Plates of pasta and appetizers.
Various dishes at Basta!
Kassandra Lewis

13 San Diego Happy Hours to Try Right Now

Bar bites and drink deals for the discerning diner

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Various dishes at Basta!
| Kassandra Lewis

Take advantage of longer days and hit a happy hour somewhere in San Diego whether you’re unwinding after work or just getting the night started. Find beer and margarita flights, cocktail specials, and bonafide deals on substantial snacks ranging from fresh oysters to tacos, ceviche, and sliders.

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Herb & Sea

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Exclusively served in the North County restaurant’s bar area, the 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. happy hour offered Tuesday through Friday features a half dozen oysters for $20, a smash burger for $8, and $4 fries along with a happy meal deal that includes three oysters, a burger, fries, and a glass of bubbly for just $20.

A cocktail bar.
The bar at Herb & Sea.
Dustin Bailey

Waverly

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Cardiff-by-the-Sea’s chic all-day restaurant has changed up the cocktail options on its happy hour menu, which is featured every day from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Find deals on beer, wine, and drinks like the I Love You Matcha and Horchata Cold Brew as well as bites ranging from ocean trout ceviche and kale salad to Waverly single single burger.

A matcha cocktail.
A matcha cocktail.
Waverly

Rare Society

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The bar inside the North County outpost of Trust Restaurant Group’s wood-fired steakhouse is now a happy hour destination, with food and drink specials offered from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Monday. Chef Brad Wise’s menu of bar bites includes his popular wood-grilled artichoke as well as fresh oysters, shrimp cocktail, and Rare Society’s wagyu burger with boschetto al Tartufo cheese, onion marmalade, and truffle aioli. Drink deals range from $5 beer to $10 wines by the glass and classic cocktails.

The wagyu burger.
The wagyu burger.
Trust Restaurant Group

Sandpiper Wood Fired Grill & Oysters

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The La Jolla Shores restaurant is seriously robust, offered from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with $4 off draft beer, wine, specialty cocktails, and well drinks and an extensive list of food that includes menu favorites like Baja fish tacos, smash burgers, steamed mussels, and crispy shrimp.

 

Baja fish taco
Baja fish taco
Sandpiper Wood Fired Grill & Oysters

Sea & Sky

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Chef Anthony Wells (Juniper & Ivy) helms this newly opened restaurant on the 11th floor of Hotel La Jolla where a new weekday happy hour runs from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. exclusively at the bar. Specials include $2 off signature cocktails, $2 off draft beer, $7 glasses of house red and white wine, and $4 off all bar menu items like pimento cheese eclairs and tuna smashburger sliders.

Three colorful cocktails.
Assorted cocktails.
Anne Watson

Miss B's Coconut Club

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It’s a Havana good time by the coast with this weekday happy hour that runs from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and features $5 draft beer, $7 daiquiris and mojitos, and $7 generously-sized snacks like a Cuban sandwich, jerk-rubbed wings, and lechon asado fries.

One Door North

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Chef Fred Piehl’s adventure-oriented spot on 30th Street is a great place to watch a Padres game and dive into its 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. happy hour that takes $3 off all beer, wine, and cocktails like a classic Bee’s Knees and select bites from its dinner menu, including mini cornbread muffins served with pimento cheese and honey butter, Baja ceviche, flatbreads, and burgers.

This playful new spot in Little Italy Piazza della Famiglia sees Sam the Cooking Guy putting his signature spin on Italian fare, including a tasty take on chicken and waffles that features a polenta waffle paired with roast chicken in a lemon, caper, and onion sauce. Preview the space during its weekly 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. happy hour, when house cocktails like a dirty martini or negroni are $8 and shareable snacks like chicken liver mousse and crispy cacio e pepe style gnocchi are $10.

Craft & Commerce

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One of Little Italy’s foundational bars features 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. happy hour Monday through Thursday, and 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, offers cocktails for $8 and a variety of specials on food including the C&C Slider, bone marrow, and chicken wings.

Garibaldi

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Catch the sunset on Garibaldi’s ocean-view patio, where happy hour begins at 4:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday and at 4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday and lasts until sunset, meaning its food and drink deals will extend as the sun sets later into summertime. The Italian-inflected menu includes Amati Fizz made with San Diego-grown and produced myrtle berry liqueur and snacks like tuna tartare with Calabrian chile, pickled celery, capers, pine nuts, and Sardinian flatbread and a fritto misto with calamari, green beans, marinated olives, grilled lemon, and pepperoncini aioli.

An outdoor patio.
Garibaldi’s patio.
Diana Rose Photo

Saint James French Diner

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Downtown’s chic bistro, which anchors the Palihotel, offers a rare happy hour that extends through the weekend. Featured Wednesday through Sunday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., it includes half-priced burgers like the burger Parisenne topped with caramelized onions, American cheese, and bordelaise sauce, as well as an $8 cocktail of the day and specials on select wines by the glass.

A burger and fries.
A burger and frites.
Saint James French Diner

The Lion’s Share

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A daily cocktail hour, featured from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., extends to several of the bar’s perenially popular drinks, from a cucumber gimlet to classics like a Paloma, daiquiri, and vodka mule, all priced at $8. Pair drinks with bites from a robust food menu that includes $5 crispy scallion fritters, $6 chicharrones, and a wagyu-blend burger and Miller High Life combo for $15.

Cucumber gimlet.
Cucumber gimlet.
Josh Becker

The Smoking Gun SD

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Watch the game or catch up with friends at this neighborhood bar and game room while taking advantage of it generous happy hour, which runs from 3 p.m. all the way to 7 p.m. on weekdays. Feast on a wagyu double cheeseburger for $10 and grab a group to share a disco ball full of boozy punch. delectable $10 Wagyu Double Cheeseburger, a must-try. Pair it with a draft beer or craft cocktail, or take Arcade play is also half-off during happy hour, excluding Fridays.

The Disco Punch Bowl.
The Smoking Gun

Herb & Sea

Exclusively served in the North County restaurant’s bar area, the 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. happy hour offered Tuesday through Friday features a half dozen oysters for $20, a smash burger for $8, and $4 fries along with a happy meal deal that includes three oysters, a burger, fries, and a glass of bubbly for just $20.

A cocktail bar.
The bar at Herb & Sea.
Dustin Bailey

Waverly

Cardiff-by-the-Sea’s chic all-day restaurant has changed up the cocktail options on its happy hour menu, which is featured every day from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Find deals on beer, wine, and drinks like the I Love You Matcha and Horchata Cold Brew as well as bites ranging from ocean trout ceviche and kale salad to Waverly single single burger.

A matcha cocktail.
A matcha cocktail.
Waverly

Rare Society

The bar inside the North County outpost of Trust Restaurant Group’s wood-fired steakhouse is now a happy hour destination, with food and drink specials offered from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Monday. Chef Brad Wise’s menu of bar bites includes his popular wood-grilled artichoke as well as fresh oysters, shrimp cocktail, and Rare Society’s wagyu burger with boschetto al Tartufo cheese, onion marmalade, and truffle aioli. Drink deals range from $5 beer to $10 wines by the glass and classic cocktails.

The wagyu burger.
The wagyu burger.
Trust Restaurant Group

Sandpiper Wood Fired Grill & Oysters

The La Jolla Shores restaurant is seriously robust, offered from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with $4 off draft beer, wine, specialty cocktails, and well drinks and an extensive list of food that includes menu favorites like Baja fish tacos, smash burgers, steamed mussels, and crispy shrimp.

 

Baja fish taco
Baja fish taco
Sandpiper Wood Fired Grill & Oysters

Sea & Sky

Chef Anthony Wells (Juniper & Ivy) helms this newly opened restaurant on the 11th floor of Hotel La Jolla where a new weekday happy hour runs from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. exclusively at the bar. Specials include $2 off signature cocktails, $2 off draft beer, $7 glasses of house red and white wine, and $4 off all bar menu items like pimento cheese eclairs and tuna smashburger sliders.

Three colorful cocktails.
Assorted cocktails.
Anne Watson

Miss B's Coconut Club

It’s a Havana good time by the coast with this weekday happy hour that runs from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and features $5 draft beer, $7 daiquiris and mojitos, and $7 generously-sized snacks like a Cuban sandwich, jerk-rubbed wings, and lechon asado fries.

One Door North

Chef Fred Piehl’s adventure-oriented spot on 30th Street is a great place to watch a Padres game and dive into its 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. happy hour that takes $3 off all beer, wine, and cocktails like a classic Bee’s Knees and select bites from its dinner menu, including mini cornbread muffins served with pimento cheese and honey butter, Baja ceviche, flatbreads, and burgers.

Basta!

This playful new spot in Little Italy Piazza della Famiglia sees Sam the Cooking Guy putting his signature spin on Italian fare, including a tasty take on chicken and waffles that features a polenta waffle paired with roast chicken in a lemon, caper, and onion sauce. Preview the space during its weekly 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. happy hour, when house cocktails like a dirty martini or negroni are $8 and shareable snacks like chicken liver mousse and crispy cacio e pepe style gnocchi are $10.

Craft & Commerce

One of Little Italy’s foundational bars features 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. happy hour Monday through Thursday, and 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, offers cocktails for $8 and a variety of specials on food including the C&C Slider, bone marrow, and chicken wings.

Garibaldi

Catch the sunset on Garibaldi’s ocean-view patio, where happy hour begins at 4:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday and at 4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday and lasts until sunset, meaning its food and drink deals will extend as the sun sets later into summertime. The Italian-inflected menu includes Amati Fizz made with San Diego-grown and produced myrtle berry liqueur and snacks like tuna tartare with Calabrian chile, pickled celery, capers, pine nuts, and Sardinian flatbread and a fritto misto with calamari, green beans, marinated olives, grilled lemon, and pepperoncini aioli.

An outdoor patio.
Garibaldi’s patio.
Diana Rose Photo

Saint James French Diner

Downtown’s chic bistro, which anchors the Palihotel, offers a rare happy hour that extends through the weekend. Featured Wednesday through Sunday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., it includes half-priced burgers like the burger Parisenne topped with caramelized onions, American cheese, and bordelaise sauce, as well as an $8 cocktail of the day and specials on select wines by the glass.

A burger and fries.
A burger and frites.
Saint James French Diner

The Lion’s Share

A daily cocktail hour, featured from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., extends to several of the bar’s perenially popular drinks, from a cucumber gimlet to classics like a Paloma, daiquiri, and vodka mule, all priced at $8. Pair drinks with bites from a robust food menu that includes $5 crispy scallion fritters, $6 chicharrones, and a wagyu-blend burger and Miller High Life combo for $15.

Cucumber gimlet.
Cucumber gimlet.
Josh Becker

The Smoking Gun SD

Watch the game or catch up with friends at this neighborhood bar and game room while taking advantage of it generous happy hour, which runs from 3 p.m. all the way to 7 p.m. on weekdays. Feast on a wagyu double cheeseburger for $10 and grab a group to share a disco ball full of boozy punch. delectable $10 Wagyu Double Cheeseburger, a must-try. Pair it with a draft beer or craft cocktail, or take Arcade play is also half-off during happy hour, excluding Fridays.

The Disco Punch Bowl.
The Smoking Gun

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