Happy-Hour Hit list: Hotel Bars

When the social scene in Kansas City starts feeling a little small, there’s a quick fix for finding new faces: hotel bars. Sixty minutes with a mysterious stranger who’s lonely and starved for attention? That is a happy hour. • Chaz Lounge at the Raphael (325 Ward Parkway, 816-756-3800). After-work specials in the newly renovated boutique hotel run from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, but one bartender couldn’t explain the exact draw: “Some nights it’s a dollar off beers, some nights it’s two … uh, $5 martinis … ,” he said, trailing off. • 12 Baltimore (106 West 12th Street, 816-221-7000). There’s a similar booze theme at the Hotel Phillips bar, with specials on beer ($2 drafts, $3 domestic bottles, $4 import bottles) and a $6 martini of the week. There’s also a much more inviting window: 2 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. Plus: grub for less than $10 and a hint of a downtown vibe from another era. • The Oak Bar at the InterContinental (401 Ward Parkway, 816-756-1500). The gold standard in KC hotel bars, although we still refuse to call its home anything but the Fairmont. Big windows, tall ceilings, plush seating and pretty people — there are reasons that the management doesn’t have to offer specials. Go for the scotch selection instead.— Annie Fischer

Tue., Aug. 4, 2009