National HH Day spotlight: The Starlite Lounge (Lincoln, NE)

One of my favorite parts of Lincoln’s Historic Haymarket: The Starlite Lounge (247 N. 8th Street, Ste. 101, Lincoln) is basically the basement of Buzzard Billy’s (same owners). It’s definitely a blast from the past evoking visions of the Rat Pack and Marilyn Monroe. This “hidden” gem offers classic lounge music, top shelf hooch and a quirky atmosphere. Reverse Happy Hour is Tuesday and Wednesday from 10p-midnight with $2 domestic draws, $3 micro brews, $2.50 premium rails and $2 off all martinis. They also offer a Friday Happy Hour from 4p-7p with the same drink specials (Friday bonus: free appetizers from 5p-7p).

I absolutely LOVE Starlite. Whether it’s the fact that it’s a basement so phone service is iffy at best, forcing you to interact with your friends or the loners at the bar; the fact that they stay true to their 50’s/60’s theme (I love me a good themed anything) from the decor, music and waitstaff uniform (all black dress shirt and pants, cool colored ties for men and women); or their amazing (and strong) cocktails this is the perfect place for a midweek late night date or to catch up with friends at the end of the work week. Friday’s HH is definitely their busy time but you can normally still snag a table or spot at the bar. I like to go on Fridays to blow off a bit of steam and to get free apps! And while they aren’t much to write home about (think freezer aisle bites you can cook in your oven) they are 1) free and 2) great at offsetting the super strong drinks Starlite serves. Trust me, you should eat the apps.

I always start and recommend getting an Audrey Hepburn ($4.50: Pama Pomegranate Liqueur, Rangpur & St. Germaine. And ALWAYS get it with champagne) one of Starlite’s most popular martinis. I have recently converted to the “martinis shouldn’t be flavored” camp but I can’t give these up. I don’t know if its the champagne or just my lingering love for “Breakfast At Tiffany’s” and “Roman Holiday” but an Audrey is always a winner. You can’t talk Starlite without talking about this drink. It is also the strongest “flavored” martini I’ve ever had.

The second reason I gravitate towards Starlite are their premium wells and the fact that they stock ginger ale! (If I have to drink another Jameson/Jack/Bulleit and Sierra Mist/Sprite/7-Up I will scream.) I can get a strong Beam and Ginger for just $2.50. If you don’t think that’s a deal well I need to come hang where you hang. Thank you Starlite for not making me drink bottom shelf bourbon/whiskey just to get HH pricing.

I can’t give Starlite Lounge anything but 5 smiles. This is the place you take someone on their first visit to Lincoln. This is where you get the best HH prices for the quality drinks they serve. This is where you can admit you like the little tacos from the freezer aisle that you warm up in the oven. This is the best Haymarket HH I’ve been to since moving here in 2009 (although I couldn't "legally" drink until 2011).

*Note: While it isn’t “technically” a HH Starlite also has Throwback Thursday with drink specials ($2 domestic draws, $3 micro brews, $3 premium rails, $3 margaritas and $3 drink specials), free appetizers beginning at 8p, and Retro 50’s and 60’s trivia at 9p.

Pig & Finch Happy Hour Review

One of the new additions to Pacific Plaza Pig and Finch (10387 Pacific Street Omaha) prides its self serving the best pork and fowl in town. Pup atmosphere combined with quality good and company is what makes Pig and Finch special. P&F offers Happy Hour everyday 3:30-6:00pm and Saturday and Sunday 2:00pm-6:00pm. $4Well drinks, $5 Specialty Cocktail, $6 Martinis, $6 glasses of wine, $2 off Draft Beers and last but not least $3 Pub Snacks.

 

P&F is the place where you can dine with your love, or hang out with your pal and watch the Cowboys murder the Jaguars! With the dining area on one side and the bar on  the other and a wall separating the two, P&F caters to both. The dining area is nice and spacious, and the bar is a nice size as well with high tables and booths. The interior is bold with royal purple walls, and dark wood for furnishings. Through out the dining area you see gold accents that compliments the décor well. I think P&F is trying to let you know that they are Kings of Pork and Fowl.

 

One thing to note is that when it comes to the $3 Pub Snacks, there isn't much to offer, only four selection's First thing we tried was the MayTag Blue Cheese Potato Chips (Blue Cheese Cream/Chives) The chips sliced thin with a drizzle of cream on top and what seemed to be a pool on the bottom. The chips were good on its own, but overall all I was expecting more. Blue Cheese  is very flavorful, high in acid content, and a crumb like texture. In this dish you can hardly taste it. They did so happen to put 2 little crumbles on top of the chips. The cream had the consistency of queso with parmesan-asiago flavor than blue cheese.  I was expecting the saltiness from the chip to complement the tang of blue cheese and what we experienced the taste of nachos.

 

 

 

 

Next we had the Pretzel Bits (Salt, Caraway, Poppy Seed Ale Cheese, and Stone Ground Mustard)  The pretzel bits were a little hard for my liking. I like soft pretzels like pillows. The cheese that was paired tasted very bland, almost like nothing. The consistency is what you get from Easy Mac sauces, gritty and lack of flavor. What I did enjoy was the mustard. The mustard was the only thing you can taste on the platter.

 

During my visit I decided to go with a cocktail. I had the Blue Berry Lemonade Vodka ($5). Absolutely my new favorite. It reminded me of Blue Lemonade Kool-Aid mixed with Ciroc and that was okay with me. If you like sweet drinks like myself, this drink is for you. I like how the mushed up the blueberries, it gave the drink life and color.

 

Overall P&F Happy Hour is slight bit disappointing. With only four options for pub snacks, I wish they offered at least two more. The flavor was lacking in each dish and I was expecting better.  I will however go and dine off their main menu. Grilled Pork Chop is amazing and their Sunday Brunch is worth it. Overall I give P&F 1 Smile.

  

Longwell's '76 (Lincoln)

Located in The Railyard, Lincoln’s new(ish) addition to the Historic Haymarket, Longwell’s ‘76 (350 Canopy St., Ste. 100, Lincoln) offers a variety of slow smoked bbq dishes, burgers, sliders and sandwiches as well as over 190 varieties of beer. Everyday is Happy Hour at Longwell’s from 4p-6p offering $1 off appetizers (from loaded fries to pretzel braids) and sliders, as well as all beers on tap.

Longwell’s is the perfect place to catch your favorite team playing. With multiple big screens throughout the bar and restaurant area, you won’t have to miss out on anything. If it’s a (relatively) nice day you can sit outside and catch the game on the Railyard’s Cube (a 14x40 feet behemoth that can be seen throughout the Railyard’s open pavillion). Dependent on how busy they are or what team is playing seating can get a bit cramped, but the outdoor seating option seems to still be viable, at least till the first snowfall. The interior is what most people have come to expect from a modern bar/restaurant of this elk; a dual bar, one with seating that gives you a front row glimpse at the many many beers on tap, (surprisingly, Longwell’s doesn’t actually brew its own beer, instead opting to provide many Lincoln staples like Empryean and ZipLine), lots of high tops and a glass encased party room. I was a bit disappointed that they play music instead of audio from the game on the big screen but it only slightly affected the experience.

I started out with the Wasatch Pumpkin Ale (pumpkin ale, Utah Brewers Cooperative, ABV 4%) as it’s October and I felt like being seasonal. Liked that there wasn’t an overpowering pumpkin flavor, the ale was very mellow. Would get this over many of the Oktoberfest brews I’ve tried lately.

My friend and I decided on three items to share: a half order of the Fries Rule add pulled pork, Spinach and Artichoke Dip and the BBQ Bacon Cheddar Sliders. The Fries Rule w/ pulled pork ($6: natural cut fries layered and topped with green onions, bacon & cheddar cheese over and over again) are Longwell’s super delicious version of loaded fries/potato skins. The half order was so big that even after splitting it with my friend there was leftovers for my lunch the next day. At first I liked that the pulled pork didn’t come pre sauced, but as with most loaded fries it needed a little bit of moisture so I ended up topping it with bbq sauce. The fries were super crispy, although I do wish they were lightly seasoned.

The spinach and artichoke dip ($6: served with tortilla chips) was really creamy and didn’t separate into an oily mess when it got cold. Would have liked more spinach or artichokes in the actual dip but that’s my complaint with most restaurants dip. Would have also liked 1) handmade and 2) warm tortilla chips as the side. Overall pretty decent but you should definitely eat this first unless you want to battle with a top layer of cheese to get to the dip underneath when it does cool off.

The last thing I tried and certainly my favorite of the night were the BBQ bacon cheddar sliders ($7.5: Angus beef, crispy bacon, melted cheddar and Longwell’s BBQ sauce). We got three nice sized sliders on pretzel buns, not too much sauce, not super small burgers patties in comparison to the bun and shredded cheddar which I like a bit more on sliders (no worries about cutting a slice of cheese to fit). Also no bacon skimping which was a plus. Would order these little guys again.

The last two beers I got were an old fav and a dare. I love the Stella Cidre they have on tap (Belgian recipe cider with apples, Stella Artois, ABV 4.5%) which is super crisp and refreshing. Not hoppy at all and a good neutral drink compared to the other two I had that day.

The Lugene Chocolate Milk Stout (milk stout brewed with milk sugar and milk chocolate, Odell Brewing Co, Fort Collins, ABV 8.5%)  was basically a dare because I have yet to reach a level where stouts are things I want to drink. Also not a huge fan of chocolate anything (except me…. never mind). I did enjoy that it was similar to a glass of milk chocolate. I full glass of this would have been too much however so I opted for a 5 oz pour. A nice little finish to the night, like dessert.

Longwell’s ‘76 gets 4 smiles. I can see myself returning to watch a Broncos, Bulls or JayHawks game this season and trying more beers and menu items. Nice staff and atmosphere and it’s not too far from where I work. Would like to see them switch over to game audio but other than that Longwell’s is a great place for sports and beer fans.

Grane at Midtown Crossing

One of the newest additions to Midtown Crossing, Grane (120 South 31st Avenue, Suite 5105, Omaha) offers all the comforts of a modern day speakeasy. A whiskey dispensary that also offers a number of craft cocktails and small plates, this concept bar is brought to us from Brix, incorporating their tasting machines (you buy a dispensing card, then sample whisky and scotch to your heart or wallet’s content). Happy Hour is all day Monday and Tuesday (the whiskey machines are also half price all day Monday) as well as Wednesday - Saturday from 3p-6p. Their House Old Fashioned and Amaro are both on tap and $2 off as well as their other house cocktails and featured whiskey classics. Wines are $5 a glass and all draft beers are $2 off. All small plates including whiskey charcuterie (meat & cheese plate) and a chocolate whiskey bundt cake are 25% off.

I immediately loved Grane when I walked through the doors. Dimly lit and all brass and wood really makes you feel like you’ve walked back into the prohibition era. The bar is massive and I got a kick out of the rolling library style ladder the bartenders have to use to reach some of the bottles. I enjoyed that the walls were decorated with news clippings from Nebraska about prohibition and bootlegging as well as Capone-esque pictures of bootleggers and bartenders. Everyone was super helpful and attentive from the moment I arrived (both of my visits were on Mondays and their were only a few other patrons, but I get the feeling the service is the same even with a packed house). The GM even greeted me personally, remembered me upon my second visit and left me his card (great place Joel). Grane is the perfect place if you enjoy history, escapism and whiskey even half as much as I do.

My first order of business was to try the House Old Fashioned ($7: Wild Turkey 101, orange, sugar, angostura). I was a bit skeptical at first since this is “on tap” and how can a mass produced Old Fashioned really be good? It can if it’s from Grane. The drink was perfect and if you’ve never tried an Old Fashioned before this is a good place to start.

I also ordered the warm goat cheese fondue ($8.25: rustic country loaf, Shadowbrook Farm Chevre, roasted cippolini onions, Banguls vinegar reduction). The fondue came out promptly and piping hot. The reduction and onions were very nice compliments to each other as they were both sweeter.I do wish the onions had a bit more of a fine chop to them as currently you’re eating a whole clove at a time. The country loaf was fresh and soft but for this it may have served a better purpose by being toasted. Overall the fondue was a bit sweeter than I expected. I love the slight tanginess of goat cheese and it was definitely missing from this fondue.

I ended up getting a dispensing card, putting $10 on it and sampling three of the whiskeys Grane currently has. First was the George Dickel Grane 9 Year as the bartender had told me this was bottled for Grane (they even have the barrel it was aged in). It’s a Tennessee Style whiskey with notes of maple syrup and caramel and a smooth finish that lingers. Next was my favorite of the bunch, the Green Spot Single Pot Still. An Irish Whiskey comprised of pot still whiskeys aged between 7 to 10 years and matured in bourbon or sherry barrels, this whiskey is a spicier whiskey in tandem with green apple, leaving behind barley and clove notes (yes I just nerded out about the “nose” and “finish” and blah blah blah. I’m becoming a snob with these things). Last was the Greenore Single Grain Irish. This small batch Irish whiskey is also aged in bourbon barrels and made from corn instead of barley, lending it a sweeter taste. It’s not made in a pot still so the finish is smoother. I would recommend the dispensary machines to anyone who 1) likes whiskey or scotch 2) likes learning or tasting new alcohols on a budget 3) someone who just happens to be in Midtown on a Monday and wants something to do.

I ran out of time on my first visit so I returned to try the chocolate whisky bundt cake ($6: scotch raisin compote, bourbon caramel, irish cream ‘air’, coffee powder). The cake is really really dense and the coffee and whiskey is evident immediately. The irish cream ‘air’ (whipped cream) was delicious as was the scotch raisin compote. I would probably would just eat a bucket of it had it been available. I’m not a huge fan of chocolate cake but the raisins and irish cream air made me finish it. The bourbon caramel sauce was a little bit lost with everything else that was going on and I wish the cake had been warmed.

I give Grane 4.5 smiles. It is exactly what I imagine a speakeasy would look like with modern adaptations. The focus is where it should be, on the whiskey, so I only took away half a smile for the food. If you’re looking for an interesting date idea, want to sample something before buying it for a gift, or just want an excuse to dress up a little nicer and enjoy an Old Fashioned Grane in Midtown is the place to be.

Happy Hour Happy Girl's Top 5 Happy Hours!!!

Since starting Happy Hour Happy Girl April of last year, I've enjoyed amazing dishes and fabulous after work cocktails.  The love I have for Happy Hours is so real. So real that is was hard to choose my Top Five ;-(. But no sad faces here, each spot has a special place in my heart. Here is my Top Five Happy Hours.

1).  Kona Grill- Omaha, NE

When people find out that I review Happy Hours, they always ask which place is my favorite. I always say Kona Grill. Why? Kona offers happy hour majority of the day each day, and all day SUNDAY! If you know me, you know I live for an all day happy hour. Another reason why Kona is my #1, is the prices. For $25 you can easily get a good meal for 2 maybe even 3. The sushi is divine and cheap (half price). Better than Omaha's favorite Sushi place. No shade.  

Happy Hour Times: Monday- Friday 3pm to 7pm. Monday- Thursday 9pm to 11pm. Friday and Saturday 10pm to 12am. Sunday- All day.   

295 N 170th St. Village Point

2) Rays in the City- Atlanta, GA 

My first review outside of Omaha and it was in ATLANTA, GEORGIA BABAAAYY! I'm still geeked about that. If you know my vision for #H3G then you'll understand.  I had the time of my life at Rays. Rays gave you the sensual and relaxed atmosphere which is perfect for after work drinks. The Calamari and shrimp I sampled was delicious and so was the cocktails. Rays is in downtown Atlanta on Peachtree. I highly recommend getting the Blue Cheese Chips (house made potato chips, bacon, and blue cheese). I know it may sound like a weird combination, but listen....its divine. 

Happy Hour Times: Monday-Friday 4:30-6:30pm

240 PeachTree ST NW, Atlanta GA

Yessss...Cotton candy. 

3. Salt 88

Another one of my all time favorite Happy Hours is Salt 88! Modern American with a Italian Twist. Earlier this year I hosted my First Anniversary for #H3G party at Salt 88. Excellent customer service, fabulous food and beautiful atmosphere. This summer they offered reverse happy hour on Thursdays nights from 10pm to 1am. I hope they bring it back for Summer of 2015 lets cross our fingers ;-) !!!.  Salt is another place that offers happy hours all day on Sunday. 

Happy Hour Times Monday-Saturday 3pm  to 630pm Sunday All Day

3623 N. 129th Street 

4. Twisted Cork Bistro- Omaha, NE

Twisted Cork is one of Omaha gems, a place that should have nation wide recognition.  Seattle to Omaha is the theme, and once you're there you'll feel like you're there! Seriously! Fresh and organic is what you'll get on your plate. I highly recommend the Juan de Fuca Tacos ( blue corn tortillas, miso glazed red salmon, bacon mayo, avocado aioli, mixed greens, and pico de gallo). One of my favorite tacos to date. Who would of thought bacon mayo with salmon would compliment each other so well.

Twisted Cork's menu is seasonal so the menu will change every once and awhile. 

Happy Hour Times: Monday- Saturday 3 to 6pm 

10730 Pacific Street 

5. Brix- Omaha, NE

Brix  has a very special place in my heart. Brix introduced me to the love of my life. Soon as we meet he never did me wrong, was always there for me when I needed him.  We celebrated the highs and the lows and recently watched Beyonce and Jay-Z On the Run Tour together. Oh, and let me not forget each Thursday we watch Scandal. His name is Stella Rosa. The love we have for each other is real, its a match made in heaven. For Brix I'll always be thankful. Seriously, Brix is one of those places where you'll get a experience. Its fun, casual, and you'll always have a great time! Throughout the resturant/store they place wine dispensing sytems and you can choose any wine you like!  

Happy Hour Times Monday- Saturday 3pm to 6pm

Midtown Omaha Location 

Stokes Grill and Bar

With two locations in the Omaha Metro (12th and Howard in the Old Market and 13615 California Street in West Omaha) Stokes Grill & Bar focuses on southwestern Tex Mex cuisine. They have Happy Hour daily from 3-6p as well as a late night one from 9p to close. Beer, wine, margaritas and cocktails are on special ranging from $2.50 Corona bottles to $5.50 signature martinis. Selected tapas are discounted including the ceviche, tacos, wings and nachos (prices range from $3.50 to $6.95). Pretty reasonable prices for a Happy Hour that runs 7 days a week.

Although the menu didn’t specify if HH is bar area only we decided to sit there since they were pretty empty the Saturday afternoon my mother and I visited. We arrived at the tail end of the 3-6p HH and ordered pretty quickly. The restaurant is very dark, with a nice outdoor seating area as well as party rooms for special occasions. Decor matches the southwest theme at times being a little kitchy. At first our waiter/bartender was pretty prompt, taking our drink and food order. As there weren’t very many people sitting at the bar or in the restaurant in general we figured things would go relatively smoothly. There were quite a few people seated outdoors who would come in to order from the bar, something I found a little strange since there were tons of wait staff milling about the entirety of our visit. Our bartender brought our first drinks out pretty promptly but despite the small crowd our food took quite a while to come out. 

To start I ordered a strawberry margarita ($4). As far as margaritas go it was pretty standard. Couldn’t tell if they used fresh strawberries in their mix but not a lot of places do so this didn’t bother me much. The drink itself wasn’t very strong so Stokes won’t be top of mind next time I really want a marg and some chips (which is every other Tuesday honestly).

The first tapa that come out of the kitchen was the Chorizo Queso Dip ($4: white cheese topped with ground chorizo; served with tortilla chips). There are two things you need to know about me and queso: 1) I love it to death and 2) it doesn’t take much for me to like your queso (I’m a big fan of Qdoba’s). Keeping this in mind, Stokes chorizo queso dip is terrible. They literally put maybe a teaspoon of the chorizo in it. Not even enough for the dip to turn terra cotta colored when stirred. The dip came out lukewarm which is also a problem for me. Warm queso with warm chips should be like the southwestern restaurant standard I can get this right dish. My last point of contention with the dip was that it was obviously just a bowl of white Velveeta poorly heated up. Now while I hate Velveeta in theory, again I’m not a queso snob and know this is used in most quesos I like. The difference being most restaurants add other things to mask the plain white “cheese” blockness of Velveeta. 

Next I tried the wings ($5: grilled chicken wings served with Stokes’ BBQ sauce and sriracha). As I’m trying to eat a bit healthier I liked that these wings were grilled instead of fried as well as the fact that both sauces were included so you didn’t have to pick one or the other. The wings were hot when they arrived so points for Stokes. They were also well seasoned so I ate a few plain. I’d have liked them to have been grilled a bit longer to add a bit of texture or bite to them. The bbq sauce was pretty good, not too sweet or spicy. I had a problem with the sriracha though. Not with the actual sauce, which I love, but with Stokes’ decision to decorate the plate with it instead of just giving me a bowl of it. I get it, they wanted it to be plated nicely. But drawing patterns with it on my plate ends up in me not having a lot to put on my wings. What if I hated bbq sauce and wanted every wing coated in hot sauce? Logically I could have just asked for more sriracha but our waiter progressively got worse so that was out the window. Still the wings were the best thing I had at Stokes that night.

My last tapa was the taquitos ($4: black bean and corn taquitos served with spicy warmed green chili sauce). The taquitos came baked instead of fried (something healthier me liked) but the thicker tortilla used for this dish may have been better utilized fried. The black bean corn mixture was very bland almost as though they poured it straight from a can. I loved the green chili sauce (even though it wasn’t warm) but I hated the fact that I had to drown the taquitos in it for a hint of flavor. In the end I ended up leaving most of them on the plate.

While ordering my last drink my Stokes experience got worse. First the bartender decided to remind me it wasn’t HH anymore (something I had acknowledged already. We arrived at about 5:48 and I told him I wanted to make my INITIAL order before HH was over. I had no problems paying full price for my second drink as it is also on the HH menu for the purpose of the review). I got a Kentucky Derby, one of their copper cup cocktails ($5: Bulleit Bourbon, fresh lime juice, ginger beer). I love the little copper cups these are served in and am glad more restaurants are offering these for more than just gimlets as I’m not a huge gin or vodka drinker. Loved that this version used Bulleit, one of my favorite bourbons. I had very high expectations since my go to order at the bar is whiskey/bourbon and ginger ale/beer. Sadly this had way too much lime for my liking. You could barely taste the ginger beer, let alone the bourbon.

We asked for our check however our waiter/bartender decided the randoms at the bar and his co-workers at the plating area were more interesting. After waiting about 10-15 minutes to pay my bill I ended up waving down another bartender who had just arrived and gave him my money. It would be hard for me to recommend Stokes Grill and Bar to anyone from my experience. While the service may be better on other nights/visits the food and drinks weren’t the stuff dreams are made of (yes I dream about food, so what). I hate to do it but I really can’t give Stokes Grill & Bar any smiles.

Voodoo Taco Happy Hour Review

Voodoo Tacos has two locations in Omaha. One on 90th and Fort and Nebraska Crossing Outlets.  Happy Hour offers $1 Off Domestics, Margaritas and Daiquiris from 2:30pm-6:30pm. Also, $1 off Tacos from 3:00pm-6pm. Each Happy Hour is Monday-Friday and all day Saturday.

I visited Voodoo Taco on my birthday and my intention wasn't on doing a review. I just wanted to stuff my face and enjoy my 25th Birthday. It just happened by the time I got there, they were offering Happy Hour....so why not! I've been wanting to try Voodoo for a while and finally my wish came true. 

First taco we tried was the Baja Shrimp $3.75 (cajun battered fried shrimp, Napa cabbage, shredded Asadero cheese, fresh avocado, and topped with Siriachi aioli and fresh cilantro). Also the Smoked Brisket (slow smoked beef, refried beans, chopped onions, jalapenos, roasted corn, shredded cheddar, pico and cilantro). As stated before I've been waiting to try Voodoo taco for ages. I heard many fabulous things and my expectations were high. The Shrimp taco unfortunately lacked flavor. The description stated "cajun battered" and I was expecting spice and a kick. What I got was fried plain shrimp and over load of lettuce. For the price of Voodoos tacos I expected more. In my opinion it was just a 3 shrimp taco with lettuce, nothing to brag about. 

The next taco we sample (pictured above)  was the Fried Chicken Taco (crispy fried chicken, cheddar cheese, shredded lettuce, and pico). This taco was okay even though it reminded me of a Crispy McWrap from McDonalds. Like the Baja Shrimp Taco the veggies were over powering the taco. If you're a taco fanatic like me, a taco is all about the protein!! 

One thing that is awesome about Voodoo is that Voodoo is a participant of Pin Point! Pin Point is an amazing app that offers discounts an points to many restaurants and stores. I just happened to look on my app and seen a "Buy one Get one Free" coupon.  

If you're looking for a wide variety of tacos, a fun atmosphere and a margarita...Voodoo Taco is the place to go. For Happy Hour I'm rating them 1 smile.