12 Reasons Why Lunch Is the New Happy Hour

Jeremy Nguyen/Thrillist
Jeremy Nguyen/Thrillist

Jeremy Nguyen/Thrillist

1. The afternoon flies by that much faster with the help of a mid-day libation (not that we would know from experience).

2. You can have your happy hour food at lunchtime and… eat it. Nothing adds zing to mid-day like poppers, mozz sticks, wings, sliders, dips, and, oh so much more. Certainly makes the sad sandwich you brought from home look, well, sadder.

3. Because they’ve been doing it in Europe for years and we’re better than letting the Italians have something on us.

4. A study presented at the 2012 meeting of the American Psychological Association suggests that telling the truth is good for both your mental and physical well-being -- and doing the opposite can be harmful. The point? If you think you’re going to get any work done on a Friday afternoon, you’re lying to yourself. So, you know, go to a long, beverage-enhanced lunch instead.

Jeremy Nguyen/Thrillist

5. When you do go back to the office, everyone who had the $8.99 plastic-box sushi for lunch will be envious of you. Being envied breeds confidence and confidence breeds your boss giving you a promotion.

6. What makes you the most “happy": battling your way to the bar through a sea of inconsiderate hips and elbows, or kicking back with a less desperate crew of people who’ve come to the brilliant conclusion that “it’s 12:30 somewhere” is a much better saying than “it’s 5 o’clock somewhere”?

7. The sun’s at its peak, which means you’ll be releasing maximum happiness-inducing endorphins on your way to happy hour -- and also loading up on vitamin D, which is a pretty good excuse to drink beer instead of milk.

8. You’ll have a natural topic of conversation: what do you call a lunch happy hour? It’s not “brunch” -- brunch is weekends-only, and doesn’t necessarily involve sweet, sweet discounts beyond the possibility of bottomless screwdrivers. No, this is a whole new concept that requires an original name. Hunch? Hanch? Happunch?

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Another reason to make lunch the new happy hour? At $6.99, TGI Fridays' fast, fresh lunch pairings leave plenty left over for refreshments. They're available Monday through Friday, 11am-3pm. So find some -- or a lot of -- time (we don’t know how cool your boss is) to take lunch back.

Jeremy Nguyen/Thrillist

9. Because now it can be you who is envied while sitting in an outdoor cafe as harried office-workers preparing for sad-desk lunch glare at you and wonder, “Don’t these people have jobs?”

10. You’ll give off the impression that you have your life together enough to take a leisurely lunch break. Fake it 'til you make it.

11. You get to combine the frisson of “I quit!” with the comforting reality of still having a job. You’re going back, but right now you’re freeeeeee.

12. “Happy hour” is a lot of pressure, but nobody is telling you how to feel about lunch. Just be you, with mozzarella sticks.