I love New York! Where else can you see a show and have dinner for about $50?

We headed downtown to the East Village to the Connelly Theatre to see Gabe Mollica in Solo, his acclaimed one-man play about friendship, following sold-out runs at the Soho Playhouse and Edinburgh Fringe. We purchased the tickets for $4.95 from Theater Extras.

We stopped at the Lower East Side Mexican restaurant Rosie’s from the owners of Cookshop, Shukette and Vics. Lucky us, it was during their happy hour. We started with their margaritas. I had the chile-infused tequila picante one, my dining partner the “classic.”

Whenever a server stopped at our table wearing a shirt with “Rosie” embroidered over the pocket, we asked if their name was Rosie. Not. We were told they would send Rosie to our table. Rosie is a server who’s worked for the company for many years at their other establishments. She told the story of how the restaurant was named after her!

We then ordered one of each of their five offerings. We started with the ($10) guacamole sans tomatoes with chips and salsa. I mentioned the tomatoes, as that made my dining partner happy. He can’t eat fresh ones.

We ordered two tacos de pollo ($5) filled with guajillo chile-grille chicken with morita salsa. That taco was so full-of-flavor delicious that I’d go back for that and a margie! Yes, that good.

Our friendly server placed the quesadilla ($3), a soft tortilla with quesos Oaxaca and Chihuahua, with a charred chipotle-tomato salsa and the gordita ($5), a filled masa pocket with fresh Chihuahua and Oaxaca with shredded lettuces, pico de Gallo, tomatillo salsa & crema on the table on a wooden board.

We also enjoyed the crispy taquitos (two for $6) filled with potatoes and queso blanco, topped with a jalapeno-cabbage slow and a crema-tomatillo salsa.

We had already asked for our bill so we could get to theatre on time when our server brought us — gratis — their addictive hot-from-the-frier churros with spicy chocolate sauce.

I highly recommend a trip to Rosie’s happy hour.

Happy Hour details as of 10.25.2023
Hours: All day Monday – Friday at the bar until 7 p.m. + 9 p.m. until close; all day until 6 p.m. in the dining room
What’s happy? Five food selections $3 – $10, including a taco de pollo $5 and guacamole and chips $10; ; $5 beer and tequila shots; $7 rose, and $10 margaritas
How happy? *** (three out of three stars)

Rosies
Lower East Side
29 East 2nd Street
New York, NY 10003
212.335.0114
rosiesnyc.com