Whatever your feelings on the viaduct's demise, there's at least one silver lining to the dreaded "period of maximum restraint": local restaurants are stepping in to ameliorate the three-week "Seattle Squeeze" with tasty food and drink specials, discounts, and freebies. Below, we've rounded up some options for your consideration. Plus, check out the Step Forward festival that will celebrate the last days of the viaduct in February, or our list of food and drink specials to try in January and our food and drink calendar.

99 Reasons to Stay Downtown
In light of the SR-99 closure, Tom Douglas presents just shy of a hundred compelling reasons (read: happy hour deals, drink specials, and menu items) to choose happy hour at the various restaurants that comprise his empire in lieu of rush hour, from the "Tear Down This Tiramisu" at Cuoco to the "Traffic Is Not-So-Awful Falafel Waffle" at Assembly Hall.

Goldfinch Tavern
Find refuge in the Four Season Hotel restaurant's extended happy hour from 3-7 pm, with luxe bites like $2 oysters, fried oyster sliders, Dungeness crab toast, and black truffle angel hair pasta.

Ivar's
Keep clam and drive on: Until February 3, Ivar's is offering a coupon for a complimentary cup of clam chowder per person per day at its Ivar's Acres of Clams and Pier 54 Fish Bar location.

Kidd Valley
Beat commute-related stress with a free order of French fries per person per day at Kidd Valley's Alaskan Way location.

Marination Ma Kai
To help you adopt a more "hang loose" attitude towards the traffic, the West Seattle island-fusion oasis will offer a special "Seattle Squeeze" breakfast menu on weekdays from 7 to 11 am while the Viaduct is closed, with hearty fare like sunrise breakfast burritos, breakfast bars, and breakfast sliders with a choice of Portuguese sausage or Spam, egg, and cheese, as well as beverages like coffee and tea and baked goods from Macrina Bakery.

Maslow's
Partake in the extended happy hour at Maslow's, with special Seattle Squeeze cocktails like the "I'm Pre-Peared to Wait" and the "Cran We Leave Yet?", and you'll also be supporting the admirable work of FareStart to empower disadvantaged and homeless people to train them in the restaurant industry.

Molly Moon’s Ice Cream
As a farewell, Seattle's local ice cream shop chain has bestowed the Viaduct with its own ice cream flavor: Viaduct Crunch, an ice cream made with a Stumptown coffee base and crunchy bourbon toffee-covered cornflakes.

The Pike Pub
Blow off the drive home in lieu of hanging out at the Pike Pub and chowing down on their Broken Arrow Burger (with onions, iceberg, special sauce, yellow cheddar, and fresh tomatoes) for just $5.99 (regularly $15.95) from 4 pm until close until February 1.

Stoup Brewing
Ballard's Stoup Brewing has introduced Viafuct, an IPA with a "light malt bill" and Azacca and Loral hops that's "way more fun to drink than navigating Seattle traffic will be."