The Night Light Lounge
Starting at the base of the hill that runs up Clinton is the Night Light Lounge. The Night Light strikes a great balance between neighborhood bar and classy lounge, and it’s a great place to start a happy hour crawl. Happy hour begins at 2 PM on weekdays and 3 PM on weekends, and goes until 7 PM daily. There is also a late night happy hour from 11 PM–1 AM.  

Well drinks and draft beers are 50 cents off, and glasses of wine are a $1 off, making it a perfect place to lounge on the patio with a cold beer or glass of rosé. If it’s cold or gray outside, the inside is sizeable with long, black leather couches and booths along the walls and numerous tables and seats throughout. Night Light also offers happy hour food specials, including sliders, salads and spicy mac n cheese, but a heaping plate of nachos for only $5 tops the list. (2100 SE Clinton St.; 503-731-6500) 

Savoy
Right next door to the popular Café Broder, and sharing owners, is Savoy, a midwestern themed fine-dining restaurant and bar. Some patrons might only know the restaurant as a space to drink coffee while waiting for their seat at Broder, but it’s an excellent bar in its own right. Craft cocktails are reasonably priced throughout the day, with prices ranging from $5 to $9, and at happy hour, Savoy offers well drinks at $3 and glasses of wine for $4. What’s more, during happy hour from Friday through Sunday, Savoy offers Bourbon and Bitters: $4 for Manhattans, Old-Fashioned and Sazeracs, one of the best deals in town for these classic drinks.

For food during happy hour, patrons can try the usual fare of fries and salads, but also midwestern themed options such as deviled eggs or fried cheese curds. (2500 SE Clinton St.; 503-808-9999)

Dot’s Cafe
Dot’s is not dissimilar to Night Light, in that it’s somewhere between a swanky lounge and a neighborhood bar, though Dot’s is a little more casual. Glossy red leather booths and velvet paintings set the ambiance at Dot’s, and while it lacks a patio, there are a number of tables set up on the sidewalk, where customers can be found enjoying a beer at any hour of the day. Dot’s is the original hip Clinton locale and has remained unchanged over many years of service.

Happy hour is 4–6 PM daily, with $3.50 wells and select pints for only $3. Standard happy hour pub grub is offered, such as $3 tots and $5 grilled cheese, and for only 75 cents you can order up a bowl of Goldfish Crackers. (2524 SE Clinton St.; 503-764-9898)

Photos by Alex Frane