Jan Norris: Food and Florida

Ruth’s Chris Steak House at CityPlace, West Palm Beach

Happy hours: 5 – 7 p.m. daily.

The crowd: Expect to find the Kravis Center-showbound grabbing a bite before curtains up – the Performing Arts Center is across the street.

Surrounds: Comfortable high-back stools and linen-napped tables grace an elegant bar area adjoining the main dining area.

Barback: John was friendly and talkative, telling us about his favorite riding adventures when he saw our motorcycle helmets on the seat. He took time to suggest options for us off the menu.

The sips: Wines, beers and martinis all qualify as happy hour specials. The cocktails, however, are limited. The house wines, Mendocino Wine’s chardonnay, merlot and cabernet, can be had for $6  – not really a happy hour bargain. That’s $2 off the prime time price, however. There appears to be a choice of three martini specials, but John said that only one is usually selected as a special nightly. We were interested in the pear twist martini, and because we were early, John said we could have it. The wine was a nice pour. The martini was refreshing and a treat for pear lovers, at $7 – it’s usually $11.95

The noshes: The bistro menu is, technically, not a happy hour menu. It’s available any time. It consists of quick little bites, various salads, and soup. We chose the crab cake sliders, three small cakes with spicy mayonnaise, for $10. They weren’t all that spicy, just tasty. The ahi tuna sashimi, thinly sliced strips of tuna with a bit of garlic, cilantro, and soy lemon sauce , was enjoyable as well. No wasabi to watch out for, which I appreciated. We also shared a creamy lobster bisque, the soup of the day, for $9.

Tunes or noise: Some light background music filled in conversation gaps nicely.

Rating: 3 olives out of 5.

Ruth’s Chris Steak House, CityPlace

651 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach

561-514-3544; www.ruthschris.com

Open from 5 p.m. daily.

Carolyn Susman, a West Palm Beach reporter, covers happy hours in the area, giving the readers at JanNorris.com a look at where to go for great little plates, super sips and mellow music….after 5. Contact her at AfterFive@JanNorris.com .