Pepe’s happy hour runs 1:00 to 6:00 PM daily for the summer, and the headline deal is half-price raw oysters, which works out to 88 cents apiece. That is five hours of 88-cent oysters, every day, at the oldest restaurant in Key West.
The normal window here is 4 to 6 PM. For the summer, Pepe’s stretched it to 1 to 6, same as they did last year. Pepe’s happy hour features half-off oysters, raw or baked, peel-and-eat shrimp (Key West Pinks), and the local smoked fish dip.
The raw oysters run $1.75 each at regular price, and are shucked to order, so at happy hour that comes to 88 cents each, or $10.56 for a dozen; less than one cocktail almost anywhere on Duval.
I walked in Monday right at 1 PM as the extended window was starting, and confirmed the hours with Sylvia while I was at it.
My oyster order: a dozen on ice, raw, with cocktail sauce and horseradish each served in their own oyster shell, two lime wedges, and saltines standing in a glass. That is the whole presentation, and it is all you need.
The bar is where many want to be, but there are only eight or so seats, so it fills fast. Monday at 1 PM in July, I had it to myself; it was hot enough outside that the entire staff was indoors in the AC, and I was the only customer at the bar.
Eventually, another gentleman sat down, and a guy wandered in for a to-go drink. That is the summer 1 PM crowd. Come at 5 PM in season, and it will certainly be a different story.
If Raw Is Not Your Thing
Pepe’s also bakes oysters, $13.50 per half dozen, in four styles: Florentine (breadcrumbs, spinach, Parmesan, and garlic butter), Mexican Roast (mild green chilies, Jack cheese, and tiger sauce), Rudi Style (Worcestershire, Parmesan, lemon pepper, and garlic butter), or the Medley, which gives you two of each.
The baked ones are included in happy hour, which brings a half dozen down to $6.75. Nobody in Key West is doing char-grilled oysters anymore; the Rudi Style is one of the closest things to it.
The Rest of Pepe’s Happy Hour
The fresh-squeezed margaritas are $6 during happy hour, and I had two, because it was hot and they were refreshing. Yuengling on draft is $1.50, house wines are $5 a glass, and well drinks and select domestic bottles are discounted too.
A half-pound of Key West Pinks and the smoked fish dip are both half off during the window, $16.95 regular, so call it $8.48 each; and the fish dip comes as a mound generous enough to be a meal on its own. A full afternoon here with oysters, shrimp, fish dip, and a couple of rounds still comes in under what a single round might cost you a few blocks away.
While You Are There
The oyster window overlaps with Pepe’s $19.95 summer specials, which cover breakfast, lunch, and dinner and each come with a drink. The full rundown is in the Summer Dining Specials post. They also started taking weekday breakfast reservations, which matters more than it sounds at this popular breakfast place.
Details
- Where: Pepe’s Cafe, 806 Caroline St
- Happy hour: 1:00–6:00 PM daily (summer schedule; normally 4–6 PM)
- The deal: half off raw oysters, baked oysters, peel-and-eat Key West Pinks, and smoked fish dip
- Oysters: raw 88 cents each during happy hour ($1.75 regular, shucked to order); baked $6.75 per half dozen during happy hour ($13.50 regular)
- Fish dip and half-pound shrimp: $16.95 regular, about $8.48 each during happy hour
- Drinks: $6 fresh-squeezed margaritas, $1.50 Yuengling drafts, $5 house wines; well drinks and select domestic bottles discounted
- Open: 7:30 AM–9:30 PM daily
More happy hours worth your afternoon are in the Key West Happy Hour Food Guide.