Restaurants

The Happiest Hour

Dinette on Capitol Hill

by Marti Jonjak

Brooke Kemper

Description: A ridiculously charming Capitol Hill eatery and bar, whose mint blue walls are adorned with antique tea trays and swirling metallic stencils.

The draw: Dinette's selection of fancy-schmancy toast, which gets its very own section on the dinner menu. (During happy hour, the toast special of the day is $3.)

Toast in literature: The profound: "Some idiot had stupidly put [the toaster dial] on light. There was no point in doing that, because when it was turned to light the bread would only stay down for five seconds before springing up, imagining itself to be toasted" (Tama Janowitz, By the Shores of the Gitchee Gumee). And the embarrassing: "She asked for coffee and toast in a restaurant and buttered it with tears" (Alice Sebold, The Lovely Bones).

Happy hours: Tues–Sat 4–6 pm and Fri–Sat 9–11 pm.

Happy-hour drink specials: $3 Stella Artois, $3 sangria, $3.50 house wine or well drinks, $5 margarita or Bloody Mary, $6 well martinis.

Happy-hour food specials: Several tasty European-inspired selections, such as the $5 tapas plate (with marinated Manchego cheese, fried almonds, raw milk, and olives).

Other deals: Half-priced bottles of wine on Wednesdays!