Best Tequila Bar Happy Hours

by Shilo Urban

December '10

Best Happy Hours for Microbrews

November '10

October '10

"Los Angeles' Wine Bar Happy Hours"

September '10

"Los Angeles' Sexiest Happy Hours"

July '10

"Best Happy Hours in West Hollywood"

June '10

"There's More Than Booze in Bouzy"

"The Secret is Out: Happy Hours at LA's Speakeasies"

April '10

"Classic LA Happy Hours"

tequila

Los Angeles’ Best Tequila Bar Happy Hours

Lovers of tequila and mezcal know that there is much more to the agave-based liquor than a lime and a lick of salt. For those in the know or those who wish to be in the know, an evening stop at one of LA’s many tequila and mezcal bars during happy hour is the perfect time for an enlightening experience on the many different smoky and smooth flavors of this spirit.

Head downtown to go south of the border at El Carmen, a kitschy Mexican joint complete with bullheads, black velvet and pulp art of masked wrestlers. Though shots of tequila can cost anywhere from $7 to $850, at happy hour you will find $4 margaritas in flavors like watermelon, pomegranate and ginger cilantro. Happy hour lasts Monday through Friday from 4PM to 7PM and also features munchies like $2 guacamole, $4 nachos, $5 taco plates and $6 for three enchiladas.

Also downtown you will find Las Perlas, where happy hour runs all night Monday (7PM to 2AM), Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 7PM to 8PM, and Friday from 5PM to 8PM. Chill under the agave plant and goat head décor and play a round of pool or light up the jukebox while you enjoy $2 off cocktails and $1 off beer. Order drinks off their hand-drawn cardboard menus, and don’t forget the bar snacks of pork rinds, Mexican peanuts and bodega chips.

Thirsty for tequila in West Hollywood? Hit up Mexico Restaurante y Barra from 5PM to 7PM, seven days a week for their fun and funky happy hour. This lively and colorful joint serves $4 beers, $5 premium cervezas and $5 to $7 botanas, or appetizers like grilled shrimp quesadillas, roasted corn and a variety of tacos. Can’t make it out that early? Hit up Mexico Restaurante y Barra on Fridays, when happy hour lasts from 8PM to midnight in the upstairs bar. *(This restaurant is now closed.)

For a more intimate setting, get your tequila fix at L Scorpion, located on Hollywood Boulevard and decorated with red velvet, old chandeliers and darkness. The front bar serves a daily happy hour from 6PM to 9PM, which includes $3 beer and $6 well drinks and margaritas. Though there is no food on their happy hour menu, there is a stripper pole in the back – which will either be a highlight or lowlight for you, but either way, it’s very Hollywood!

If you prefer swanky beach lounge to dirty dive bar, check out La Sandia in Santa Monica, a Richard Sandoval restaurant where happy hour runs Sunday through Friday all night in the tequila lounge and bar. Cool off with $3 beers and $5 Latin wines and handcrafted cocktails like margaritas, passion fruit mojitos and homemade sangria. Hungry? La Sandia serves delicious Mexican cuisine too, and for $5 each you can try a selection of appetizers like pork carnitas tacos, shrimp ceviche and grilled chicken quesadillas. After all that wonderful food, you might just need a shot of tequila to wash it down- now where’s that salt and lime?