Happy Hour at Home

Last night my boyfriend and I wanted to celebrate some good news but since it’s the end of the month, our budgets are pretty tight. Instead of spending $30 each on drinks and snacks, we decided to stay in and make our own happy hour. I knew we had some cheese and snack foods that we needed to use up before they went bad, so all I had to do was run to the store, grab a bottle of wine, and a few more snacks and we would be good to go!

Keeping Happy Hour Frugal

I knew we already had a few ingredients on hand. So, before I even set foot in the store, I knew I had to take inventory of what we already had in the house before spending unnecessary money.

Food on Hand

Frozen Meatballs – I typically make a big batch and freeze leftovers

Colby Jack and Pepperjack Cheese

Dried Fruit and Nuts

Frozen French Baguette (for cheesy garlic bread)

Groceries to Buy

Crackers – $1.99

More Cheese (Can you ever have enough?!) – $2.99

Wine – $5.99

Putting It Together

After spending a total of $11.52 (with tax) I drove home and put it all together. I had fun trying to see how creative I could get with the ingredients we already hand. Plus, it was a fun game to see how little we could spend. Below you’ll see the quick cheese board I threw together for under $12! It’s not the greatest picture, but I had to snap it quick–we were hungry and ready to eat.

Our Happy Hour in a Nutshell

We had a lot of fun spending time together, catching up, and of course, laughing. Not only did we save over $40 but we had a delicious, homemade happy hour. While it is fun getting dressed up and going out to a restaurant. It’s also fun to mix it up and do it yourself. Just because you’re working within a budget, doesn’t mean you can’t have fun. Get creative, DIY, and you can have an awesome happy hour experience at home.

Looking for other creative date night ideas? Check out my post on MoviePass, the Nextlix of movie theaters.