This edition of MN Happy comes with a Friday night of hard research. Last week, I headed to The Shout House at Block E for their Proletariat Hour.

This weekly Friday happy hour runs from 5-7 with the Shout House's signature dueling pianos starting at 6. Arrive early to get a good seat (or call ahead and make reservations - when I was there, the whole floor section was practically reserved) and beat the cover at the door.

The Proletariat Hour lives up to its name by providing good, cheap drinks for people who work hard. When I say good, I mean GOOD. The amazing part of The Proletariat Hour is their drink special - $2 You Call It for ANY mixed drink, beer or wine.  My tequila sunrise with Patron - $2. My friend's 12 year Glenlivet whiskey - $2. The guy sitting next to me's Michelob Golden - $2. Obviously some of us have better taste than others, but regardless of drink or contents, it's TWO BUCKS. 

Like a good girl, I took full advantage of drink specials. Like an unwise drinker, I did not partake in their food. From what I saw at surrounding tables, it looked good and prices were reasonable also. I'm looking forward to heading back to The Shout House for some food in addition to a liquid diet.

Can't make it on Friday? You're in luck. The Shout House has pretty good deals every night of the week, ranging from Diva Night to Birthday Tuesdays. I might avoid the Diva Night just because it sounds like it's shrouded in stereotypes of women who drink - $2 Michelob Golden Light and $2 Smirnoff Cocktails. If you like those, go ahead and enjoy it but I'm going to avoid living into stereotypes of ladies nights.

The Shout House is located on the first floor of Block E on Hennepin between 6th and 7th St.

Like designer clothes for cheap, cheap, cheap?

Head to Cliche for their Local Designer Sample Sale this Sunday. There'll be lots of discounted, yet fabulous, clothes and jewelry. 

The even will feature such designers as Kjurek Couture, Amanda Christine, Charmichael Claith, Jenny Carle, Arwyn Birch, Brianne Jones for Kelson and Andrea Oseland. 

Cliche is located in Minneapolis on Lyndale and 24th St W.  Be sure to check it out this Sunday between 1 and 6... Just get there after I do!

via Secrets of the City.

While most people think of New York as a major publishing hub, Minneapolis/St. Paul is celebrating its literary roots with Around the Literary Twin Cities in Almost 80 Days. 

A local bibliophile’s dream, several presses are sponsoring a literary scavenger hunt/trivia game around the Twin Cities. Each week, they release a new trivia question and send readers to various locations around the metro to record their answers.

For example, this week’s question is : Name the author who has been known to write longhand drafts of a popular mystery series at the St. Clair Broiler in St. Paul. Think you know the answer? Head to any number of bookstores or the featured destinations - Uncle Hugo/Uncle Edgar or the U of M Bookstore inside Coffman Union - for a special prize.

Coffee House Press, Greywolf Press, Milkweed Editions and the Loft Literary Center are sponsoring Around the Literary Twin Cities in Almost 80 Days and can follow the 11 week long scavenger hunt on Twitter.
 

One day this summer, I went to the farmer’s market and came home with two free boxes of vegetables.



How did I end up with a boatload of free food? It’s easier than you think: Enter contests and look out for promotions.

Sometimes local groups, papers and companies will give away free tickets or items to promote the event or the company. All you have to do is enter in the contest – if you win, then you got something for free. If you don’t win, then all you lost was the 30 seconds it took to sign up. Keep an eye out for these promotions on local websites, Twitter or local newspapers.

Even Gal’s Guide gets in on the freebies now and then!

In the Minneapolis area, I sign up for free promotions from City Pages and subscribe to Secrets of the Cities, which often has email contests. The MPLS Onion AV Club/Decider page also has free tickets from time to time – just last week I went to an advanced showing of The Informant! through the AV Club.

Even though you should sign up for free contests, be careful with the type of information you’re giving out. If an organization wants financial information or something too personal, it’s probably a scam and avoid it. Give out the amount of information you feel comfortable with – don’t risk your identity or safety for 10% off at some shady restaurant.

This afternoon, my sister and I are going to a movie showing at the Walker for free – just because she entered the contest and won. Not bad, right?

I'm a self professed happy hour expert - I love the cheap drinks and discounted food that come along with being in the right place at the right time. For someone on a budget, it's really important to make the most out of my money. This is the first in a series of looking at great happy hours around the Twin Cities area.

image c/o The Decider.

I'm a recent convert to The Herkimer, but I'm hooked. I live right around the corner, and I didn't know why it took me a few months to finally make it down. It's a microbrewery/restaurant which means the beer is FANTASTIC and rotates frequently between their various brews. I'm a big fan of Vienna Country Bier, a red without all the hoppines in a Summit Horizen Red. The food is pretty good also. The sweet potato fries are an excellent choice and if you're looking for a late night meal, the quesadilla is kind of like a mini burrito. Who can ever turn down a burrito?

Atmosphere-wise, it's a great place to chill on a weekday night, sit at the bar and read a City Pages, or enjoy the patio seating with some friends. I haven't been in on a weekend, but lucky for us, their Happy Hour runs every day of the week. The staff has always been super friendly and makes good suggestions for food and drink pairings. 

Happy Hour runs from 3-6 with 2-for-1 beer and well drinks. The Herkimer also has a late night Happy Hour (my favorite) from 10-1 with $3 beer and well drinks.  Appetizers start at $3.95; some have the option of adding things like meat or guacamole for another couple bucks. One of their best deals is $10 after 10 - $10 for a pint, 5 mini-burgers and some sweet potato fries. Not so shabby, huh? 

Another selling point is their Bloody Mary/Screwdriver with a beer chaser specials during brunch - $6 with $4 refills and you get a Herkimer pint glass and beer chaser glass as well. After one of these, I've declared my new love for Bloody Mary's.

Here's The Herkimer's Yelp page and the  (best Twin Cities nightlife site).

The Herkimer is located at 2922 Lyndale Ave S in Minneapolis, between 29th and Lake Street.