Cocktails & Eats

Where to drink right now: 10 hot, happy hour deals

Del Frisco's Pomegranate Martini
Welcome to happy hour at Saint Genevieve!
Photo by William Vo
Mini tostadas with snapper ceviche at Mockingbird Bistro
Photo by Paula Murphy

It’s another sweltering August in Houston. Keep cool with 10 more thirst quenching happy hour specials at hot spots around town. These deals are not only good for wetting your whistle, they're also stomach pleasing and dollar saving.

Blu Restaurant & Lounge

The suburbs need drink deals too. Happy hour at Sugar Land's Blu Restaurant & Lounge runs from 4 to 7 p.m. daily and features dishes from the regular menu for only $4. Choices include the sweet potato samosas, edamame dumplings and tequila ceviche.

Whether it's inside at the swanky bar and lounge or outside on the restaurant's 1,400-square-foot patio, for $5 you can enjoy specials on hand-crafted cocktails like the Blinker made with rye whiskey, grapefruit and raspberry and the 9INE TO 5IVER — a mix of red and white wine, brandy, citrus and peach bitters.

Also available: $2 domestic drafts, $3 imports, $4 craft beers, and wines by the glass for $5.

Houston Texans Grille

Catch the big game — any big game — on more than 65 high-definition TVs while you enjoy food and drink specials at the Houston Texans Grille in CityCentre. There’s a regular happy hour, Mondays through Fridays from 4 to 7 p.m., and a reverse happy hour, Sundays through Thursdays from 10 p.m. until close.

You won’t leave hungry with chicken lime quesadillas, nachos and mini-burgers as options on the two-for-one appetizer menu.

Red and white house wines, a 20-ounce beer of the month and well liquors are yours for $4 and under. Select liquors are only a dollar more and the bar is stocked with just about all Three Olives’ flavors.

Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House

The opening of Del Frisco’s sister restaurant, Del Frisco’s Grille, isn’t the only exciting news — so are the bar menu prices available every day from open to close at this Galleria steakhouse. Along with more than a few great dishes to sample — sesame crusted tuna, seared filet tips and smoked salmon rillettes to name a few — Del Frisco’s menu also offers a variety of cocktails, from a pomegranate martini to the classic Old Fashioned.

MKT BAR at Phoenicia Specialty Foods

MKT BAR downtown runs a happy hour deal Mondays through Fridays from 4 to 7 p.m. A $6 bites menu is comprised of several dips (herb hummus and pomegranate yogurt dip for example) with baked pita chips, homemade plantain chips with mango salsa and chimichurri sauce and za'atar dusted, hand-cut fries.

Wines by the glass go for $5, draft beer is $4 and bottled beer is $3. Get crazy all day long on Wine Wednesdays. Snack and sip for cheap from open until close with half price bottles of select wine paired with an $8 charcuterie and cheese plate.

Mockingbird Bistro

The 5-5-5 happy hour at Mockingbird Bistro is available weekdays from 4 to 7 p.m. Five bucks will get you select eats, wines by the glass, classic cocktails and two-for-one local brews. Try the lobster risotto lollipops with sweet corn infusion and mini snapper ceviche tostadas.

Add to your dining pleasure with a Lynchburg Lemonade, Greyhound or Cuba Libra.

Bistro Bar at Bistro Alex

From the beverages to the cuisine, Bistro Bar at Hotel Sorella offers a half price discount on all bar menu items weekdays from 3 to 8 p.m. The prices may be small, but the portions are anything but tiny. For $7 or less you can choose from items like the Bistro Burger, pulled pork BBQ burger and chicken tenders (all with fries), and an assortment of flatbreads.

Discounted beverages include beer, wine, well drinks and specialty cocktails such as the Mandarin Cosmo, Pimm’s Cup and French Italian Martini made with Grey Goose Orange, Tuaca and lemon juice.

Note: Take advantage of the complimentary valet with any food or drink purchase.

Jasper’s

From 3 to 7 pm every day, libations and edibles at Jasper’s in The Woodlands are a mere $5 across the board. Noteworthy nosh includes buffalo chicken pizza, crab cake sliders, Angus beef sliders, and Teriyaki chicken lettuce wraps. The drink menu offers the likes of select wines by the glass, an apple or raspberry martini and an Orange Dream Cocktail made with tangerine vodka, orange juice, triple sec, and whipped cream.

Saint Genevieve

Saint Genevieve at West Ave has a 6-7-8 menu Tuesdays through Fridays from 4 to 8 p.m. At the $6 level, order the Blistered Shishito Peppers or Herb Gnocchi Tots. Spicy Spanish meatballs and reuben empanadas are on the $7 menu and for $8, you can order the margherita flatbread.

Treviso prosecco and Tito’s Vodka are $7 each and an $8 menu include Alias Cabernet by the glass and the Mellow Time Cocktail, a combination of Jameson Irish Whiskey, lemon juice, honey, bitters and applewood smoked salt.

J. Black’s

From 4 to 7 p.m. daily and all night Sundays, starters at J. Black’s on Washington Avenue are half off. Options include grilled cheese with tomato basil dipping sauce, calamari and pigs in a blanket. Save on drinking, too, with $2 off all drinks and 25-percent off bottles of wine.

Tuesday is “Pints and Pizza” night — $3 select craft pints and half-priced artisan pizzas.

BRIO Tuscan Grille

The Tuscan Tasters bar menu at Brio Tuscan Grille lets you get dishes such as spicy shrimp and eggplant, beef carpaccio, the BRIO Burger and several flatbreads and bruschettas for $3.95 each. This deal is available in the bar Mondays through Fridays from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., with a reverse happy hour from 9 p.m. until close.

From 4 p.m. until close, also Mondays through Fridays, reap the benefits of $5 low-priced drink specials on housemade sangrias, mojitos, martinis and wine. Another perk: A dozen-plus martini flavors for $5 each on Martini Wednesdays. With one location in CityCentre, keep your eyes peeled for another location opening mid-August in River Oaks.

Have a favorite happy hour deal? Let us know!

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Oh, Donna

New Houston cocktail bar serves up a house party fueled by music and martinis

Courtesy of Donna's

People are flocking to Donna's.

It hasn’t taken long for Houston cocktail fans to discover Donna’s. Ever since it opened Thanksgiving weekend, the new cocktail bar in the Heights has been packed with people eager to check out the new project from Anvil owner Bobby Heugel and veteran Houston bartender Jacki Schromm.

Named for Schromm’s grandmother, both partners use the word “house party” to describe the kind of atmosphere they want to create at Donna’s. That party can be very energetic on busy weekend nights and a little quieter and more intimate during the week — allowing patrons to choose what kind of experience they want to have.

Heugel and Schromm worked with collaborators on the design, music, and art for Donna’s. So far, people seem to be enjoying themselves.

“It’s really f---ing awesome,” Schromm tells CultureMap. “It has been really remarkable to have people in this building. To see the room full is a rewarding experience. The feedback we’ve received has just been really positive.”

To transform the former Ready Room into Donna’s, the partners collaborated with Brittany Vaughn of Garnish Design. Known for her work at establishments such as Tiny Champions, Maximo, and Milton’s, Vaughn helped divide the retro-styled cocktail bar into two distinct interior spaces. The main bar area is defined by high-top, organically-shaped tables that allow large groups to congregate or smaller groups to share without being on top of each other. The more intimate living room section features a large couch and a spacious booth.

“There’s a lot of smart utility in the space,” Heugel explains. “We kept talking about how it’s a small space. We want to find a seat for everybody as much as possible.”

To honor the space’s history of hosting live music, the partners worked with Chicago-based firm Uncanned on a powerful vintage stereo that includes both a reel-to-reel tape deck and a turntable. Known locally for their work at restaurants such as Nancy’s Hustle and Nobie’s, the Uncanned team gave Donna’s the ability to kick out the jams with ultra-clear sound while not being so loud that people can’t talk to each other. It also opens up the possibility of people playing their favorite albums on select nights.

“Jacki and I both had the bold opinion when we started talking about Donna’s that cocktail bars were boring. We wanted to add more layers to the onion,” Heugel says. “Having music be here as an additional component to the bar makes the room feel really good. That’s important to us, and we’ll have some programming related to that.”

Keli Hogsett of Austin’s CoCollect helped Schromm and Heugel select the room’s distinctive art on its walls. Heugel describes the works as museum-quality, contemporary pieces from regional artists that are a cut above what’s usually seen in bars. Hogsett will also source the art for the new restaurant Heugel and chef Justin Yu are opening next year in the former Vibrant space.

Schromm, who partnered with Heugel after working at Anvil and Reserve 101, created the opening cocktail menu herself. One highlight is the Jacki’s Martini, a nod to the “Bobby’s Martini” served at Refuge and the “Terry’s Martini” served at Squable. It’s a 50-50 mix of gin with Cocchi Americano and Dolin Blanc vermouth. She describes it as more “sessionable” than a traditional martini.

“I think this cocktail menu has a lot of personality,” she says. “Some of my flair, whether it’s a spirit I chose or a flavor I like.”

Although parking on the property is limited, Heugel notes that street parking on White Oak is relatively plentiful. A nearby pay lot is available, or people can skip the issue altogether by using their favorite rideshare service.

Of course, the adjacent restaurant space won’t stay empty for long. As CultureMap has previously reported, Austin-based pizzeria Home Slice has claimed the building for its second Houston location that will open in fall 2026.

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Donna's, 2626 White Oak Drive. Open daily from 2 pm-2 am

Courtesy of Donna's

People are flocking to Donna's.

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