In an attempt to spice up the midweek doldrums, my friends and I headed out to the happy hour offered “til closing” at the identity-confused Ling & Louies (which you may have known six months ago as... More

In an attempt to spice up the midweek doldrums, my friends and I headed out to the happy hour offered “til closing” at the identity-confused Ling & Louies (which you may have known six months ago as Thaifoon) over at the Irvine Spectrum. Being the budgeted, hungry lushes that we are, we had our hopes set high for the famously cheap tapas-like appetizers and, of course, the beer (a few brewskies will help loosen your creative capacities, you know. And as for whether that’s a good thing, well…read on…). As my friends and I were seated out on the fire-lit patio perusing the happy hour menu, we noticed something peculiar: there were no drink specials! That’s right, if you booze, you lose over at Ling & Louie’s, a hefty $5 or so per beer (unless you’re like me and don’t mind the $3.75 Bud Lights on a night out). But if you are hungry, then you found yourself a good deal. There are only three prices on the happy hour menu: $1, $2, and $3—the numbers that signal the beginnings of birthday songs, that garner communal energy in furniture-lifting situations, that count off a lively waltz—yes, $1,$2, and $3 are great numbers indeed, and the food you get for those measly prices may just be worth the lack of cheap alcohol. I kid you not, I ordered the entire [happy hour] menu. I recommend the pork ribs; trust me, they’re good—and you get four of them for $3. As for all of their other eggroll and dumpling type dishes, they are definitely worth your small bills. The only thing I would not try again would be the chicken satay; not to sound like a culinary prick, but the breast tenders they use don’t bode well with their mode of cooking, and it just tastes too much like curry. If I order a satay, I want peanuts! But that’s just me. To quote our waitress after we whined about the lack of discounted booze: “But with all the money you save on food, you can buy beer!”—which kind of defeats the purpose of happy hour; overpriced beer in exchange for cheap food? I don’t dig it, but for you non-drinkers out there, I think you’ll find yourself a second home. NOTE: As of June 2006, they're happy hour options have changed.
Less