Keeping in the theme of the blog, please understand that I agree there are some great happy hours out there but I am talking about the cheapest for the quality. Lots of hole in the wall bars have $5 happy hours, that is not what I am looking at for this blog. Here are some of my favorite happy hours as discovered with my favorite diner!
The first happy hour we tried that had an amazing cost/quality ratio was at Pier W. Until 7 pm on weekdays the bar menu is half off! This means you get fabulous Pier W quality food for half price. On our outing we ordered Antipasto Pizza ($5), the Salmon BLT ($6) and the Angus Burger ($6). The sandwiches were served with a side of fries as well. We each also ordered a drink, which was on special. I had a vodka martini and he enjoyed a cucumber vodka lemonade each for $5.25. Alcohol will always up the bill and can at times become half of the bill. So for my gourmet on a budget, you may have to forgo the drinks if it cramps the budget. Dinner, however, cost $17 plus tax and tip for 2 people at Pier W. Most normal entrees are at least $17. This is a win!
The second upscale happy hour was at Fat Cats. This restaurant is forgotten in the wonderful land of Tremont. The happy hour though may be the best on the cost/quality ratio. That night we had way more food then we needed because we did not realize how large the portion sizes were for the price. We started with the lamb and goat cheese empanadas ($4) there were 3 to the order. I then enjoyed a chorizo omelet ($4) and a side salad ($2.50) and he enjoyed his angus burger with fries($5). For a total of $15.50 we had a full dinner. It was amazing the amount of food we got for the price. It was sad though that the bar area was empty on a Friday night.
The last of our favorite happy hours is the one we can walk to each day at Brother's Lounge. During happy hour they have a discount on the drinks. But they also have reduced priced appetizers until 7 pm. Unfortunately, due to our frequenting of this place I cannot remember how much we spent on each trip, but the average for food for both of us was around $15 for the food. Now Brother's Lounge is not the same level of quality as Pier W or Fat Cats, but it is very good and the quality for the price is expected. The fact that it was walking distance made it an excellent choice for any random week night!
Feel free to share your tips and best happy hours as well! I need to start frequenting the happy hour scene and start trying some new places. We enjoyed many other places, but on the cost/quality ratio they were pretty standard. Next blog I might write about reverse happy hours at some great places!
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Gift Certificate Affordability!
My main goal in this is to give people ways to enjoy eating out or making dinner in without sacrificing any type of quality! Here are a few of my favorite tips and tricks for eating somewhere special with gift certificates!
1) Cleveland Independents. The Cleveland Independents have so many ways to enjoy local food at a great price. First you need to friend them on facebook so you are the first to hear about some great offers as they are available. In the past I have won gift certificates for places I might not have tried without the nudge forward. Even better is there sale of discount gift certificates. You can purchase $50 certs for $35 or $25 certs for $17.50. To get the most popular restaurants...Light Bistro, Chinato, Great Lakes, Melt and Pier W usually go quickly. Others will be up for awhile. You can only buy one a day, so understanding what goes fast is great for planning. There are some restrictions across the board including that they cannot be used for alcohol, only one per table, and they cannot be used in conjunction with other specials.
I am able to utilize this deal throughout the months. Many times when looking for somewhere to go for dinner I log in and see what certificates are left. You buy and print instantly so it is fast and convenient.
2) Restaurant.com. This is another one of my favorite places to get discount gift certificates for a nice night out. This also has some restrictions, but they are bearable. Typically the $25 gift cards cost $10 and require you to spend a minimum amount or purchase at least 2 entrees. But you need to read the fine print as the amount for the gift certificate and the restrictions are determined by each place. Many of them exclude Friday and Saturday nights and alcohol. What I really love about this site is that throughout the year they do mega sales where you can get $50 certs for $10 or $25 certs for $4.
This site as well is a buy and print site so you can look that night and see where you want to go, purchase and use it! There are more restaurants on this site and it works for almost anywhere in the country (a good way to send gifts to family and friends out of state or when traveling). There are definitely more restriction with use and total dollar amount spent then with the Cleveland Independents Gift Certs but these are also a bit cheaper.
These are some great ways to enjoy a quality night out and still get a great value!
1) Cleveland Independents. The Cleveland Independents have so many ways to enjoy local food at a great price. First you need to friend them on facebook so you are the first to hear about some great offers as they are available. In the past I have won gift certificates for places I might not have tried without the nudge forward. Even better is there sale of discount gift certificates. You can purchase $50 certs for $35 or $25 certs for $17.50. To get the most popular restaurants...Light Bistro, Chinato, Great Lakes, Melt and Pier W usually go quickly. Others will be up for awhile. You can only buy one a day, so understanding what goes fast is great for planning. There are some restrictions across the board including that they cannot be used for alcohol, only one per table, and they cannot be used in conjunction with other specials.
I am able to utilize this deal throughout the months. Many times when looking for somewhere to go for dinner I log in and see what certificates are left. You buy and print instantly so it is fast and convenient.
2) Restaurant.com. This is another one of my favorite places to get discount gift certificates for a nice night out. This also has some restrictions, but they are bearable. Typically the $25 gift cards cost $10 and require you to spend a minimum amount or purchase at least 2 entrees. But you need to read the fine print as the amount for the gift certificate and the restrictions are determined by each place. Many of them exclude Friday and Saturday nights and alcohol. What I really love about this site is that throughout the year they do mega sales where you can get $50 certs for $10 or $25 certs for $4.
This site as well is a buy and print site so you can look that night and see where you want to go, purchase and use it! There are more restaurants on this site and it works for almost anywhere in the country (a good way to send gifts to family and friends out of state or when traveling). There are definitely more restriction with use and total dollar amount spent then with the Cleveland Independents Gift Certs but these are also a bit cheaper.
These are some great ways to enjoy a quality night out and still get a great value!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Getting Started
This is my first post. I would like to explain a little bit about myself and my goal with this blog. I love local culture and local dining. Chain restaurants I think are over priced, salty, and the food is just not high quality. One of the things I found throughout my 20's was that so many people did not want to go out to a local restaurant thinking that it was too expensive, but they loved Outback or Chili's where the actual cost per meal was almost the same. As I moved up in my career I had more disposable income for eating out and other things but still did not want to just waste money on a mediocre meal. My hope is to share tips and tricks and my favorite places to go for great food at a great price. I should add a disclaimer I judge my food and cost based on the quality. So I may very well categorize a hole in the wall bar with bar food as excellent while rating a casual family dining restaurant as poor.
I love going out and experiencing the great City of Cleveland but I have had some times when I did not have much money to spend. My hope is to share the tips and tricks of my life with others. I should also add a disclaimer that everyone has priorities for their income. One of my priorities is good food. I do not go to movies or concerts all that much because I prefer to spend my money on food. Therefore, some of my frugal suggestions are aimed at how to find free entertainment in Cleveland as well.
Hopefully this is of interest to others and it can be a fun blog with input from those who read it as well!
I love going out and experiencing the great City of Cleveland but I have had some times when I did not have much money to spend. My hope is to share the tips and tricks of my life with others. I should also add a disclaimer that everyone has priorities for their income. One of my priorities is good food. I do not go to movies or concerts all that much because I prefer to spend my money on food. Therefore, some of my frugal suggestions are aimed at how to find free entertainment in Cleveland as well.
Hopefully this is of interest to others and it can be a fun blog with input from those who read it as well!
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