STRIKE Happy Hour

STRIKE bowling alley is located in The District at Tustin Legacy. Happy Hour is from 9pm to midnight Sunday through Thursday. Featuring $3.75 domestic drafts, $4.25 imports, $5 well drinks and discounted appetizers, all of which are $6 or under.
The atmosphere in STRIKE is very casual and laid back. With music videos projected onto screens mounted at the end of each bowling lane. As many people know, drinking and bowling can add a whole different dimension to the sport and make it even more fun. With the lighting, music choice (usually hip hop and R&B) and decor of the alley, people feel very at ease and are more than likely to have a fun time.
The appetizers that my group had tried included the Southwest nachos (4.95) and Cheddar cheese fries (3.95). Both of which were very good and accompanied the beers that everyone had ordered. The most prominent one in the group being a Sam Adams lager.
Bowling itself however, is not discounted during Happy Hour. And costs $6.45 per person/per game. But overall, STRIKE is a highly recommended happy hour for those looking to have a night out of drinking while also playing a competitive game.

The Balcony Happy Hour

The Balcony, located on the 2nd floor of Diamond Jamboree offers an all day, every day happy hour. Which is another way of saying that they don't have a happy hour. However, due to the lack of happy hour choices on a Friday night, my group and I decided to sample this place. There's an advertisement on their menu saying that they have happy hour deals on appetizers from $2.95 to $5.95. But, this doesn't mean all of the appetizers, its actually only talking about appetizers that are regularly priced in that area.
They're pints of beer including Blue Moon and Heit, are all around 4 dollars each. Which isn't terrible, but also isn't exactly the best happy hour deal either. The appetizer that my table tried was the calamari dish, priced at $6.95. It was prepared in an asian style as opposed to the usual deep fried kind that most of us are used to. The dish was tasty, but again it wasn't even specially priced for "happy hour."
To sum up, if you have another option for happy hour, pass on The Balcony.

Dave and Buster's: The Ultimate Happy Hour

Dave and Busters aka DnB's located in the Irvine Spectrum is the classic happy hour that everyone who just turned 21 wants to go and try. The atmosphere is fun and laid back and there are endless games to play after you're done drinking. Happy hour here doesn't include food, but all cocktails are half off and beer and wine are discounted. Late night happy hour is 9pm to 11pm sun-thursday. Wednesday nights are 1/2 off games as well. Thursday nights are known as college nights (these nights are packed and a lot of fun, however there is also a 3 dollar cover charge per person and service is extremely hard to get due to the high volume of traffic).
Some favorite drinks that I and my groups have tried include the AMF, Long Island Iced tea (some people say that these are the strongest of the cocktails). They might be right, however be aware that DnB's cocktails often end up tasting better than most because less alcohol is used when preparing them. For those that don't like cocktails and want something a little faster, there are shooters. Including such picks as the Scooby Snack and Alien secretion. These goofy names refer to very fruity and tasty small shots of mixed drinks. They taste good, but don't really affect anyone the way they would expect alcohol to (meaning they are mostly mixer and not liquor.).
Also, for happy hour be aware that if you order the "Over and Under" drinks, they are not on happy hour and will be full price. The reason for this is that you keep the souvenir glass that comes with a shot and built in chaser.
If you want something stronger than the drinks mentioned above, you could always go with the Jaeger bomb (pictured) or Irish car bomb. These two consist of shots that are dropped into a chaser of energy drink or dark beer and taken in one gulp.
Another top choice was the Million Dollar Margareta. This is a semi strong mixed drink cocktail that was popular among those that I dined with. Beer is also on discount, for certain sizes and drafts. However, DnB's is typically the place that people go to try other types of drinks.
For atmosphere and fun, DnB's is the ultimate happy hour to check out.

Daily Grill

The Daily Grill, located on Jamboree and Dupont in Irvine has a happy hour that is offered for 3 hours every day of the week. It lasts from 4 to 7pm, making it an excellent choice for a nice place to go for dinner.
Happy hour prices only pertain to those eating in the bar area, but that doesn't mean that everyone has to be 21 or over. Only those ordering alcohol in the bar area have to show ID. The appetizers range in price from $2.95 to $3.95. Popular choices among those that I dined with included the popcorn shrimp, fried calamari, spicy blue cheese fries, loaded mac and cheese and the spinach artichoke dip.
Everyone enjoyed most of the dishes, especially the calamari (which can be doubled for a dollar more). However, the spinach artichoke dip was not well received by those that ordered it. Therefore making it not a recommended appetizer to order.
The beers that are on special include Sam Adams and Miller Lite, served in pints. Each goes for $3.50. Everyone ordered the Sam Adams, since Miller is a much more common beer, available at many other places for better prices. The Sam Adams pints were enjoyed by all those that ordered them.
The Daily Grill has a relaxed atmosphere, with great deals on food appetizers and on the Sam Adams beer. Making it a great place to eat and drink with friends.

Buffalo Wild Wings

Buffalo Wild Wings located in Lake Forest, has a fun and relaxed atmosphere to it. However, they're happy hour deals are not the best to be found. There are your $3 tall glasses (about a pint and a half) during hh, however they are only of a select few domestic beers, such as Coors, Bud Light and Miller Light. The other beers such as Blue Moon, are discounted only by 75 cents. And food is 25% off when you order it in the bar area.
The service was very nice and efficient. However, due to the fact that only the most common and cheapest beer had any real discount, I would recommend passing on Buffalo's Happy Hour unless you are in the mood for a lot of wings.

Gina's Pizza

Gina's Pizza located in Campus Plaza in Irvine offers a Happy Hour on Monday nights that adds up to being all round underwhelming. The only good deal is for $2 slices of cheese pizza.
When 60 oz. pitchers of domestic beer are advertised for $8, they really mean that its a pitcher of bud or coors light. And, they charge you tax on the pitchers. $3 off any large combo pizza also doesn't add up to much, since the pizzas are usually all over $20 anyway. Making it a good deal only if you were already going to order that type of pizza anyway. My opinion is to pass on Gina's Pizza Happy Hour if you're looking for a great deal.

Chili's

Chili's located on Culver and Alton, has a late night happy hour from 9pm to close Mon-Thurs. The deals however are not that great. For food, there's 50 cent buffalo wings, free chips and salsa with any purchase and $3 chips and queso dip. Margaritas and draft beers are all $1 off.
My table ordered the El Nino margarita, Grand Patron and Platinum Margaritas. All of which were good and contained a good amount of alcohol. However, even with happy hour, these drinks came out to about $8 each.
The chips and queso were good, however, it would be more worth it to just go for the free chips and salsa, since they don't give you that much queso dip. Wings are good, but better deals can be found for a larger amount of wings elsewhere.
To conclude, the Chili's Happy Hour is good if you are already planning on going there anyway, but is not worth a separate trip just for these deals. Note: Happy Hour is only in the bar area.