Ever wonder why there are no Happy Hours in Boston? The reason is that--due to our residual puritanical nature--it is illegal for a restaurant or bar to change the prices of its drinks during the week. While this is bad news for the budding tippler, it's great news for the noble foodie. Since restaurants can't hold Happy Hours, they use food deals to bring people in during the off-hours.
As a result, Boston is full of astoundingly good Bar Menu Deals that let you sample top quality food at extraordinarily cheap prices. The Food Monkey has compiled a list of Boston's Best Bar Menu Deals to make it easy for you to find and enjoy these hidden treasures.
denotes a restaurant with a bar menu I find to be exceptional overall.
denotes a specific menu item I particularly like.
All of these menus are subject to change on a whim and I’ll do my best to keep these up to date. You should call ahead to confirm before you make the trek.
If you have any new Bar Menu Deals that you’d like to share or spot anything that needs to be changed, send me an email.
Fate is a fickle temptress. The very day my Ph.D. diploma was placed in my hands, I received an invitation to audition to host a show for The Food Network, which will feature cheap, hidden, gourmet food around the country. The casting agents had found my bar menu deal map as well as my Chronicle piece, and requested an audition video talking about myself, inexpensive deals around Boston, and the ways they were found.
I chose to focus my audition piece on Estragon, in Boston’s South End, which serves dollar tapas at the bar from Monday through Thursday from 5:30-7pm.
Items on the dollar tapas menu may include:
Pan Tumaca con Jamón – Serrano Ham on Tomato-Garlic Toast
Queso de Cabra con Tomate – Warm Spanish Goats’ Cheese & Tomato on Toast
Boquerones con Manchego y Tomate – White Anchovies, Manchego Cheese & Tomato on Toast
Patatas Bravas – Feisty Fried Potatoes
Lengua con Mojo Verde – Beef Tongue, Canary Island Salsa on Toast
Pringá - Braised Beef Shank, Pork Belly & Bone Marrow on Toast – Garbanzos Fritos
Crispy Paprika Chickpeas – Aceitunas Marinadas
House-marinated Olives – Alcachofas Fritas
Crispy Fried Artichoke Hearts, Alioli
Estragon is among my favorite places for tapas in the city, mixing exceptional food with reasonable pricing (especially with the dollar menu). Despite its chic decor, with walls adorned with pictures of Salvador Dali and half-naked women, Estragon serves traditional tapas from Chef Julio de Haro’s childhood in Madrid. Incidentally, Chef de Haro claims that Estragon is the only tapas place in the greater Boston area in which the chef is actually a Spaniard. This is a leg up on the McDonald’s dollar menu, as I’ve yet have a true Irishman make my McDouble.
If you do stop by for dollar tapas, make sure to order the artichoke hearts and pringá (a buttery marvel). You will not regret it.
The Food Monkey’s Take:
Myers + Chang has a dynamic, hip, atmosphere, which contrasts greatly with its more austere counterparts in the dollar oyster game. This is clearly evidenced by the pairing of the oysters with dollar PBRs. Moreover, you have the option of enjoying your oysters bathed in the exotic sauces du jour, which can add a little excitement for those weary of the bivalve in its naked form. Personally, I’m an oyster purist, unless they are fried inside some sort of po-boy
Another benefit of eating oysters on the cheap at Myers + Chang is that you’re not relegated to the bar area. This makes it a great place for a date or hanging out. There is a dozen oyster limit per person, which may hinder you in your aspirations of reenacting The Walrus and the Carpenter, but will give you an excuse to supplement your meal with their delicious tea-smoked pork spare ribs.
The Food Monkey’s Take:
I’ve yet to try this for myself but I have heard great things. What’s particularly interesting about Legal’s oyster deal is that they offer different types of oysters at different times.
They say you can
Choose from Legal Sea Foods’ featured varieties such as: Kumamoto, fresh cucumber taste with a creamy finish; P.E.I., assertive, briny and earthy tones with a clean ocean finish; West Coast, sweet citrus briny start with an earthy, fruity finish; and, East Coast, clean North Atlantic flavor.
The Food Monkey’s Take:
Masa’s Southwestern inspired food and a great Tequila selection bring me there as much as possible when I’m hanging out in the South End. Masa has a menu of 10 beautiful few-bite sized Tapas that rotates every three months. If you go there between 5 and 7pm any day of the week, you can get them at 5 bucks for a combo of ten Tapa at the bar, and they are just a dollar each all other times. My favorites are the chorizo, the queso fundito jalapeno empanada, and the tuna ceviche.
Their bar menu (subject to change) is as follows:
GRILLED CHORIZO, with Cranberry Chutney Salsa
ORANGE TAMARIND ONION RELISH, with Sweet Potato Chip
SHREDDED CHICKEN TAQUITO, with Chile Ancho Aioli
STUFFED CHERRY PEPPER, with Gorgonzola, Chorizo, Seafood
ANCHO POPCORN SHRIMP, with Sweet and Sour Chili Sauce
QUESO FUNDIDO JALAPENO EMPANADA
TUNA CEVICHE, with Charred Corn and Avocado salsa
TEQUILA CURED SALMON, with Chipotle Cream Cheese
PULLED PORK & MONTEREY JACK SPRING ROLL, with Masa BBQ Sauce
SMOKED MUSSEL ON THE HALF SHELL, with Citrus Onion Salsa
Another one of my staple bar menus. Morton’s has a great all day bar menu with many selections, which reverts to 5 dollars per item during the Power Hour-Monday through Friday from 5PM to closing. The reason to go to Morton’s for the bar menu is the sliders. These beautiful mini-burgers, which are made out of prime beef–the top 3% of beef produced–literally melt in your mouth. Ordering them any way other than medium rare is a travesty. They also have amazing mini crab cakes and chicken goujonettes (fancy breaded chicken fingers). I love to go here and watch the Sox when the times line up properly.
Their Bar Menu includes:
MINIATURE PRIME CHEESEBURGER TRIO: More than half a pound of USDA prime-aged beef with cheddar cheese, tomato slices, lettuce and onion
FOUR PETITE FILET MIGNON SANDWICHES: Served with mustard mayonnaise sauce
CHICKEN GOUJONETTES: Crispy chicken strips served with mustard mayonnaise sauce
JUMBO LUMP CRAB, SPINACH & ARTICHOKE DIP: Served with toasted French bread croutons
After I became an old pro at visiting their Faneuil Hall location, I decided to check out the McCormick and Schmick’s on Columbus Ave. In terms of sheer food volume their $2.95 cheeseburger is the best bang for your buck in the city. I also like the buffalo wings and spinach dip. The Columbus Ave. location has their bar menu available Sunday-Thursday 3:30-6:30PM and 9PM-Midnight, and when things are busier on Friday and Saturday it is 10PM-Midnight to fill in the late night hours. The bar on Columbus has a more of a dark, old-timey feel to it and has a very different vibe than the open to the outdoors bar in Faneuil Hall.
Remember, there is a $2.50 minimum beverage requirement, so get a coke and you’re fine, get one of their mixed drinks and you’re even better.
Pringá - Braised Beef Shank, Pork Belly & Bone Marrow on Toast – Garbanzos Fritos
