Posh Pearl District eatery Silk is an exotic vessel afloat in a sea of fusion restaurants, and its happy hour (Silky Hour) is the bright sail attached to the mast. All nautical themes aside, this is a place where ten dollars lets you ?n v?t (eat a snack) of legit Vietnamese fare. An extensive cocktail list is the perfect pairing to the food specials served from 4-7 pm daily, but the mixed drinks (while delicious and full of unexpected ingredients) are a little pricey for the happy hour crowd. So if you will, follow my lead and choose street fare mixed with a little high society. A bottle of Ba M??i Ba (33), a bona fide Vi?t bia (Vietnamese beer), will cost you $4.50 for the import tax, but other local brews are on tap for between $4-5, including the not-so-local Japanese Kirin. Partner that with an enormous bowl of beef or chicken ph? for $5 and you won’t leave with an empty stomach. And a drink is a must because that noodle soup can get downright fiery with the addition of the jalapenos and hot sauce served on the side with the traditional basil, mint, plum sauce, bean sprouts and a wedge of lime.

If soup isn’t your bowl, then the Crazy Noodles ($6), Vietnamese salad rolls ($4), crispy rolls ($5) and caramelized chicken wings ($4) are all excellent distractions. Leave the _bánh mì _($5, multiple varieties) for another day though, because this street sandwich staple only hesitantly makes the transition from food cart to fine dining. Silky Hour is good enough to impress a date or a business associate in equal portions, but it’s an occasion that doesn’t lose sight of its open-air market roots.