It's all about the Showbox Sodo, surprisingly! They have a full menu, with burgers, salads, and sandwiches, all in the 7-10 dollar range. The best part is, all beers are $2 off before/during Mariners' games. You can get tallboys of PBR for $2.50. AND! It's only like 2 blocks away from SafeCo, and usually fairly empty.

Saigon Deli up Jackson for some Vietnamese Sandwiches, then to Uwajimaya for some snacks and liters of Korean Hite beer to down before the game.

I second Hooverville. Free peanuts are awesome!

I like going to Marcus' Martini Heaven in Pioneer Square. I've never had the food, but the drinks are great! Their happy hour is 7 days/week from 4-7pm.

Elysian Fields. Ok, so may not be the cheapest beer in town, but it has some of the best beer in town, and definitely within walking distance of the stadium.

Triangle tavern. Big & cheap beer and booze. Fried food and the occasional hot dog guy outside.

Collins Pub isn't super cheap, but they have the best beer selection within a 10-minute walk of Safeco. Beers are $1 off from 4-6 M-F, and there's happy hour snacks as well. Meat eaters: go with the lamb sliders.

The Pyramid brewpub and Elysian Fields are much closer, but Elysian's beer is overpriced(and the food's iffy) and Pyramid's beer just isn't worth it IMO.

The bus on the way. Cheers!

I like Hooverville I'm not sure on their food though.

King Street Bar & Oven has an acceptable happy hour during optimal pre night game times.

For whatever reason, I usually end up at Slugger's, but it's not really cheap or great. Just go there out of habit. I do like that they usually have 3 or 4 different baseball games on, though. The $6 24 oz beer isn't too bad either. This last Friday, I went to the Hawks Nest and was totally surprised. Looked fratty/lame on the outside, but waaay bigger than you would think and nicer and much cheaper. They have a pre-game special of a tall boy (pbr and kokanee) and a shot for $7. For as many people as were in there, the service was great and the food wasn't bad. I would totally recommend the Hawk's Nest. It's also like a block to the stadium from there. Awesome.

Any place in Pioneer Square for drinks, but I prefer the place in the Triangle building near the SR-99 Viaduct offramp.

Snacks are best bought in the alley to the south of Sounders Field (aka Safeco).