Gina's on Congress

"This tiny Downtown bistro whisks diners away to a European-like getaway with its exposed stone walls and a lively bar. Great for date nights or happy hour gals nights, the cute restaurant melds both Italian and French flavors in plates of homemade pastas, escargot, steak tartare, and Caesar salad. Negroni fans will enjoy four different variations, while the wine enthusiast will get treated to varieties from France and Italy." - Darcie Duttweiler

"The Downtown French-Italian-leaning restaurant offers a lovely happy hour with half-off snacks, like smoked salmon dip with sea salt potato chip and dauphine potatoes, and half-off all cocktails, including the French Old Fashioned with Pierre Ferrand 1840 Original cognac, combier peach, caramelized fig, and lemon bitters. The happy hour deals run from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. daily." - Darcie Duttweiler

"Gina’s is the type of pocket-sized neighborhood bistro you might expect to find in a quiet corner of a bustling downtown in a much older, larger city. The building feels like it holds some history in its walls, even if the tables and walls are sporting pristine white tablecloths and shiny new coats of paint. The menu leans classic Italian—with a handful of handmade pastas and larger entrees that help turn a visit here into a proper meal—but we like to just sit at the bar and order a bunch of snacks and drinks. Show up during nightly Happy Hour and you can even get all those snacks and cocktails for half the price (including seven Negroni variations). Pop in before catching a show at The Paramount up the street, especially if you’re all dressed up already. " - nicolai mccrary, matthew jacobs

"Gina’s is the type of pocket-sized neighborhood bistro you might expect to find on a quiet corner of a bustling downtown in a much older, larger city. The building feels like it holds some history in its bones, even if the tables and walls are sporting pristine white tablecloths and shiny new coats of paint. The menu blends classic Italian and French flavors—with handmade pastas and larger entrees that are well worth a full meal—but we like to just sit at the bar and order a bunch of snacks and drinks. Show up during nightly Happy Hour and you can even get those snacks and cocktails for half the price (including a whole section with Negroni variations).  " - nicolai mccrary

"Gina’s is the type of pocket-sized neighborhood bistro you might expect to find on a quiet corner in a much older, larger city. The building feels like it holds some history in its bones, even if the tables and walls are sporting pristine white tablecloths and shiny new coats of paint. This is a slightly more casual affair than Red Ash—though still cute and cozy enough to make for a great Downtown date-night destination. Start with a Negroni and some rabbit rillettes, then get a pasta and salad to share. And if you really want to recreate the steakhouse experience, go for a porcini-rubbed veal chop (sorry, no steaks here).  " - nicolai mccrary