The Top 5 Places for Your Next Friday Happy Hour in Houston

Buffalo Bayou Brewery has been around for over seven years. They claim to be Houston’s most created brewery. 

The brewery experts at Buffalo Bayou Brewery are constantly making great craft beers and experimenting with new beers for their loyal customers. At least, that’s what we’ve been told. 

On Fridays, the brewery opens up to all in the Houston area for happy hour from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM to allow people to try their latest and newest beers. 

During Buffalo Bayou Brewery’s happy hour, anyone can enjoy a refreshing cold beer while savoring the appetizers served up hot and fresh. 

Yes, anyone, even grandparents, can come here for a beer or two. By the way, if you are not into drinking alcohol, they have non-alcoholic seltzers for you to enjoy.

With both indoor and outdoor seating, Buffalo Bayou Brewery has up to three floors to explore. 

On the first floor is the brewing center with approximately 8 beers. The second floor is a restaurant with over 40 beer options.  

The 3rd floor has a skyline view of the city of Houston with, of course, different beer choices. We recommend sitting on the top floor to get a decent view of the city of Houston. 

However, note that the top floor’s seating may be uncomfortable. If you prefer comfortable seating over a view, then the second floor is good for you. 

All floors have different appetizers except the first. While their beers are unique, their food choices are less than impressive. 

Still, it is family and pet friendly, making the happy hour at Buffalo Bayou Brewery different from most places. But pets are allowed only on the first floor, where Buffalo Bayou Brewery has an outdoor area.

Axelrad Beer Garden provides customers with a fantastic time during their happy hour, allowing them to enjoy the relaxing atmosphere. Everyone we talked to raved about the aesthetic and the chic cleverness of the design at Axelrad Beer Garden. 

With hammocks, rooftop seating, benches, chairs, and tables, there is enough seating to prevent overcrowding. We ourselves wouldn’t relax on the hammocks because they looked unsanitary. 

Still, there is a place for anyone hoping to enjoy a drink in this chic beer garden.  

Additionally, Axelrad Beer Garden provides a DJ for their customers to enjoy. 

During our visit to Axelrad Beer Garden, we thought the DJ lacked timing on mixing tracks. The music was also too loud for our taste.

On the other hand, Axelrad Beer Garden is attached to a pizzeria, which serves up fresh hot pizza daily. There are also various other food trucks surrounding the outside seating area. 

What stood out the most to us on our visit to Axelrad Beer Garden is that they have a variety of craft cocktails and craft beers available on tap during their happy hour. 

The bartender was friendly and allowed us to sample different beers before making a choice. Even giving us a few different recommendations. 

Moreover, live music events vary weekly during their happy hour from 12 PM to 7 PM.

Upstairs gives people an upscale happy hour experience from 3 PM to 6 PM. Many people we spoke with commented on the bartender’s fast service and their beautiful outdoor balcony seating. 

Our experience at Upstairs was less than upscale, as the company claims. But their happy hour prices were upscale, which we didn’t particularly like. 

Their happy hour specials were up to nine dollars. (Yes, even the appetizers.) 

Furthermore, the food we ordered came out cold. Yet, the servers at Upstairs were thoughtful and brought us a hot new plate of food—the food was good but not life-changing. 

On the other hand, we noted servers were constantly checking up on the people at the tables around us. We liked their customer-focused service. 

Even though we sat at the bar during happy hour, the service was quick, and the bartender was efficient. We liked how they provided a fine selection of wine and cocktails for their customers to choose from. 

The bartender at Upstairs who served our drinks was kind enough to tailor our drinks according to personal requests. By the way, the drinks were delicious. 

For nonalcoholic happy hour goers, the bartenders at Upstairs provided fresh juices with fresh, tasty garnishes. We liked how Upstairs caters to the needs of all their customers during happy hour, not leaving anyone feeling left out of the upscale experience. 

Loch Bar is a classic seafood tavern that gives Houston citizens a glimpse into New England during their happy hours from 3 PM to 6 PM. At least that’s what we were told. 

Although the happy hour menu was limited, the prices were very reasonable for seafood appetizers. For example, we could order oysters for just two dollars as an appetizer. 

Of course, they did provide a curated list of cocktails, wines, and draft beers. (Do note that these are all under nine dollars during happy hour.) 

Loch Bar has both outdoor and indoor seating, yet for happy hour we recommend sitting at or near one of their two bars for the best experience. 

The live bluesy music playing throughout the tavern created a relaxing atmosphere for us and added to the ambiance of the New England-style tavern. However, the music was loud, so it was difficult to communicate with the waiter. 

While the oysters we ate were flavorful, they were limited in portion size, which makes sense because of how cheap they were. The Cajun-style cauliflower and hush puppies we also ate were delicious.

One thing we did note, though, about Loch Bar is that there was only one bathroom that was not clean. So, we docked off points for hygiene in our books. 

Trash Panda Drinking Club is known for spicing up local customers’ happy hour (4 PM – 7 PM) with their hand-crafted cocktails. Most we spoke to raved about their expertly blended alcoholic cocktails served for just seven dollars. 

Of course, they also have nonalcoholic beers and mocktails for nonalcoholic drinkers.  

With a cozy outdoor patio, fire pits, and dog-friendly, it makes sense why many complimented Trash Panda Drinking Club when relating their experiences to us. 

After our experience at Trash Panda Drinking Club, we can prove these claims are valid. 

One thing that caught our eye when arriving at Trash Panda Drinking Club was the large raccoon mural on their building. By the way, complimentary valet parking was also available. 

Inside Trash Panda Drinking Club, the atmosphere was laid back. Waiters and waitresses all around smiled as they passed by the customers’ tables, checking in on their needs. 

Furthermore, their happy hour menu featured simple appetizers such as tacos, chips, and guacamole for under ten dollars. 

While we were not fond of their appetizers because they lacked taste, we enjoyed their vast collection of drinks offered during happy hour. 

Moreover, all their house classics, draft beers, high balls, and wine are served to customers at Trash Panda Drinking Club for discounted rates. The hand-crafted cocktails we tried were refreshing and balanced out the taste left behind from the unappetizing appetizers.