Felice 83: A Daily $12 Martini Hour on First Avenue
Felice 83 runs its happy hour every day, 3:30 to 6:30pm, at 1593 First Avenue at 83rd Street: $12 wines by the glass, $12 cocktails, $6 Forst lager and Italian bar snacks from $7 to $12. Felice calls it aperitivo. It’s the same $12 list the group pours at Felice 64, Felice Columbus and Felice on Hudson, on a three-hour clock that starts at 3:30.
The verdict: worth it, mostly for the martini. The Felice Martini — Meili vodka or Botanist gin, dry vermouth — is $21 on the regular list and $12 in the window, which is a real discount, not a sticker on the menu. The food does the same math: arancini and the ricotta with spicy honey and figs drop from $19 to $12, and the fried artichokes and calamari go from $25 to $12. The honest caveat: $12 is the floor. This is an Upper East Side wine bar with $25–$34 pastas, and the happy hour is priced like one.
The Happy Hour
Felice 83’s own aperitivo menu lists, every day from 3:30 to 6:30pm:
- Wine, $12 a glass: Prosecco DOC, the house Felice Chardonnay and Felice Sangiovese (both from Fattoria Sardi in Tuscany), Pinot Grigio, Cabernet Sauvignon and Felice Rosé. The regular glass is $17, $19 for the Cabernet.
- Cocktails, $12: Felice Martini, Negroni, Mezcalita, Amalfi Spritz (limoncello, Campari, Prosecco), Espresso Martini and Aperol Sour. At full price they run $17 to $21.
- Beer and zero-proof: Forst lager or Peroni 0.0 for $6 (the Forst is $11 otherwise), and Until Sunset, a zero-proof amaro cocktail, for $10.
- Bites: ricotta, arancini, or fried artichokes and calamari at $12; fries $8; Cerignola olives $7.
- Pairings, $16: martini and fries, or negroni and arancini.
The menu doesn’t say whether the aperitivo is bar-only. At Felice on Hudson it is, so if you’re seated in the dining room, ask before you order off it.
The Room
Felice 83 is a 65-seat restaurant with a 34-seat patio on First Avenue, done in the Felice house style: wine jugs hanging from the ceiling, low light, shelves of bottles and tufted leather seats. The list runs past 20 wines by the glass, mostly Italian, and the kitchen is Tuscan — pastas are $25 to $34 and mains $27 to $56 at dinner, which is why the 3:30 window matters. Felice is one of three brands from SA Hospitality Group, the people behind Sant Ambroeus and Casa Lever.
Next door at 1591 First Avenue, Bar Felice is the group’s separate cocktail bar: banquettes, high tables, Italian-leather stools and TVs for European and American sports, open from 6pm on weekdays and 1pm on weekends. The closest train is the Q at 86 St on Second Avenue.
Other Felice branches on Happy Hour NYC: Felice 64, nineteen blocks down First Avenue · Felice Columbus · Felice on Hudson · Felice 15 Gold · Felice Montague. For the rest of the neighborhood, see our Upper East Side happy hour guide, and for the drink itself, the best martinis in NYC.
Who Felice 83 Is For
| Occasion | Why It Works |
|---|---|
| A martini that doesn’t cost $21 | The Felice Martini is $12, daily 3:30–6:30pm |
| Wine after work on the Upper East Side | Six $12 glasses, including the house Tuscan Sangiovese and Chardonnay |
| Snacks instead of dinner | $16 martini-and-fries or negroni-and-arancini pairings |
| A late lunch that rolls into drinks | Weekday lunch runs until 4pm; aperitivo starts at 3:30 |
| Drinks outside on First Avenue | A 34-seat patio, per Felice |