Rock Bottom Brewery

Yeah, it's a chain, but you know what? Rock Bottom Brewery is a freakin' awesome place to be during happy hour.

First off, if you aren't a member of their Mug Club yet, join immediately. It's free, but you do have to sign up in person. With this magical card, you get to drink out of a gigantic mug nearly twice the size of a regular pint for no extra charge. And in happy hour terms, that means a HUGE BEER for only $3.

For this blog I visited for Scottsdale location, off Shea Blvd. and the 101. All Rock Bottom locations typically features about 6-8 beers brewed on-site, with a smattering of seasonal brews making cameos throughout the year. To futher challenge the chain stigma, Rock Bottom is also known for consistently winning beer awards, such as The Great American Brew Festival's "2008 Large Brewpub of the Year." The bartenders are always happy to provide a sample taste if a beer if unfamiliar to you, and a tasting menu is also available. Might I suggest the Raptor Red?

Happy hour takes place either in the bar or on the ample patio, and while the view (a parking lot) is nothing spectacular, there are plenty of mounted TV's to vie for your attention.

And the food. Ohhhh, the food. This is the largest happy hour food menu I've encountered in a long time, and can easily pass for a hearty dinner. There is the Angus Brewburger, a full-sized burger with the option of adding on cheese or bacon. Wings and nachos also make an appearance, but the real deal is the sliders: three prime rib or spicy chicken sandwiches that would make a regular sammie drop its head in shame. The spicy spinach cheese dip is the first appetizer with a vegetable in its name to find its way onto my boyfriend's plate, and the ballpark pretzels are carb heaven. To round it all out, a bucket of crispy fries can be ordered for just a dollar.

In addition to happy hour, there is also Thursday Pint Night. For $4.95 you can purchase a pint in a Rock Bottom logo glass and refill it all night for $2.25--and then keep the glass. As for me, I'll already be drinking out of my massive Mug Club glass...

The Important Stuff:

Happy Hour: 4pm-7pm Monday--Friday, 10pm-close Sunday--Thursday AND 11pm--close Friday and Saturday.

What's included: $3 pints, cocktails, house wines, and specialty martinis. Extensive food menu priced at $3 and less.

Location: 4 Arizona locations, including Arrowhead, Ahwatukee, Desert Ridge and Scottsdale. The Scottsdale location (visited for this blog) is at 8668 E. Shea Blvd.

Contact: 480-998-7777 or visit http://www.rockbottom.com/.

Temple Bar--North Scottsdale

First up for Happy Hour-izona is Temple Bar Sports Grill, located in the Wingate Crossing Shopping Center in North Scottsdale, right off the 101. This bar is easy to miss, tucked behind a Bank of America and CVS pharmacy, but if you know it's there, you'll be rewarded.

Temple Bar is an advocate of the double happy hour, offering its specials during the regular weekday hours of 3 and 7 and Sunday through Wednesday late-night from 10 to 1. It also runs daily specials, such as half off bottles of wine from 8 o'clock onward on Mondays and Wednesdays, "Three Olives Wednesdays," and Thursday Ladies' Night. If you wanted to, you could spend a whole hazy Wednesday at Temple Bar...

Besides its 12 beers on tap (good Irish staples including Guinness, Smithwicks and Harp, all served in a 20 oz. pint glass), Temple Bar features roughly 20 more beers in the bottle (or can, for Boddington's). The martini list leans more toward the ladies (although if a gentleman enjoys a French martini, who am I to judge?), and the bar is stocked

with all the expected labels.

If your stomach rumbles during the earlier happy hour, Temple Bar offers 9 of its 14 starters at half off. Besides pub grub staples such as Buffalo Wings ($5) and Chicken Quesadillas ($4), there's heartier fare such as BBQ Ribs ($4.50) and Sauteed Cajun Shrimp (a steal at $6). The Smothered Tater Tots ($4) are plenty big for sharing, or can be an artery-clogging meal all on their own.

If the weather isn't too blazing, try to take your drinks outside to the spacious patio, and if luck is on your side you might even snag a seat by the impressive fire pit. Peek around the corner to find the Cornhole setup, or watch the 3 HDTV's (pretty much always tuned to ESPN or The Game). Twenty more TV's are inside, as well as live music Fridays and a DJ on Saturdays.

The Important Stuff:

Hours: 11am--2am everyday. Full menu served until 10pm; late-night menu offered until 1am

Happy Hour: 3pm--7pm weekdays AND 10pm--1am Sunday--Wednesday

What's included: $3 draft beers, $1 off bottle beers, $5 glasses of house wine, half off well drinks and half off most appetizers

Location: 17050 N. Thompson Peak Parkway, Scottsdale, AZ 85255

Contact: 480-429-4520 or http://www.templebaraz.com/