Happy Bar & Grill
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Okay interior, cool wall art. Really wanted to love this place since all my Bulgarian friends have been raving about Happy but I was a bit underwhelmed. As in not quite "Happy". Menu is humongous. Hundreds of items from enterees (like fried cheese you can get from the frozen food section at Walmart), steaks, pizza, burgers even sushi. If you haven't been there before you need half an hour to decide. Overwhelming for first timers. It wasn't my first time so I was quick. I wanted to order the Beef burger but the waitress dissuaded me as it will take 15 min she said. I realised it's close to closing so I quickly picked the next in line to make it easy for her. Initially everything seemed fine, food looked nice and came quick: black risotto was very tasty, tchorbadjiiski peppers entree also quite tasty, however the main item - Paradise Burger was a bit of a disappointment (and I'm being nice here). Burger was tiny but fairly tasty, not great, pork content was miniscule, cheese was nothing special, bun was very tasty but soggy and disintegrated in your hands (literally 2 bites and it was gone both in structure and content). French fries that came with the burger were okay but minimal quantity as if we're living through the Great Depression or they ran out of McDonalds style frozen fries. Service was corporate friendly, robotic and uninspired (I was interrupted twice during my struggle with the disintegrating burger in my hands and full mouth with silly questions (plus she was standing there as if demanding an answer) first if everything was okay and then once again if I want to order something else, I mean I asked the girl in a muffled voice with full mouth (both times) first uh-huh and then whether she wants me to put down the crumbling burger, spit whatever's in my mouth and shuffle through the menu with greasy hands and give her an answer (even though the menu wasn't even present) I said I'll do it if her life depends on it to which thankfully she went her way. Very inconsidering. Quickly ordered the check and left. Disappointing. In fact after ordering 3 items on the menu I left hungry and got a burger at a street food joint a few blocks away at twice the size and 1/3rd of the cost of the Paradise burger and curiously was extremely satisfied with the size, taste and construction. If you're really hungry be prepared to order many different items or you will simply leave hungry. Service is good, not great (very scripted and robotic), premises nice, clean and fairly contemporary but cheesy (too American but missing the mark "bigly"). It's a mashup of Applebee's and Burger King but with small portions. My guess re its popularity is that it's a fine place to meet-up friends at a central location, food-wise it's a hit or miss. (Since it is not my first time at a Happy restaurant, mostly a miss). Price-wise (if you're a Westerner) it is okay but compared to other places it seems overpriced as in for the money you can do way way better.
Stan Veritas
00
Happy Bar & Grill is a Bulgarian chain restaurant with an incredibly huge menu composed of stylized pictures of their dishes. The actual food doesn’t look quite as good as the photos, but I’d like to say that it’s close! The menu has influences from many different cuisines, but the one thing that sticks out is.. sushi! Not authentic sushi, but creative, crazy-looking rolls filled with everything from fish to chicken to Philadelphia cream cheese. For example, the Burj al Arab was a stack of maki roll pieces stuffed with cream cheese with crispy chicken or raw salmon, topped with mayo, unagi sauce, and edible gold powder. Another unique roll was the Golden Peak, made with a red skin and a filling of crispy shrimp and cucumbers, topped with cream cheese, mayo, unagi sauce, and gold powder. The sushi rolls were certainly creative and over-the-top, but the quality wasn’t particularly outstanding. My favorite dish was the Corsica Salad, made of chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, chickpeas, avocado, onions, and olives, along with a smear of hummus, and all the components were fresh and flavorful. Going along with the Mediterranean theme, we also had the Falafel appetizer, which came with five flat, herbaceous fritters with whole chickpeas, served with a salad of spinach, beets, and carrots, and a yogurt sauce for dipping. The Quinoa with Seafood Salad was made of lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, and quinoa, topped with calamari and shrimp, all tossed in an acidic dressing. Finally, the Happy Meatballs were perfectly grilled, juicy, caramelized Greek-style meatballs (seasoned with oregano), served with a Greek salad made of chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, and crumbled feta. We also had the cheese bread on the side, a ciabatta roll stuffed with two types of cheese. Overall, the food here was diverse and creative, though nothing too spectacular. Nevertheless, the casual atmosphere and friendly service made this a fun restaurant to visit!
David Kwok
00
I was very impressed by HAPPY! We arrived early for lunch (around 11:20 am), hence, we were lucky enough to get a table straight away, as this place gets insanely busy, by 12:30 pm, there was a 30-45-min wait outside. The menu is absolutely incredible — there’s so much choice and each dish looks better than the one prior — it’s literally impossible to decide what to order. It’s a visual menu, so you can see what you’re ordering. The prices are extremely reasonable. Impressively, even thought the place got packed, we kept on receiving each order within minutes of placing it - this is a very well-oiled machine. The service is fantastic - everyone is really polite and very genuine. I love it how they say “Cheers” with each drink they served, as well as “Enjoy” with each meal. This was very consistent. When I went inside to use the washrooms, I saw an army of staff - no wonder they could handle a packed restaurant with such ease. The interior of the restaurant is very nice as well, and the washroom was not just pretty, but perfectly clean too. Now, the food… I ordered a Crispy Fish Quinoa Salad. The portion was very generous (470g) and it was absolutely delicious. The fish was cooked to perfection and (as the name suggests) it’s very crispy. The actual salad is seasoned perfectly and it was delicious. I also tasted my stepmom’s Wiener schnitzel and it was a perfection. I don’t know who I need to talk to get them to open a HAPPY franchise in Melbourne, Australia, but do yourself a favour and go there as soon as you read this review!
George Slavchev
00
It was the second restaurant we were recommended for our trip to Plovdiv. If we had discovered it on the first day, we would have eaten there for the rest of our stay. All our dishes were perfect, and the vibe of the place was lovely. Ideally, I would have preferred to sit deeper in the restaurant to enjoy the interior decor, but we weren't lucky and ended up at a table by the window. The food was delicious and the prices were fantastic. I couldn't help but eye the dishes at the neighboring tables and craved everything. Our waitress was attentive and cheerful. I recommend going during off-peak hours or making an online reservation. Even during off-peak times, there will still be a line, but don't get discouraged. The first time we went at 3:30 PM, there were 20 people ahead of us, so we left. However, the next day we went at 12:50 PM and there were only 10 people, and we were seated in under 10 minutes. I would definitely recommend it and would choose it again if I find it at another location since I learned it’s part of a restaurant chain. Additionally, something I really appreciated as a person who has undergone gastric sleeve surgery and can’t eat normal portions is that they agreed to pack the food I couldn’t finish into a takeout container, which I enjoyed in my hotel room. Of course, we left a tip through the card payment—unlike another restaurant in the center where I felt I was almost insulting them when I suggested it.
InsidiousElena
00
I ordered the seafood paella. It did not fit the picture on the menu but I was starving and I finished it even though it was salty as. I usually asked that no salt be added to my food but this time I forgot. The waitress Mia asked how my food was and I said it was too salty. She was very nice and said sorry and if she could bring me something else. I told her it is not a complain, just an honest testimony from me re the food. The next moment the manager came spoke to me nicely and asked if I want to try something else. I politely declined. And that to me , the attitude of the waitress and manager is a plus in my opinion and worth coming back for. But I am leaving Plovdiv tomorrow. So next time. Keep up the good service guys. The atmosphere is awesome as I had a drink last night outside. This time I dined indoors as it’s stinking hot out there. Last night there was a queue to get in and that in itself suggests it’s a nice place to hang out for meals.
rocky harding
00
Reliable place for a solid meal at all decent price. Their menu is extensive and all three things I tried were quite tasty, although the soup was served lukewarm rather than piping hot (this seems to be common in the Balkans). Portions are medium sized (pay attention to the portion size listed in grams), so if you're hungry order extra. The waitresses were quite friendly and didn't seem to have any issue that I waved them over rather than use the call buttons. And they are open late, so that's helpful when you arrive in the city after other places have already closed... I was informed that locals typically eat around 6pm, so restaurants tend to close fairly early compared to Western standards (i.e. 8pm).
Gena Sturgon
00
Nearby Attractions Of Happy Bar & Grill
Ancient Theatre of Philippopolis
“Tsar Simeon Garden” Park
Singing Fountains
Ancient Stadium of Philipopolis
Ice Cream House Afreddo
Old Town of Plovdiv
"Bunardzhika" Hill
Museum of Natural Sciences
Nebet Tepe
Sahat Tepe - Danov hill

Ancient Theatre of Philippopolis
4.8
(7.8K)
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“Tsar Simeon Garden” Park
4.8
(6.6K)
Click for details

Singing Fountains
4.7
(5.7K)
Click for details

Ancient Stadium of Philipopolis
4.7
(3.4K)
Click for details
Nearby Restaurants Of Happy Bar & Grill
Pavazh
Torro Grande / Торро Гранде
Rahat Tepe
Hemingway Restaurant
Aylyakria Restaurant
"Yuzhen Polah Pri Malak Bunardzhik" Restaurant
Smokini
Morado Bar & Dinner
Nedelya Bakery Store
Club Fargo

Pavazh
4.5
(2.8K)
$$
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Torro Grande / Торро Гранде
4.5
(2.6K)
$$
Click for details

Rahat Tepe
4.3
(1.9K)
$$
Click for details

Hemingway Restaurant
4.5
(1.4K)
$$
Click for details
Basic Info
Address
Plovdiv, Patriarh Evtimiy St 13, 4000, Bulgaria
Map
Phone
+359 700 20 888
Call
Website
happy.bg
Visit
Reviews
Overview
4.6
(3.7K reviews)
Ratings & Description
attractions: Ancient Theatre of Philippopolis, “Tsar Simeon Garden” Park, Singing Fountains, Ancient Stadium of Philipopolis, Ice Cream House Afreddo, Old Town of Plovdiv, "Bunardzhika" Hill, Museum of Natural Sciences, Nebet Tepe, Sahat Tepe - Danov hill, restaurants: Pavazh, Torro Grande / Торро Гранде, Rahat Tepe, Hemingway Restaurant, Aylyakria Restaurant, "Yuzhen Polah Pri Malak Bunardzhik" Restaurant, Smokini, Morado Bar & Dinner, Nedelya Bakery Store, Club Fargo
