We’ve got your weekend: May we present, the happy hour

It’s cocktail time this week for the weekend. (Photo by: Sam Hanna)

Wednesday, August 7/Claret Wine & Cocktail Bar (1320 Magazine Street): In honor of the upcoming Red Dress Run, Claret is partnering up with Dress for Success on August 7 for a pop-up Red Dress Sale. Proceeds from the dresses and a portion of the bar tab will benefit Dress for Success, a non-profit, volunteer-driven organization that provides women with professional attire to secure employment and offers programs to help their economic development. Every dress will cost $10 and will directly benefit Dress for Success New Orleans, as well as 10% of the bar tab for that evening. The racks will offer a wide range of sizes and styles of donated red dresses for every reveler. The event is from 5:30-7:30 PM, and you can find out more information on the event page. 

Monday-Thursday/Avo (5908 Magazine Street): If you are on the Magazine side of the summer, you can head over to Avo, which runs its Happy Hour Monday through Thursday from 4:00 PM until 6:00 PM. Their HH includes a selection of snacks and pastas, along with a summer spritz menu, specialty cocktails and wines by the glass. For instance, they’ve got a $6 Lavender French 75; Honey Goat Cheese Balls for $7; and Amartriciana for $9 just to name a few of the items on their menu. For a full look at the HH happening over at Avo, you can check out their webpage here.

Monday-Thursday/Pontchartrain Hotel (2031 St. Charles Avenue): Nestled on the ground floor of New Orleans’  Pontchartrain Hotel, the Bayou Bar is a place for whiskey collection, creative craft cocktails and inventive bites — not to mention history and memories, including serving as a drinking den for both Sinatra and Capote and being the locale where the New Orleans Saints football franchise was christened in 1966. Well, add an fantastic happy hour to that list! The storied 40-seat bar also offers an HH every Monday through Thursday from 3:00PM – 6:00PM. Creative snacks from Chef/Owner Brian Landry and Executive Chef David Whitmore, all priced at only $5, include sticky rib tips with jalapeño pepper jelly; duck wings – smoked, fried and served with white BBQ sauce; crawfish eggroll with pit house sauce; and wild mushroom grilled cheese with manchego and truffle. Cocktail specials, also priced at $5, include classics such as the Old Fashioned;  Sazerac; Brooklyn;   Manhattan; Whiskey Sour; Penicillin; and a specialty Cocktail of the Day. Go make some history and have a grand time doing it! 

Tuesday-Saturday/Toup’s Meatery (845 North Carrolton Avenue): Mid-City’s Toups Meatery, has launched their  Happy Hour, which means you can belly up to the bar every Tuesday through Saturday, from 3:00PM – 6:– PM for a variety of specials on libations and bites. The menu features $7 Rosè Spritz and Pekoe Tea Rum Punch; $4 off all whiskeys; $5 draft beers; and $6 select wines-by-the-glass. Additionally, guests can enjoy Deep Cuts – a rotating selection of full bottles from the wine list, marked down substantially so guests can explore and enjoy new wines. Examples include Domaine Pinson Chardonnay(regularly priced at $58 but available during Happy Hour for $35) and Des Amies Grenache/Pinot Noir Rose (regularly priced at $32 but available during Happy Hour for $20). Remember, this happy is going on every Tuesday through Saturday. 

Thursday, August 8/Orpheum Theater (129 Roosevelt Way): Okay, this isn’t technically a Happy Hour in regard to cheap drinks and snacks, but it is a free movie that might just keep you happy for an hour (or more)! They are screening Down by Law on Thursday for the Free Summer Film Series at the Orpheum. If you haven’t seen this black-and-white film that you will recognize the streets of (because it was shot in New Orleans), you will definitely want to check it out. The film begins at 7:00 PM with the doors opening at 6:30 PM. Oh, and there’s popcorn and drinks available, so who says this isn’t a Happy Hour?