In my last couple posts, I have been reviewing or more correctly simply describing my experience at restaurants around Los Angeles. Recently though I have been checking out the happy hour specials too. I had forgotten happy hours actually existed after attending a college where the town simply served cheap drinks all day long. While certain parts of the Los Angeles night scene aren’t exactly my scene, happy hour brings me back to Lawrence-esque experiences.
After a little mistiming, a group of us ended up at a happy hour at the Hudson in West Hollywood a little too dressed up. Since we didn’t want to reveal the real reason for being overly dressed up, we needed a story to justify our outfits. Lacking inspiration, we sought out the help of others and settled on the idea that we were just prepared for wherever the night would take us. Set back right off Santa Monica Boulevard, the Hudson was once a train station. Now the building has been decorated in a pre-prohibition style with bare bulbs and a giant tree growing through the building. Scanning the menu, I was more than excited to try some of the happy hour food not to mention the $3 wells. In Los Angeles, $7 for a single well is a steal. I was torn between the seared ahi with avocado and the smoked jalapeño mac & cheese. The waitress swayed all of our deciphering by explaining the mac & cheese is closer to an entrée portion than the tuna. Other food choices include fried chicken sliders, steamed mussels, short rib tacos and organic tomato capres. The mac & cheese came out with a perfect crunchy layer with creamy macaroni underneath. With just a hint of heat, the dish wasn’t too hot to make me down my drinks too quickly. If mixed drinks aren’t your style, draft beer and wine are also on special for only $3. I will be back for the food and for the ridiculously cheap drinks. 
Last week while my friend was in town, we checked out El Carmen near the Grove. We had to drive by twice because we missed it the first time. Squeezed between two other restaurants, El Carmen has an unpretentious entrance. Inside the lights are low, the bar is to the right and a long row and two seater tables along the left. We happened to the first people there, but it definitely picked up as the night got later. The bar was serving up $4 margaritas and $3 tecates, but the highlight of the menu was the tequila selection. El Carmen is more of a tequila bar than a Mexican restaurant. We ordered a round of margs and split a shot of aged tequila. For only $4, you can have your choice of nachos or a variety of tacos, and you can add guacamole for only $2. We ordered the nachos and chicken tacos. Both were delicious, but evidentially the potato tacos are amazing. I can’t wait to go back to try the potato tacos and more interesting tequilas. While tequila and I aren’t always friends, their recommendations were smooth with only a hint of burn.
In stark contrast to the first two places, my final happy hour experience was more on the high-end side. The Lobster is located right at the front of the Santa Monica Pier. Usual food and drinks can run on the pricey side, but happy hour is a good way to sample the food without shelling out all your money. For $6, you can choose from eight signature cocktails or wine. I settled on the cantaloupe martini that ironically didn’t have any cantaloupe in it. A mix of vodka, watermelon liquor, lime and a little orange juice, the drink tasted amazing and somehow just like a bite of cantaloupe. Next I sampled the “Famous Mojito” made with dark rum instead of the traditional light. Both drinks were refreshing and strong. All the food on the happy hour menu looked delicious, which made selecting just one difficult. From oysters to lobster corn dogs to sashimi pizza, each item was more interesting than the next. We selected the pork belly sliders. While I don’t normally eat pork, I have been dying to try pork belly since it is a favorite on Top Chef. These sliders made me consider eating pork again, perfectly moist and bursting with an almost smoky flavor. Served on a warm dinner roll with arugula and a tomato, I could have eaten the whole plate myself. The experience was also topped off with an appearance by Bob Saget.
Now that I have discovered Los Angeles is bursting with happy hour specials, I can’t wait to try more out!
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