. Chestnut St. Chicago, IL 60611 | American Steakhouse
Happy Hour: 4pm – 11pm Sunday; 4pm – 10pm Monday & Tuesday; 12pm – 12am Wednesday & Thursday; 4pm – 11pm Friday; 11:30am – 4pm Saturday
Everyday is different for the happy hour/specials at The Saloon Steakhouse. It can get a little difficult trying to catch up with their daily specials, but just know that somewhere during those days, at those specific hours, their bar appetizers are ½ priced, $4 – $5 alcohol, and some days the margaritas are ½ priced as well as their quesadillas. On Sundays, you can get a 3-course dinner with dessert for just $24.95. Chicago’s hidden gem is the perfect place to have a special date with your special person or have a power meeting with your promising business partners. Either occasion will be successful with these specials at The Saloon Steakhouse. For more information, visit them at www.saloonsteakhouse.com.
El’s Kitchen & Bar: 1450 W. Webster Ave. Chicago, IL 60614 | All American Bar
Happy Hour: 11am – 3pm Sunday; 5pm – 11pm Monday; 5pm – 9pm Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday; 5pm – 2am Friday; 11am – 3pm Saturday
A daily happy hour/specials restaurant and bar might not be too hard to find, especially after seeing a long list of them, but what’s so special about El’s Kitchen & Bar is that their fried chicken and thin, crispy bacon, and other meat prepared dishes is what it’s famous for. Catering to all meat lovers, El’s provide their chicken wings for only 10 cents on Mondays, $1 sliders, $4.00 burgers, and $2 – $6 on various drinks throughout the week on specific days and hours. What’s even cooler is that El’s is located right in front of the Regal Webster Place Theater, so you could eat before/after you watch a movie with your date or with your friends. For more information, visit www.elskitch.com.
