I seem to end up at Beginner’s Luck two or three times a month because it’s close to my house, and I love the menu, the food, the vibe and the friendly people who work there. It’s a relaxed hangout with an affordable menu that’s just elevated enough to keep me coming back, so I don’t really need another excuse to go, but now I have one – happy hour. At BL, they call it Lucky Hour, which seems apt.
Because happy hour isn’t quite as happy without the alcohol, let’s start there. The menu offers seven cocktails (get it? Lucky seven?), all priced at $7. You gotta love that for staying true to the theme and because, well, they’re only $7! Remarkable. There’s the first bit of happiness right there.
First up: the Painkiller on Main, a creamy nutmeg-dusted concoction that brings faraway islands and beaches to mind. The original painkiller recipe involves Pusser’s rum (a dark, robust navy rum), but BL’s version (made with silver rum) is lighter and more refreshing. The drink is also composed of orange juice, pineapple juice, cream of coconut and lime, so it’s a bright, tangy cousin to the pina colada. I love it.
The Ranch Water Paloma – whose base spirit, in this instance, is mezcal, not the usual tequila – is smokier and more complex than the typical paloma. It’s also a conflation of the paloma and the ranch water, a super-simple but refreshing cocktail said to have originated in Austin, Texas in the ’90s, which combines blanco tequila, fresh lime juice and sparkling mineral water (typically Topo Chico). It’s cool and geeky, which is the way these operators (Bernie Kantak and Andrew Fritz, who also own Citizen Public House and The Gladly) roll.
The Chile Margarita, made with jalapeño-infused tequila has a serious kick and I like it, but I think I prefer a bit more sweetness to balance out that heat. Next time, I’m trying the sorbet mimosa, which also shows up on the brunch menu.
There are just five items on the food menu, and one of them is the original chopped salad – Kantak’s endlessly copied composition of smoked salmon, Israeli couscous, arugula, pepitas, asiago, tomatoes, dried sweet corn and currants, served with a pitcher of herby buttermilk dressing to blend in at the table ($12). I didn’t eat it this go-round, but if by some miracle you’ve never tried it, you should. It’s terrific and $6 cheaper at happy hour.
I had the other four items, however, and would be hard pressed to pick a favorite among them. Okay, put a gun to my head and I might say the crispy Dole whip chicken wings ($10), smoothed in a sweet, spicy (but only a little spicy) pineapple miso sauce that had me shamelessly licking my fingers. Sprinkled with diced green onion, the wings come with the same buttermilk herb dressing that accompanies the chopped salad. It’s the perfect complement.
Also excellent – nubbly pimento cheese ($8), interspersed with bits of pickled goat horn peppers (sweet and tangy with a touch of heat) and sided with kettle chips and crunchy chicharrónes (pork rinds). It’s addictive, and the chicharrónes are an inspired touch.
Which is not to discount the happy burger, a perfectly cooked fat boy set between griddled brioche buns, slathered with chipotle aioli, then stacked with melting Swiss cheese, grilled pineapple chunks, lettuce and pickles ($13). Another great combo.
And then there’s Bennie B’s taco of the day – this day a stellar mix of unctuous slow-roasted pork, cotija cheese, avocado, pickled onion and cilantro, the soft corn tortilla soaking up the meat’s natural juices. Prettier and better-tasting than many, many tacos out there in the world.
This happy hour delivers on the happy. Check it out: 3-6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
7240 E. Main St., Suite C100, Scottsdale, 480-571-0416, beginnersluckaz.com
