This past Friday was a bit of a ping-pong day for us with some bouncing back and forth to and from Portland. We took advantage of the situation and on our last trip into the city decided to grab a lite bite at one of the many happy hour destinations.

Happy Hour is like hitting the early bird special but getting to enjoy a beer with your meal. How awesome is that? And, all at a nice little discount.

Our first stop was Crooners & Cocktails. This is a beautifully executed theme restaurant with a throw back feel to the days of Frank Sinatra and The Rat Pack. The black and white decor lends a cocktail party flair to the atmosphere. I think I would have been comfortable in that era. I have spent many weekends watching movies set during the time period so, naturally, I enjoy the look and feel of this destination.

While we didn’t realize it during our visit, Crooners & Cocktails was celebrating their first year anniversary. We missed the celebration which happened on Saturday night. Happy anniversary!

We arrived on the earlier side so things were quiet. The happy hour menu had four small plate specials and we selected the spicy homemade meatballs tossed with Honey Sriracha as well as the dried dates stuffed with Gorgonzola cheese wrapped in bacon. They were a great deal at $4.00 each during happy hour. While both were tasty, my husband especially enjoyed the dates.

Crooners & Cocktails

Crooners & Cocktails

Crooners & Cocktails

Crooners & Cocktails

Crooners & Cocktails

Crooners & Cocktails

Crooners & Cocktails

After we finished our food, we decided to try another location for our final stop of the evening. We have tried many, many other times to stop into the bar at Sonny’s for a drink, but without fail have been unable to find seats and always end up moving onto another destination. The only time we have actually had a drink here was during one of our previous Portland Beer Week Scavenger Hunts and we were on the run for that visit and didn’t need seats.

We were feeling confident on this particular night out so decided to give it one more shot, although not without having a backup plan in place. We’d been turned away too many times before not to have a contingency.

Luck was on our side. At least a combination of luck and a nice gentleman at the bar who moved down one seat for us opening up two others together. The bar area at Sonny’s is light and open with lots of gathering spots which makes our inability to find seats on previous visits all the more confusing. Fingers crossed that we’ve broken that streak. Once we ordered our beers, we sat back and took in the view. Sonny’s has a casual, yet lively atmosphere.

We stayed for only one drink but enjoyed conversation with some of the other bar patrons. That’s one of the benefits of going out; meeting new people!

Sonny’s

Sonny’s

Sonny’s

It was a fun, relaxed night. Since we’d started so early, we actually got home by 8:00 pm when I’m sure a whole other crowd was gearing up and heading into Portland. Sometimes I’m part of that crowd too but for this Friday night early and low key worked perfectly.

Crooners & Cocktails