Originally Uploaded to flickr by Spiros2004
Okay, okay. Yes, we all know that St. Paddy’s Day is amateur night, second only to maybe New Year’s Eve. But, I am still a fan as it allows me to get all nostalgic for my days living in Dublin, drinking pints at Mulligan’s and the International Bar, and making fun of the American tourists in their newly-procured Aran fisherman’s sweaters and tweed caps at the Stags Head. St. Patrick’s Day is also a good warm up for my favorite “holiday” of the year, March Madness (stay tuned later this week for my post on where to watch the first round on the Hill), which gets underway on Thursday of this week.
So, if you’re going to venture out, there’s no need to leave Capitol Hill for your St. Paddy’s drinking needs. You’ve got plenty of options from H Street to Barracks Row for cheap Jameson shots and Guinness pints. (Keep checking back for more updates as I get them!)
I would be remiss if I didn’t start with those Capitol Hill institutions: The Dubliner and Kelly’s Irish Times. Should you choose to celebrate with every other human being in a 10 mile radius, these two have you covered. I’m not going to lie: I’d rather stab myself in the eye with a rusty spork than set foot inside one of these places on St. Patrick’s Day, but hey, it’s entirely possible that you actually enjoy paying a $10 cover to buy an overpriced beer which you’ll then attempt to drink while getting elbowed in the back every minute or so by no fewer than 17 low-level Hill staffers. It’s something every hard-drinking Washingtonian should experience once or twice. Plus, the doors open at 10am, so it might not be a bad spot to start your day. Plenty more choices after the jump…
Also starting the day at 10am is Molly Malone’s on Barracks Row. Molly’s – or, the Tart with the Cart if you prefer – and I have mended fences, so I feel okay recommending this as an excellent place to start your St. Pat’s off right. They’ll be running food and drink specials all day on Guinness, Smithwick’s, and all things Irish. They’ll have two bands, the first of which will start at 4pm, and they’ll be playing all night. Lola’s will be doing their more laid-back thing next door, offering us older folks a respite from all the revelry at their bar and/or in their courtyard.
If you’d like to support your neighborhood Chamber of Commerce, CHAMPS is hosting their Quarterly Meeting at the Credit Union House on Stanton Park from 6pm-8pm and will feature food provided by local celebrity chef Teddy Folkman and the soon-to-be-open Star & Shamrock as well as an Irish whiskey tasting. $25 gains you access to this all-inclusive event, and it’s open to the public. (Full disclosure: I’m organizing this event for CHAMPS.) You can RSVP online at the CHAMPS website or pay your $25 at the door.
Never one to miss an opportunity to party, the Argonaut will have corned beef and cabbage on special and will be offering $4 shots of Jameson all night.
Are you one of those people who thinks it’s not St. Patrick’s Day without green beer? If so then head to Union Pub for $8 Bud/BudLight buckets, $5 Jameson shots, $8 Irish Car Bombs and yes, green beer. (I would be remiss if I didn’t take this opportunity to let you know that if green beer is your drink of choice tomorrow, I am very, very disappointed in you.)
For an undoubtedly more low key affair, head to Trusty’s on the east end of Pennsylvania Ave. SE for an extended happy hour from 4pm-9pm.
Should you wish to celebrate the Irish with tacos and ‘ritas, well, the H Street Country Club has their usual Wednesday special of $1 tacos with a drink purchase.
18th Amendment – a bar that I always forget how much I like until I go there and think, “I need to drink here more often” – will have $5 pints of Guinness & Smithwick’s along with $5 Jameson shots all night.
Neighborhood favorite Tunnicliff’s never disappoints and this St. Pat’s is no different. They’re serving up $4 Jameson shots and Guinness pints, $3 Black & Tans and PBR Tall Boys and $2 Bud Light drafts.
Last, but never, ever least, the Pour House will open at 2pm with $3 pints and $12 pitchers of Yuengling, happy hour starts when they open and they asked me to remind you to try their new specialty beers list on all three levels!
So get out there and celebrate Lá Fhéile Pádraig on the Hill! And please remember that there aren’t many things worse than drinking green beer and puking on your date’s shoes, but drinking and driving is definitely one of them. Call SoberRideDC at 1.800.200.TAXI (8294) for a free ride if you’ve had too much from 4pm to 4am.