Scene from a Perfect Happy Hour
I know it seems dark and lonely, but this shot taken last week at Libertine in Adams Morgan is what the perfect start to a happy hour looks like for me. I love getting there when it starts, if possible, and establishing that I’m a pretty low-maintenance customer before they get slammed.
It also never hurts to get your drinks and fun in before you’re surrounded by the typical DC happy hour crowd. However if it’s a timed special… all bets are off, as I’m pretty sure I once embarrassingly proved during a “Beat the Clock” happy hour once upon a time.1 However, I did at least tip well… I think. 🙄
DC venues with early happy hour specials turned out to be one of the oddest benefits of my switching to an earlier work schedule many moons ago. It never hurts to know which bars start serving specials up at 3 or 3:30p, and it’s even better when you can slide right out of the office and hop onto a friendly bar stool to take advantage.
And no worries, while the bar did remain relatively uncrowded throughout the rest of happy hour2, a friend joined me for some drinks and laughs. And then I was appropriately dismayed when she and the bartender discussed the football game that was playing on TV. But, y’know, that’s also pretty much the norm. 
1 Me, birthdays, and happy hours are sometimes a really bad mix… or the best mix!
2 Adams Morgan is a special kind of animal. Completely packed on the weekends, which is how a lot of people think of it. But on weeknights, there’s much less of a crowd and you can actually visit the bars and restaurants and get good service.
[Featured image by me, urbanbohemian/flickr.]
