If you only go to five happy hours this week... photo
(Barcode by Rebecca D'Angelo/The Post)

If you only go to five happy hours this week...

Fritz Hahn  |  Updated 04/25/2012

Where are you going for happy hour tonight? Do yourself a favor and skip same-old $3 Miller Lites and over-fried wings. The difference between a happy hour and a good happy hour is measurable. So starting this week, we'll give you the lowdown on a fun place to go after work to find discount drinks, low-priced (but good) food and a festive atmosphere.

But that's not all: We want to hear about your favorite happy-hour destinations. Send an e-mail to nightlife@washingtonpost.com telling us where you go and why, and you may be featured in this space. You can also submit your favorite happy hour photos to our online gallery.

To begin, we've planned a work week's worth of happy hours for you to explore.

 
 
 
 
 

Happy Hour at Lyon Hall

Arlington, VA  | Daily

There's a lot of good beer to be had in Clarendon these days, but if you're trying to save money, nowhere comes close to Lyon Hall's happy hour. Every day from 4 to 7 p.m., all of the Alsatian-inspired bistro's "Session" draft beers are $3.50, and this list includes New Holland's crisp Full Circle kolsch, the hoppy Yards IPA and refreshing Weihenstephaner wheat beer. If you prefer a glass of wine, everything on the French and Austrian list is half-price, so you can score a lush Michel Sarrazin Bourgogne Rouge or the minerally Trimbach Riesling. Throw in one of the $5 gourmet frankfurters (with such toppings as sauerkraut and mustard to Gruyere cheese, ham and pickled cabbage) or a $10 pot of mussels.

 
 
 
 
 

Happy Hour at Barcode

Washington, DC  | Monday-Friday

Barcode's sleek design, high tables and glowing LED lights say Euro-lounge, but the sports and CNN streaming on TVs behind the marble bar say "D.C. after-work spot." The daily happy hour attracts downtown workers for half-price beers, wines and rail drinks at the bar from 4 to 7 p.m., spilling over to tables on the wide sidewalk patio area. On Tuesdays, DJs from the popular Glow dance party at Fur spin techno and house, and all bottles of wine are half-price all night.

 
 
 
 
 

Happy Hour at Hamilton's

Washington, DC  | Monday-Friday

It's Friday. How do you kick off the weekend right -- and cheap? $1 Pabst Blue Ribbon cans all night at Hamilton's. Yes, PBR gets rapped as a trendy hipster beer, but if you pop into the upstairs bar on Friday night, you're going to have a hard time finding anyone wearing skinny jeans in the sea of kickball players, government staffers, hashers and regular folks enjoying cheap cans of beer.

 

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