Happy hour |

The longest line I saw recently at Bellevue Square was at Ruth's Chris Steak House during happy hour, where the wait for a seat was 30 minutes.

The martinis patrons drank while standing in line did not seem to make the time go by any faster. They leaned against the wall and sighed.

But it's a happy place once you get one of the coveted 66 seats in the bar or lounge area.

The plate of seared ahi tuna, at $5, is a bargain. The chicken drumettes, in a honey sweet Thai glaze, remain popular. But the half-pound broiled cheeseburger, with all the fixings and side of fries ($5), is what folks hanker for. (Anyone who orders this well done does not deserve to eat this burger.)

Bellevue Square is the epicenter for chain restaurants, with a dozen other happy hours within a five-minute walk. The bar food is cheap and the wait is nil. Earls, for instance, has one of the hippest happy hours.

But the lure of Ruth's Chris is that you're getting a $5 burger, made from prime sirloin in a high-end steakhouse. It's juicy, with globs of cheese. This is not a snack before dinner. It's dinner, an $8 meal with a beer.

With Christmas shoppers, the lines are longer for the $5 burger deal. Avoid going on Fridays and Saturdays if you don't want to fight for one of the seats in the bar and lounge area. (The complimentary cornbread at Z'Tejas or meatball sliders at Munchbar a few doors down aren't bad consolation prizes if you don't have the patience to wait.) There's always the happy hour sirloin burger ($8) at John Howie Steak at The Bravern.

Ruth's Chris Steak House, 565 Bellevue Square, offers happy hour daily from 4-7 p.m. and again from 9-11 p.m. (on Sunday, late happy hour runs until 10 p.m.) with $3-$5 food specials, $4-$5.50 cocktails, $3-$4.50 beer and $4 wine (425-451-1550 or www.ruthschris.com/Steak-House/2223/Bellevue).

Tan Vinh: 206-515-5656 or tvinh@seattletimes.com. On Twitter @tanvinhseattle.