Red Hook
Happy Hour

Five weekdays, two hours, and the two cheapest things in Red Hook: a $1 oyster and a $5 Gansett (a pint is $7 off the clock, a Wellfleet $3.50). Rosé and chardonnay are $5 a glass too. The Verdict: the best happy hour in the neighborhood, on frequency and on price. The Local Move: a dozen oysters and two Gansetts for $22, then decide whether the $41 lobster roll is happening. The Honest Caveat: dine-in only, chef’s-choice oysters, and nothing on weekday holidays.

The biggest spread in Red Hook: $1 oysters and $1 wings side by side, $10 peel-and-eat shrimp, $6 beers against $8–$9 pints, and $3 off the $16–$19 cocktails. It also runs the only weekend happy hour in the neighborhood, Sunday at the bar until 5pm. The Verdict: the best food deal here, held back to second by its two-and-a-half-day schedule. The Local Move: Sunday at the bar, oysters and wings, before the 5pm cutoff. The Honest Caveat: fall and winter hours are Wednesday to Sunday only, there’s a 2.55% card fee, and no happy hour on holidays.

Everything on tap is brewed in the building, and from 4 to 6pm Wednesday to Friday any of it is $6, against $9–$10 a pint the rest of the night. That is the deepest beer discount in Red Hook. Every night it’s open also has a food-and-beer combo, from a $19 burger and draft on Thursday to a $35 pretzel and pitcher on Saturday. The Verdict: the beer deal to beat. The Local Move: Wednesday at 4, a $6 pint, then the $20 wings-and-draft special. The Honest Caveat: a two-hour window, and the bar is closed Monday and Tuesday.

A dockworkers’ bar since the 1890s, crammed with a century of stuff, on a cobblestone block by the harbor. Live music runs 8–10pm every night but Monday, and the Saturday bluegrass jam is the reason people make the trip. The Verdict: the best room in Red Hook, deal or no deal, and $5 Narragansett cans make the point moot. The Honest Caveat: no kitchen, so eat first.

Nine $8 drafts, most of them brewed within a few miles (Strong Rope, Keg & Lantern, Threes, Sixpoint), $5 High Life, and $14 cocktails including a nitro espresso martini on draft. The $19 smashburger is the order. The Verdict: the most dependable all-rounder on Van Brunt. The Honest Caveat: on weekdays the kitchen doesn’t start until 5:30pm.

Beer brewed with 100% New York hops, malt and ingredients, poured on a patio that faces the harbor and the Statue of Liberty. Dogs and kids are welcome and you can bring your own food. The Verdict: the sunset drink in Red Hook. The Honest Caveat: no kitchen and no posted deal, so rely on the rotating food pop-up or bring dinner.

The cheapest way to eat and drink on Van Brunt without a deal: $6 tacos, a $13 Tommy’s margarita, a $10 michelada, and a kitchen open until 10pm (10:30pm on weekends). It stays open until 2am Friday and Saturday. The Verdict: the late-night pick. The Honest Caveat: its own menu lists no happy hour, so you pay regular prices at every hour.

Oak-smoked brisket by the half pound at the counter, and two bars pouring craft beer, American whiskey and seasonal cocktails while you wait in line. Live music on weekend nights. The Verdict: the bar is the waiting room, and a good one. The Honest Caveat: closed Mondays, and the meat sells out.

The bar inside the Widow Jane distillery, which claims the best Old Fashioned in the city, stirred with its own bitters. A $27 tour ends with a flight of the 10 Year bourbon and two ryes, and the bar is the natural next stop. The Verdict: a weekend afternoon plan. The Honest Caveat: open Friday evening and weekend afternoons only.

Cocktails are $17–$21 and they don’t move, so nobody comes here for a deal. People come for the dry-aged burger, and a bar seat is the easiest way to get one. The team’s newer room, Tavern Next Door, opens daily at 5pm. The Verdict: the splurge on the strip. The Honest Caveat: dinner only Monday to Wednesday, from 5pm.

The Red Hook Winery and its new cidery share Strong Rope’s building, pouring wine and cider made from New York State grapes and apples. The cidery is open every day from noon (11am on weekends). The Verdict: the wine-and-cider alternative next door to the brewery. The Honest Caveat: its website is still a holding page, so there’s no menu or price to check.