Sláinte !!4 min read

One of my favorite days of the year is upon us. Hello, St. Patrick’s Day! My sisters and I declare this a holiday and start off in the wee hours of the morn’.  I am going to give you a list of some of our fave stops and some on the list for this year.

Some info I think you need before you head out in your green attire to drink green beer ;)

• March 17th is the Feast Day of St. Patrick, the patron Saint of Ireland, and the day of his death. Of course we celebrate this because if you are Irish they say there isn’t a huge difference between a wake and a keg party!

• The three-leaved shamrock is what St. Patrick used to explain the Holy Trinity.

• For the feast of St. Patrick, Christians traditionally attend church. Since St. Pat’s falls on a Friday this year––which is a day to abstain from meat––this Lenten restriction and the abstaining from alcohol is lifted for the day!! :)

• Pinching someone who is not wearing green comes from when the English invaded Ireland. It was dangerous to wear green and, if you did, you could be killed so the people that wore green would pinch the others for having lack of pride!

Some sayings you can practice before heading out so you can really look and sound the part! Click here for video on pronunciation.

• Erin Go Brah: the English translation from Erin go Brách literally means Ireland until the end or Ireland until eternity.
• Dia is Dhuit: a greeting meaning Good Day and, to respond, you say, “Dia is Muire Duit,” meaning God & Mary with you
• Pog Mo Thóin (pronounced “Pug ma hone”): Kiss my a**…this might come in handy ;)
• Craic (pronounced “crack”): means good time…or party time
• Sláinte (pronounced “shlanta”): Cheers!! Will be used 100 times, for sure.

Now, where to go to celebrate!! Really, every bar does something fun, and you may want to make sure you go where there’s a TV for the games!

I think Northern KY is a blast on St. Patty’s Day! They block off streets in Mainstrasse, which is tons of fun (though weather might make it less fun this year). People dress up in all kinds of crazy costumes. Be sure to take a pic with everyone!

Remember you can’t drink all day if you don’t start in the morning!!

• Molly Malone’s – 112 E. 4th St. Covington
Open at 7:00 for Kegs & Eggs. WEBN hosts the party, along with live music starting at 10:30. Irish dancers and bagpipers will be around .  The Pleasant Ridge Molly Malone’s- 6111 Montgomery will also open at 7:00 and give 100 t-shirts away.  Same fun stuff going on all day.

• Cock & Bull- three locations – 601 Main St. in Covington (blocked street for partying), 2645 Erie Ave. in Hyde Park and 27 E. Sharon Rd. in Glendale.
Opens at 6:00am with green eggs & ham AND Guinness pancakes!! Free T-shirts while they last!
Make sure to hit all the little pubs in the NKY area there are some really cute places!

• Crowley’s Irish Pub in Mt. Adams – 958 Pavillion St. $2.50 shot specials, Girl Scout Cookies & Irish Cuddles…? I will be checking this deal out! ;)

• Nicholson’s – 625 Walnut St. in downtown Cincinnati. Opens at 11:00, so while at work, you might start feeling like you have a “very important meeting” around 11!
Irish Sinker, Jell-O shots and more.

• The Pub in Rookwood – 2692 Madison Rd.  Open at 6:00 a.m. Kegs & Eggs buffet, bands all day, photo booth, bagpipers & Irish Dancers!

• R.P. McMurphy’s  in Hyde Park  – 2910 Wasson Rd.   Open at 8:00 a.m.
Green beer and, starting at noon, food trucks to fill your belly!

• Hap’s Irish Pub in Hyde Park – 3510 Erie Ave. Opens at 7:00 a.m.
Full Irish breakfast – Rashers, bangers, potatoes and more.  Irish Dancers and bagpipers throughout the day. This is always a must!

• O’Bryon’s Bar & Grill in O’Bryonville – 1998 Madison Rd.  Open at 9:00 a.m.
Irish Dancers, Green Shark Tanks! Irish Car Bomb, Jell-O shots and Irish Breakfast!

• Dingle House in West Chester – 9102 West Chester Town Center Dr. Opens at 8:00 a.m. Kegs & Eggs, live music at 11:00, special beer tapping and more!

• Woodburn Brewery in Walnut Hills- 2800 Woodburn
Open 7:00 for Kegs & Eggs – Chef from Cozy Café cooking it up! Then, in the evening, Mazunté will be doing Mexican with an Irish twist!

• Fogarty’s Irish Pub in Cheviot- 3620 Harrison Ave.  HOLY NIGHT opens at 5:30 a.m. (why go to sleep?)!
First 150 people get a free t-shirt, free breakfast, Irish coffee, Tullamore Dew tasting $15!

• Trinity Gastro Pub in West Chester– 8953 Princeton Glendale Rd. Opens at 11:00 a.m.
Irish beer, bands and food!

A side note… If you see the McGing Irish Dancers–– who are always out and about all day trying to hit every bar in town–– and they’re passing a hat for donations, please throw in some cash. These kids will be using the money to go to Dublin for the World Championships for Irish Dancers!