The spot: Garduños Margarita Factory, 3155 W. Chandler Blvd., Chandler

Happy hour: 3:30 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday

The vibe: We love the music at Garduños when we stop by on a Wednesday evening. We hear everything from Simple Plan to Better Than Ezra to Three Doors Down. The atmosphere is festive and the architecture makes the restaurant look like something straight out of Mexico. About 20 people — mainly couples and small groups of friends in their 20s to 40s who are drinking colorful margaritas — mingle in the bar area where happy hour is featured. There is a complimentary buffet — which is offered from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday — and features refried beans, veggies, chips and salsa and some sort of spicy beef dish.

The food deals: $2.99 green chile sliders, spicy chicken tenders, papas rellenas (potato skins), hatch chile quesadilla, nacho grande, inferno chicken wings, chimi los colores, los amigos tacos and taquitos and fajita taco grande.

The drink deals: $2 domestic drafts; $3 import drafts, house wine and well drinks, $3.75 house margaritas; $4 fruit margaritas; $6.95 domestic pitchers and $10.95 import pitchers.

The review: You know the saying, “You get what you pay for?” That best sums up the Garduños happy hour experience. We wish the food was as good as the music, but it's nothing extraordinary. In fact, it's quite mediocre. The Los Amigos dish is a combination of three small beef tacos and three equally small and crispy chicken taquitos which are served with sides of chile con queso and red chile salsa. Though the dish isn't bad, it doesn't wow us. And neither does the quesadilla. It's small and filled with melted cheese and green chiles. It's supposed to come with a side of sour cream but our server only brings it out with guacamole. The strawberry margarita is our favorite item. It's frozen, sweet and oh-so delicious. The happy hour doesn't leave a dent in our wallet but it certainly doesn't leave us full either.

The inside scoop: The restaurant and bar does a reverse happy hour from 9 to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9 to 11 p.m. Friday. Info: and www. margaritafactory.com