JPAN, 3800 S Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, 941-954-5726

The average Happy Hour hobbyist practices their craft after work. Maybe they sat behind a desk for 8 hours writing emails or making phone calls to any number of irate customers or stakeholders. A Happy Hour hobbyist needs a simple menu, a small list from which they can blindly select a drink and small bites without much deliberation and trust that their stomachs and anxieties will be soothed. JPAN knows what the Happy Hour hobbyist needs.

With a selection of small bites and drinks ranging from $4 to $6, making a satisfying pit stop between the workplace and the living room is as easy as sitting down, lifting a finger and pointing anywhere on the menu. Safe choices for food include gyoza pork dumplings, chicken skewers or pork buns. Savory and comforting, each plate comes with enough comforting umami to excite the taste buds. The gyoza dipping sauce for the dumplings is particularly satisfying, with just a hint of sweetness to candy up the otherwise deliciously salty morsels. All three together can form a respectable dinner, though a spring mix salad or a California roll would also work well to balance out the protein. Add a hot sake to the table and the hour most certainly becomes a tad happier, with just the right amount of booze to give a gentle lift to a weary mind.

At both the Siesta Row and UTC locations, Happy Hour runs from 5 pm to 6:30—you’ll be home in time and in the proper frame of mind to watch your favorite show on Netflix.

JPAN, 3800 S Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, 941-954-5726

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