Ordering a meal and a drink will run you $20 almost anywhere these days, so sometimes you just need to hit a happy hour and call it a night. Here are a few of our favorites to try that are actually worth the odd hours and limited menu.
Barbacoa, Coa de Jima, and Coa Del Mar
These three restaurants are under the same ownership, and they aptly call their happy hour the envy of the Treasure Valley. From 4 to 6 p.m. every day, their cocktails priced at under $15 are buy one get one free, making it one of the valley’s very few BOGO happy hours.
It also explains why Barbacoa has historically poured more liquor than any other restaurant in the area, and why City Cast Boise producer Evelyn Avitia had to hit Coa de Jima’s happy hour on our experiment spending only $50 in one day in Boise.
Cocktail & Food Happy Hours
The Owyhee Tavern makes it easy with a separate happy hour menu featuring $6 beers and wines from $6 - $8, which are pretty standard happy hour prices. What sets them apart a little is their food menu, which includes some happy hour oysters.
Nearby, Stardust has beer and wine for a buck cheaper from 3 - 5 p.m. daily, and $7 cocktails (including an Old Fashioned, a Margarita, and $5 well spirits).
An 8th Street staple, Matador’s happy hour isn’t only for college students — although a $6 quesadilla or $7 nachos and a margarita did help me many a night during college. Bonus: the happy hour runs not only from 4 - 6 p.m., but also from 10 p.m. to close.
Let me know what happy hours I missed for cocktails and food — I’ll round up beer and wine options soon!
