Los Dos Molinos Uptown: Happy Hour Report Card

Each week we venture to a new restaurant to check out what the spot has to offer during our favorite time of day — happy hour. Whether it's affordable appetizers, delicious drinks, jaw-dropping deals, or none of the above, we'll check out the situation and report back.

The Spot: Los Dos Molinos Uptown
1044 East Camelback Road
www.losdosmolinosphoenix.com

The Hours: Happy hour at Los Dos Molinos Uptown is Tuesday through Friday from 3 to 6 p.m.

Perfect For: Any afternoon get-together where cold, cheap beer and icy margaritas are on the itinerary.

Interior: When you step into Los Dos Molinos Uptown, you might feel like you’ve just walked into someone's kitchen. There’s an old-fashioned stove by the front door, a pueblo-style fireplace near the bar, and colorful Southwestern art and other décor adorning the walls. Combined with soft lighting and dark stone, the decor creates a cozy, warm atmosphere.

The Food: If you’re trying to get your hands on Los Dos Molinos’ award-winning carne adovada, then you're going to have to pay full price. The happy hour menu at Los Dos Uptown is surprisingly limited: there’s just a cheese crisp ($4), Mexican pizza ($5), and beef or chicken street tacos ($2) to choose from.

We ordered a Mexican pizza and one beef and one chicken street taco. The Mexican pizza made a good shareable appetizer and was fairly priced, but didn’t carry a lot of flavor. There were traces of beef, but it was mostly a tortilla painted in red enchilada sauce with a bit of lettuce, tomato, and cheese on top. The tacos were surprisingly good, though. The shredded beef was especially flavorful, and the chicken was well-seasoned. For the price, you could certainly do worse.

It bears mentioning that the restaurant offers free chips and salsa, which is a plus, but the house-made salsa is very hot.
The Drinks: This is where LDM Uptown’s happy hour impresses. All draft beers are $3 during happy hour, so premiums like Four Peaks and Dos Equis are as cheap as you’ll find anywhere. Moreover, well cocktails and house margaritas are just $4, and specialty margaritas come in at $7 ($11 outside of happy hour)

We ordered both a Fresh Margarita and Rosa Margarita, and you could really taste the tequila in both drinks. The Fresh margarita features traditional lime and agave nectar served on the rocks. The Rosa comes frozen, with St. George Raspberry Liqueur as the primary flavor. Both could be described as tart, but refreshing, and definitely strong.

Conclusion: If it’s a quiet place to have a few cold drinks you’re looking for, then Los Dos Molinos Uptown will provide that and then some. The drinks are cheap, the margaritas strong, and you really can’t go wrong with $3 beers. The food on the happy hour menu would be great for snacking and sharing, and it’s fairly priced, but there aren't a lot of options.

Try this: Either one of the specialty margaritas. They’re adequately discounted and offer plenty of bang for your buck.
Avoid this: The Mexican pizza. Stick with the free chips and salsa.

Grade: A-