The martini is back in fashion, and in a city where a single cocktail can easily cross $20, the ten-dollar version has become a small act of civic kindness. Drawing on a guide from LAist, here are five places around Los Angeles pouring a serious martini at happy-hour prices, and what makes each one worth the trip.

Cento Raw Bar, West Adams

At 4919 W. Adams Blvd., the sister spot to Cento Pasta Bar runs a "golden hour" from 5 to 6 p.m. daily. The martinis come gin or vodka, in color-blocked glassware, and the dirty version arrives with its olives on a separate dish. It is built to go with oysters, which is exactly what you should do.

Dante, Beverly Hills

Inside the Maybourne Hotel at 225 N. Canon Dr., the Los Angeles outpost of the New York institution offers happy hour from 3 to 5 p.m. daily. The dirty martini here is a specific recipe, Reyka vodka, olive oil, olive bitters and a pinch of salt, with chilled olives served alongside. It is the most classic-hotel-bar entry on the list, at a price the setting does not suggest.

Found Oyster, East Hollywood

A bustling seafood bistro at 4880 Fountain Ave., with happy hour from 4 to 6 p.m. daily. Order the martini with olives, an onion, or a twist; the generous dirty version comes with blue cheese-stuffed olives in a chilled Nick and Nora glass. Another strong seafood-and-martini pairing, which is not a coincidence: the two belong together.

Maydan, West Adams

For something that departs from the template, this Lebanese-inspired restaurant at 4301 W. Jefferson Blvd. pours a za'atar martini, olive-oil-washed vodka, dry vermouth and a sumac-sesame oil, during happy hour from 5 to 7 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday. It is the savory, herbal outlier of the group, and the most interesting drink on this list.

The Nice Guy, West Hollywood

At 401 N. La Cienega Blvd., the deal has a name: Martini Mondays, $10, in dry, dirty and espresso varieties, with live Italian jazz in the room. There is also a $30 martini-meal package if you want to make an evening of it.

The through-line

What these five share is not a style, they run from a purist's dirty martini to a za'atar experiment, but a proposition: that a well-made martini does not have to be a splurge. In a summer when going out has gotten expensive, a ten-dollar pour at a good bar is a small, genuine pleasure, and knowing where to find one is its own kind of local knowledge.