LDNGuide
The Best Happy Hours In London
photo credit: Anton Rodriguez
Happy hours in London mostly involve infiltrating a hen party to get anywhere near the bar and drinking cocktails that make your teeth tingle. But there are some places in the city where you can eat, drink, and be smug that your well-made margarita only cost a fiver. Onwards, for top bars doing discounted drinks that are better than a pornstar martini at Be At One.
THE SPOTS
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
£8 cocktails, £5 glasses of wine and beers from 5pm until 6:30pm, Tuesday to Saturday
Bottle + Rye is a teeny, tiny wine bar where knees touch, hands are held beneath tables, and aptly named Feeling Grapeful cocktails are drunk. On the edge of Brixton Village, this dimly lit space is the ideal setting for a romantic, rather than messy, happy hour. Even the name has been rebranded. During Smiler Hour, expect interesting-sounding cocktails like orange blossom martinis for £8, glasses of house red and white for £5, and Brixton Brewery lager for £5.
photo credit: Two One Four
£6 double G&Ts and £7 aperitivo cocktails from 5pm to 6pm every evening (not available in December)
Two One Four is an old-school cocktail bar in the basement of pasta restaurant, Flour & Grape. This place is big on deals, with happy hour double G&Ts and aperitivo cocktails every evening. This Bermondsey spot has a slightly vintage, fashionable lumberjack feel, and is worth a visit whether you’re waiting for a table upstairs or after somewhere for a low-key date.
50% off between 4pm and 6pm every day
A moody little bar in Kentish Town, Tabac is the kind of place that screams third date potential. As well as exposed brick, a faux fireplace, and artisan cheese platters, Tabac also has an excellent daily happy hour. Running out of work at 4pm for a half-price glass of merlot might not be your style, but the weekend is when that 50% really comes in handy. The cocktails are seriously good and paying five quid for their excellent negroni on a Saturday afternoon makes total sense to us. It’s one of the best in London.
photo credit: The Exhibit
2-4-1 on selected cocktails from 4pm to 8pm every day
If you’re into happy hours that come with a side of tranquil fish watching, then The Exhibit should be on your radar. This huge three-storey spot in Balham not only has an aquarium that will ignite all those childhood memories of begging for an angelfish at Pets At Home, they also have a four-hour happy hour every single day. Grab a velvet bar stool and get involved in tarted-up G&Ts, chilli negronis, and our personal favourite, the nutty mai tai.
£3.90 selected pints and two cocktails for £15, from 4pm to 7pm, Monday to Friday
A Friday night happy hour is truly a rare find in London, which explains why we all keep trying to make ‘Thursday the new Friday’ and attempt to pass off our Friday morning hangovers as hayfever. But a Friday night happy hour is exactly what you’ll find at this Stoke Newington boozer. At The Three Crowns, a loud and proud pub, there’s no creative ‘mixology’ funny business going on, just classic cocktails priced at two for £15 throughout the week.
photo credit: Swift
£7 aperitivos before 6pm, Monday to Friday
One of Soho’s and London's best cocktail bars, Swift is one-part moody, two-parts glam, and 100% perfect for an excellent cocktail on a Friday night. Thanks to their aperitivo deal, the shiny art deco-style bar should always be on your radar for a pre-dinner drink in the area. Get involved in their blood orange vermouth and passion fruit Solstice number or the mandarin bellini which includes Aperol, prosecco, sherry, and bitter mandarin. For seven quid, you can’t go wrong.
photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli
2 for £15 cocktails until 7pm Tuesday to Sunday, and £3 beer, £5 wine, and £5 doubles all night on Monday
If we were to actually sit down and work out how much money we’ve spent on negronis at Goldfinch, we would probably issue ourselves with a restraining order against our own debit card. Luckily for us, we have zero interest in fiscal responsibility, and Goldfinch’s happy hour means that we can at least save on their excellent bevs if we get there early. Their early bird deal includes classic cocktails like margaritas, pisco sours, and espresso martinis.
photo credit: Anton Rodriguez
2-4-1 on the same cocktail from 6pm to 7pm, Tuesday to Saturday
Sweeties is not a casual bar. This is somewhere to drink in the glittering London skyline, go big during happy hour, and celebrate a special occasion with tasty, creative cocktails. To get here, you take a glass lift up to the 10th floor of The Standard, London hotel. As you rise, King’s Cross’ grey streets, trains, and pigeons melt away. And a fabulous world of super-sized disco balls, sequin jumpsuits, and crushed velvet sofas emerges. Mundane things don't matter here—what is laundry?—instead the priority at this lounge is making the most of the one hour 2-4-1 offer with a No Limits cocktail.
