These pickles don't know they're tonight's appetizers.

​Urban Kitchen SF Happy Hour

Where: Hog and Rocks, 3431 19th St. (at San Carlos), 550-8627

When: Tues., May 24, 7-9 p.m.

Cost: Free appetizers; drink prices vary

The rundown: Urban Kitchen SF is a go-to for classes on beekeeping, backyard chickens, and all that other happy homesteading jazz. They do it nonprofit-style, and never turn away students for lack of loot, so tonight they're hosting a happy hour fundraiser. Besides the scintillating conversations you're sure to have ("My home-brewed kombucha just ate a puppy!"), there will be Hog and Rocks snacks and special drinks. Buy a pickle-backed whiskey shot (exactly what it sounds like) or a pink grapefruit tequila punch made with Happy Girl preserves and all proceeds will go to Urban Kitchen.

Sean Timberlake

A butcher goes to work with a hacksaw at Fatted Calf's Wednesday happy hour.

​Carnivores squealed with glee when Fatted Calf opened its doors in Hayes Valley last year, giving owner-butcher Taylor Boetticher's own brand of artisanal charcuterie a permanent home in San Francisco. Boetticher complemented the gleaming meat case with shelves of high-end gourmet products like Rancho Gordo beans and exquisite pastas and olive oils, and of course there's plenty of ready-to-eat fare such as daily sandwich specials. But Boetticher strives to remind the neighborhood that the new space is more than a shrine to finished meat product; it's a full-service butcher shop. To remedy that, he started hosting free Wednesday happy hours.

Generally, the work takes place in the back room, a climate-controlled room behind a wall paneled with Wedgewood stove tops. Each Wednesday from 5:30 to 7:00 pm, the staff at Fatted Calf takes their work out onto the main floor for a little free-range butchery.

The time slot is not arbitrary, since 90 minutes is about the right amount of time it takes for two trained staff to completely butcher down a hog, and it's also short enough that food safety is not an issue. It's a sight to behold as they break the beast down into primals and then increasingly small and specific cuts. The butchers move with precision and speed, whether wielding hacksaws or boning knives, and they adeptly move pieces on and off the cutting tables. From the initial cuts, bigger pieces like the head, harboring a grim smirk over the room, and legs are left to hang by the case while they work on various parts.

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Yelp

On Russian Hill, a glorious once-a-week throwback.

​The place: Amarena, 2162 Larkin (at Green), 447-0441, amarenarestaurant.com

The hours: Thu. 6-9:30 p.m.

The deals: Weekly free buffet of Italian specialties

The digs: Tiny hideaway on a quiet corner of Russian Hill feels like a homey Tuscan hangout with its sponged peach walls, hardwood floors, standup bar and well-stocked wine racks. The glam locals and Eurotrash party music add a hint of the glitterati.

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Robin C./Yelp

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The place: McCormick & Kuleto's, 900 Northpoint St. (at Larkin, in Ghirardelli Square), 929-1730, www.mccormickandkuletos.com.

The hours: 3-6 p.m. Mon.-Fri.

The deals: Hefty snacks for $2-$5 apiece;  $6.50-$7 cocktails.

The digs: The view's stupendous from the cocktail lounge of this handsome fish house, designed by Pat Kuleto: the northern waterfront, the sparkling bay, Alcatraz, Angel Island, and the hills of Marin beyond. The inside features Ghirardelli Square's exposed brick plus a classic mahogany-and-brass bar with adjacent tables and comfy booths. The vibe is supplied by affable barkeeps, wide-eyed tourists, and in-the-know regulars scarfing early supper on the cheap.

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Linda C./Yelp

Das boot: 80 ounces of adult refreshment.

​The place: Schroeder's, 240 Front (at California), 421-4778

The hours: Weds.-Fri., 4-6 p.m.

The deals: Free hot snack items

The digs: This venerable old rathskeller has been serving up the suds and sauerbraten since 1893 (in the same location since 1959), and like Sam's and the Tadich and other remnants of S.F.'s pre-quake glory days, Schroeder's has vintage atmo to burn, with its century-old rosewood bar, mounted stags' heads, massive beer steins, Bavarian-inn lanterns, the gleam of amber light on polished mahogany, and Herman Richter's glorious Alpine murals of frolicking fräuleins and their lederhosen-clad liebenden. It's a fun and friendly place to quaff a Franziskaner, especially during one of the joint's regularly scheduled polka parties.

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cygnoir/Flickr

Happy hour oysters are $1 each ― same as in Gold Rush days.

​The place: Bar Crudo, 655 Divisadero (at Grove), 409-0679

The hours: Tues.-Sun., 5-6:30 p.m.

The deals: Oysters at $1 apiece, seafood chowder at $5 per bowl, two seafood tacos for $10, daily wine and beer specials

The digs: Bar Crudo's newish Western Addition location is a sleek, shiny vision in black and white, with abstract art and rustic hardwood floors giving the place a spare yet elegant boho-storefront aesthetic. The raw bar is an especially festive place to slurp, sip, and mingle with the locals.

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Toro E./Yelp

After a long day of lawyering, there's nothing quite as chill-worthy as the bar at Eos Wine Salon.

​The place: Eos Restaurant and Wine Salon, 901 Cole (at Carl), 566-3063

The hours: Sun.-Thurs., 5:30-7 p.m.

The deals: Wines for $5/glass, $10/half bottle, $20/bottle; sake or sangria at $5/glass; oysters at $1 apiece; snacks at $5 each

The digs: Intimate wine bar adjoining Eos (the restaurant) is an attractive local hangout in blond wood and candlelight with big picture windows looking out on Cole Valley's passing parade. A well-heeled clientele relax at scattered tables and an attractive silver-topped bar, swirling and sipping after a long, hard day of lawyering. The racks and shelves of bottles and glassware reflect the bar's vino-centric outlook and aesthetic.

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Michelle G./Yelp

Design details give Tokyo Go-Go its proto-L.A. ambience.

​The place: Tokyo Go-Go, 3174 16th St. (at Albion), 864-2288

The hours: Mon.-Sat., 5:30-7 p.m.; Sun., 5-6:30 p.m.

The deals: Hand rolls, pints, and hot sake, $3.50; well drinks, $4; fancy cocktails, $5

The digs: Self-consciously hip sushi joint in violet, lime, and cranberry with bamboo accents, esoteric burnt-wood objets d'art, dozens of hanging globes, and an ever-popular 12-stool bar. The throbbing lounge music, indirect lighting, and glam waitstaff give the place a proto-L.A., velvet-rope vibe.

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B. Y./Yelp

Who doesn't love tater tots? The morning-after hangover is your problem.

​The place: Horizon Restaurant and Lounge, 498 Broadway (at Kearny), 576-1118

The hours: Wed.-Fri., 5-10 p.m.

The deals: $3 beers, $4 house wine and well drinks, $5 well martinis, and $6 premium cocktails; hearty snacks for $3 and $5; bottomless $20 tumbler/stein/wine glass on Wednesdays and Thursdays

The digs: Sprawling hyper-cool oasis for lookers and loungers amid the grit and neon of Kearny and Broadway. The sleek, low-slung black and bronze setting features deep leather sofas, a 70-foot black marble bar, splashes of cobalt neon, and a thrumming, self-aggrandizing vibe. Expansive dance floor too.

The verdict: Horizon's Wednesday and Thursday night all-you-can-drink deal has to be one of the city's most tempting happy hour options.

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marisa w./Yelp

Grand Cafe's rococo art nouveaux surroundings make it an urbane oasis.

​The place: Grand Cafe, 501 Geary (at Taylor), 292-0101

The hours: Mon.-Fri., 3-7 p.m.

The deals: A wide array of snacks and drinks for $3-$7

The digs: Splendidly rococo art nouveaux setting makes you feel like a Parisian boulevardier stopping for an aperitif in some especially ornate brasserie. The towering ceilings, ornate pillars, vertiginous potted palms, and eccentric bronzes by sculptor Albert Guibara are eye-catching indeed, and the leather-and-cherrywood Petit Café near the entrance glows with terra-cotta earth tones and all those colorful bottles catching the late afternoon sunlight. The crowd's friendly, the music jazzy, and the cozy bar makes for a pleasant urbane oasis.

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