Search hard, friends - for there are budget beverages to be had in tourist land, you just need to know where to find them. And we know. Because we're experts. And alcoholics. But in a fun way. Like the fat one off of Four Weddings.
Anyway...
We've searched out the best early drink deals in the area... How does a cocktail for £4 suit you? £10-off deals? Half price champers? Shots for £2.75?
Yes, it suits you very well.
This fun Mexican-themed bar gets extremely lively every single night of the week. The happy hour (which they've called 'amigo hour' here) is on till 8pm as well as all day Sundays and Mondays. Two cocktails are priced at £12, and the signature drinks are served in massive Mexican luchador masks.
At the London Cocktail Club the mixologists really know their stuff. If you don't fancy any of the drinks on the menu they'll ask you what your favourite spirit is and prepare something to your liking. They also do a fine line in food-infused drinks such as bacon and egg martinis. Get down there early for the happy hour when they offer two cocktails for £12.
Part of the Polpo stable, the Ape & Bird gastropub has a daily happy hour between 4 and 6pm. It's Italian-influenced the drinks follow suit, with negronis and spritzes for just a fiver (usually £7). It's located on Shaftesbury Avenue, perfect for a pre-theatre cocktail or three.
This southern-inspired diner has a happy hour every day of the week, with some selected cocktails costing a bargain £4. Choose from watermelon martinis with agave syrup, mojitos, or the cheekily named 'son of a peach' made with Stoli, peach liquor and fruit juices.
Naturally the speciality of this Soho beach shack-themed bar and restaurant is rum. Priced at only £4, there are Mai Tais, daiquiris, and lesser known cocktails like their signature Rattleskull Punch with Wray and Nephew, muscovado sugar, bitters and juices.
This Soho bar stays open till 3am so you can head there pre and post-show, although their target audience probably aren't people who've spent an evening watching King Lear at the Criterion. Not that we're being patronising, but Thirst is a sweaty, boozy, raucous club slash bar. Head down there before 10pm for absurdly priced shots at £2.75 each. Yep, boozy and raucous!
To kick off your theatrical evening with class, pop down to Mele & Pere on Brewer Street for a couple of glasses of vermouth (starting from £5) plus a plate of olives stuffed with spicy N'duja. This trattoria boasts the biggest selection of vermouth of anywhere else in the capital.
It may have all the trappings of a tourist chain, but who doesn't love a good bargain? The folks behind Dry Martini in Covent Garden are capitalising on this by serving a wide range of martinis, from the fruity to the classic dry gin with a twist. During happy hour they knock £10 off champagne and martinis are half price, making them only £4.50.
Cocktails at Wahaca's Azulito Bar on Wardour Street start from under £6. As this is a Mexican restaurant there are plent of margaritas on the drinks list. We particularly like the fact that they come with a double shot of vodka for only £6.95.