If knowing that a Saturday St. Patrick’s Day means having all day Sunday to recover from feeling green makes you want to put an O’ in front of your name, then Charlotte has a little something for the leprechaun in you on March 17th.
Kick things off at Ri Ra’s Irish Pub (208 N. Tryon St.). Parking garages are plentiful in the area or take the LYNX light rail to the 7th Street Station and walk two blocks west to Tryon St. While Ri Ra claims it to be St. Patrick’s Day all year long, Saturday the 17th is the only day of the year they will open their doors at 7 a.m. Sham-rock out to the band Crashbox at 10 a.m. while enjoying various traditional Irish pub eats. Eating from their hearty menu will ensure you’ll be able to Erin Go Braugh all day long. Be sure to riverdance back out to the street at 11:00am to catch Charlotte’s 16th Annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade (parade route runs between 9th St. and 3rd St. on Tryon St.). Following the parade, make your Gal-way around the corner to Connolly’s on Fifth (115 E. Fifth St.) to watch Ireland do battle with England at noon in a 6 Nations Rugby match. After relaxing with the perfect pint on Connolly’s outdoor patio, chase the snakes two blocks south and one block east to the Epicentre (210 E. Trade St.) where you’ll find a pot of gold at the end of your St. Patrick’s Day rainbow. Along with traditional American bars such as Black Finn’s Pub and the Whisky River Saloon, the Epicentre is also home to Howl at the Moon dueling piano bar and StrikeCity Bowling. And if exclusive nightclubs like Suite and Kazba aren’t your style, head 30 minutes south (by car and designated driver) to McHale’s Irish Pub (122 E. Main St.) in Rock Hill, South Carolina. Main Street U.S.A it may be, Average Joe St. Patrick’s Day it is not. Live music, drink specials and an occasional uilleann pipes procession highlight this very popular local event.
So be sure to take advantage of this year’s Saturday St. Patrick’s Day, in Charlotte or anywhere else. The international celebration won’t fall on a Saturday again until 2018 and then 2029 after that.