Top Happy Hour Picks for January

Very few things bring me greater joy than a solid happy hour. I love to eat and drink, and enjoy it even more when I can do it on the cheap. And with Cleveland being a mecca for fabulous food and drinks, we have more than our fair share of offerings. Quite frankly, you could probably go to a different restaurant every day of the week for a year and still have options left over. If only my budget would allow for that.

With the holidays over and our wallets a little lighter, it seems appropriate to focus on some of the happy hours that provide us with the most bang for our buck. Below are some of my favorite venues for happy hour. For Cleveland.com’s list of the 50 Happiest Happy Hours, click here.

Momocho: I love Mexican food, especially with the modern twist that Momocho brings to the table. Their goat cheese guacamole is an absolute must, even though it doesn’t appear on their happy hour menu. Happy hour runs from 5-6:30 p.m., Tuesday – Friday and it fills up FAST. I once made the mistake of going on a Monday and was deeply saddened when I realized they weren’t open. If you want a seat at the bar or on the first floor (which is the only place you can get happy hour), get there as close to 5pm as possible or you may find yourself without a seat.  Happy hour highlights feature half priced Tecate, traditional margaritas and taquitos!

Fat Cats: This restaurant is nestled in a renovated home over on West 10th in the Tremont neighborhood. It can be pretty easy to miss, but worth circling around Tremont a times until you find it. Happy hour runs 4-7p.m., Monday – Friday. You’ll have a difficult time choosing which specials to sample as they are all pretty great. Some of my favorites include the fish tacos, calamari and zucchini. I was not a huge fan of the mac and cheese, which is shocking, as I consider mac and cheese it’s own food group.

Sarita: Located in Lakewood, Sarita’s happy hour has something for everyone. Happy hour includes an extensive food menu, with items like poutine, spinach and artichoke dip and pizzettes on the menu for less than $10 a piece. Drink options include cocktails for $6-7 and a few beer options as well. Plus, in the summer, Sarita has a fabulous patio out back.