By Dr. Ink
Chalk it up to an embracing, woodsy design in a quiet location where parking comes relatively easy as two of the reasons why Bankers Hill Bar & Restaurant is a desirable sanctuary for losing your day’s gripes over happy hour libations.
The establishment, which netted an Orchid Award for its eye-popping use of reclaimed wood before everyone else began nailing it to their walls, greets with an artful bouquet of wine glasses suspended above the hostess desk. It’s your first cue that the establishment extends the same open arms to boozers as it does to diners.
Customers arriving for happy hour bargains aren’t relegated to a specific area. They can perch at the sizable bar and witness cocktails like Painkillers and Canadian Tuxedos in the making or seize a table in a dimly lit spot to drink and nibble inconspicuously.
Listed at the low end of the price scale are a daily draft and a house red or white wine for $5.50. Knowing we’d order a plate of swooped-up deviled eggs ($5), we skipped the vino and suds altogether. Pairing either of them with the little devils seemed like a recipe for intestinal turbulence. So we turned instead to some seriously constructed cocktails discounted by $2, plus the daily cocktail priced at $8.
The latter was a Fourth Avenue Swizzler, named and concocted on a whim by bar manager Christian Siglin. A hint of warming spices in the drink matched brilliantly to white rum, absinthe and lime juice. If there was simple syrup in the recipe, it was kept at a welcome minimum.
From the established cocktail lineup, we restrained further from outright slugging the Sherry Cobbler made with strawberry-infused Amontillado sherry, herbal Amaro liqueur, lemon and cinnamon bark syrup. All combined, the drink tasted more like dark cherries rather than something containing strawberries. Fruity drinks aren’t normally my thing, but this was irresistible without the “tutti” factor ruining it.
Both cocktails were filled top to bottom with crushed ice, which added to their refreshing tone as a deliberate gesture rather than serving as a ploy to shortchange us. Though as a result, they went down in a lick.
Based on my dinner visits here, the food is consistently top-quality. So it came as no surprise that our trio of deviled eggs transcended common recipes with the additions of capers and shavings of zesty Parmesan cheese. We also ordered from the happy hour menu a crispy taco brimming with juicy barbecue pork taco and a ceviche tostada topped with a fair measure of chopped tiger shrimp — each priced at $3.75.
If there is a challenge to Banker Hills’ happy hour, it lies in wanting to partake in more drinks and food after the discounts end at 6 p.m. Provided you have additional time and cash to spend, you’ll likely cave in.
—Send happy hour recommendations to [email protected]. He’ll pass the message along.
