Wednesday happy hours in Austin
Wednesday and Thursday are the two biggest happy hour days in Austin, with 600+ places running one on each and barely a whisker between them. It is also the day when the sit-down restaurants show up: several rooms that skip the start of the week open their windows on a Wednesday, and 100+ venues put something at half price.
Where to start
11 of the 600+ running a Wednesday window, chosen for a reason rather than a rating. Hours below come straight from our database, not from this article.
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Photo: Hillside Farmacy via Google Maps 01 · The week starts here for some kitchens
- Wed–Fri 3–5 PM
- Wed, Sun 5–10 PM
Wednesday is the first day this one runs, and it runs two windows: a short afternoon one and a longer evening one, with several plates at half price. A restored 1950s pharmacy, and the mushroom pasta is the dish that comes up most.
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Photo: East Side Pies via Google Maps 02 · A ten-to-seven Wednesday
- Wed 10 AM–7 PM
- Mon–Fri 11 AM–4 PM
Wednesdays get a single long window rather than the split ones the rest of the week gets, with buy-one-get-one slices. Opinion on the pizza is more divided than anything else on this list: the deal is real, the pies are not universally loved.
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Photo: Kitty Cohen's via Google Maps 03 · Three to seven, in the yard
- Mon–Fri 3–7 PM
A plain four-hour weekday window. The yard is the draw; the happy hour is when the pricing matches it.
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Photo: Sign Bar via Google Maps 04 · An early window and a late one
Sign Bar
$- Mon–Fri 4–7 PM
- Tue–Thu 4 PM–2 AM
Four to seven, then four until two: read the two carefully, because the deals differ. Consistently one of the better-reviewed bars on the east side.
See Sign Bar's deals in Zappy → Checked -
Photo: Bar Toti via Google Maps 05 · Half off the burgers and the bottles
Bar Toti
$$$- Tue–Thu, Sun 5–6 PM
Both the smashburgesas and the wine list at half price, on the day the room is least busy.
See Bar Toti's deals in Zappy → Checked -
Photo: Cabana Club via Google Maps 06 · Half-price cocktails
Cabana Club
$$- Mon–Thu 4–7 PM
A cocktail-specific discount rather than a rail one, four to seven. Worth timing, because full price is where the value argument falls down.
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Photo: عبدالرزاق البرهمي via Google Maps 07 · Half off select pizzas and any bottle under $100
Bufalina
$$- Daily 4–5:30 PM
Ninety minutes, four to five-thirty, and worth planning the evening around. Get there for the start: the room is small and the deal is well known.
See Bufalina's deals in Zappy → Checked -
Photo: Cape Bottle Room via Google Maps 08 · Half off bar snacks
- Daily 4–6 PM
Runs every day, which makes it one of the reliable midweek options when other rooms are on a Thursday-to-Sunday schedule. Wine-led, transparently priced.
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Photo: Austin Daily Press via Google Maps 09 · Half off hushpuppies, four to seven
- Mon–Fri 4–7 PM
One item, honestly presented. There is something to be said for a happy hour that does not pretend to be a menu, and the sandwiches are the reason people are there anyway.
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Photo: Joe Presley via Google Maps 10 · Zero-proof, midweek
- Wed–Fri 3–6 PM
One of nearly seventy Wednesday venues discounting something non-alcoholic: six-dollar Peroni 0.0% at the same price as the real drafts. It stays comfortable when busy, which is not a given round here.
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Photo: Anna Gibbs via Google Maps 11 · The biggest board, and a 9 PM second window
- Daily 11:30 AM–5 PM
- Mon–Thu, Sun 9–10:15 PM
100+ deals across an afternoon window and a late one. The garlic noodles are the order that comes up most.
The midweek peak
600+ venues puts Wednesday within one percent of Thursday at the top of the week. In practice Wednesday, Tuesday and Thursday are interchangeable on volume, and the choice between them comes down to what specifically is running.
Where Wednesday distinguishes itself is the restaurant end. A number of kitchens run Wednesday-to-Sunday or Wednesday-to-Saturday schedules, which means Wednesday is the first day of the week that the sit-down rooms rejoin the list. If you want a happy hour that involves sitting at a table, this is the earliest in the week it gets easy.
When it runs
Three is the most common opening and four the second. Six is the most common close, and well over twice as common as seven, so Wednesday punishes lateness as much as its neighbours do.
100+ venues run past 10 PM, a little behind Tuesday.
Where to look
East Austin leads on a Wednesday, with downtown second and Central Austin third. 60+ venues discount something non-alcoholic.
For a neighborhood-first view rather than a day-first one, the East Austin and Central Austin guides are two of the densest.
All 600+, sorted by what's live
This page is 11 places and an opinion. The app has every Wednesday happy hour we track (7,500+ deals) on a map, filtered by the day, the time and what you actually want to eat.
Common questions
How many Austin happy hours run on Wednesday?
600+ of the Austin venues Zappy tracks run a Wednesday happy hour, which puts it level with Thursday at the top of the week. 100+ of them discount something by half.
What time does Wednesday happy hour start in Austin?
3 PM is the most common Wednesday opening and 4 PM the second. 6 PM is far and away the most concentrated ending, followed by 7 PM.
Which Austin happy hours run late on a Wednesday?
100+ venues run a Wednesday window past 10 PM, and several run to 2 AM including Sign Bar, Yellow Jacket Social Club, Tweedy's Bar and Barton Springs Saloon.
Is Wednesday a good day for happy hour in Austin?
It is one of the two best. Wednesday and Thursday are all but tied on venues open, ahead of every other day, and Wednesday has more half-price offers than Monday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday.