St. Patrick’s Day is almost here, and we couldn’t be more excited! St. Paddy’s is one of our favorite days of the year in Portland because there are so many locations that love to go hard for the holiday, offering great deals and special Irish menus – everyone’s Irish on St. Paddy’s Day!
This year St. Patrick’s Day falls on a Friday, which is even more reason to party hard, but if you’re not willing to wait until the 17th, we’re highlighting a few options kicking off this week, so you can get your Irish on a little early.
So grab your best green outfit, choose between Guinness or green beer (why not both?), and get out there!
Did we miss one? Let us know on Instagram: @portlandolport, or by email: info@portlandoldport.com.
Featured Festivities
Amigos Mexican Restaurant: Kick off your St. Patrick’s Day early with Amigos and the Meet on the Street food truck! They’ll be hosting an Irish-inspired Collaborative Kitchen event on Wednesday, March 15th from 5PM until they sell out of food.
Come back to Amigos the next day for the main event, as they open their doors at noon, instead of 3PM.
Batson River Brewing & Distilling: They’re going all out this year from 4PM – 10PM with live music, special menu items, and beer and whiskey pairings throughout the day! They have three Irish beers set to release, and they’ll be pairing them with Irish whiskeys in their back bar for a full Irish experience.
Follow it up with a corned beef & cabbage pizza, or an Irish Reuben, and dance to live music from Finley’s Four Provinces Quartet from 6PM – 8PM!
Batson is even pushing celebrations into Saturday, with a hangover brunch of Kegs & Eggs from 11AM – 2PM, with more of their Irish beer, and Irish coffees to kickstart the day.
Gritty McDuff’s: Start your St. Paddy’s Day early at Gritty’s! They are opening their doors at 8AM, serving up a special Irish-inspired Brunch menu until 11AM, with more St. Patrick’s Day food after that, with staples such as Corned Beef & Cabbage.
St. Paddy’s also brings the return of their famous Special Oatmeal Stout beer, and they’ll have the Kora Highlanders Bagpipe & Drum Band live in the pub starting at 3:30PM.
If you need more reason to stop in, they’ll be just one stop on a two day long St. Patrick’s Day Bar Crawl, happening both Friday and Saturday, from 4PM – 10PM, serving up $4 Green Tea shots, $5 well vodka sodas, and $5 Scottish Ales to bar crawl participants. They’ll also be host to the Bar Crawl Afterparty on Friday, from 10PM-midnight, where voucher holders can get a free green tea shot.
The Independent Ice Co: Get your corned beef fix with corned beef sliders and a side of cabbage, plus $5 Guinness pints. Top off the night with an Irish Cream Cafe and a Bourbon Banana Bread Pudding or house-made Guinness cupcakes with Baileys frosting.
Nosh Kitchen Bar: Get your St. Paddy’s Day Reuben fix at Nosh. Only on the 17th, they’ll be serving up a Special Reuben with in-house brined brisket, 1000 Island Slaw, and Swiss on Marble Rye bread. Wash it down with a $5 pint of local red ale (or three)!
Rigby Yard: From 9 AM – 4 PM, the Rigby Yard Cafe is serving a Matcha Green Cocktail, house-made Guinness cupcakes with Baileys frosting, and a full bar available all day.
Starting at 11AM, feast on house-made corned beef sliders with a side of cabbage, and $5 Guinness pints all day. Don’t skip out on the “Irish Cream Cafe,” their take on an Irish coffee, and a Bourbon Banana Bread for dessert.
Reservations are available on their website. Walk-ins are also accepted.
Shays Grill Pub: Kick off your day with a St. Patrick’s Day Brunch Menu at Shays served from 9AM – 11AM, including a House Ground Corned Beef Breakfast burger, Guinness, Bloody Marys and more.
At 11AM, they start serving up lunch until 9PM with specials including Corned Beef Eggrolls, a Corned Beef Dinner and more!
The Thirsty Pig: Get your fix of great folk tunes on your St. Paddy’s with Willy Martin & The Woods performing live in the pub from 2-3PM. Add in a fantastic beer list, and you’ve got yourself a pretty good Irish holiday.
Three Dollar Deweys: You can’t drink all day if you don’t start in the morning! Deweys’ doors will be opening at 7AM on St. Patrick’s Day, with an $11 Breakfast special including scrambled eggs, bacon and home fries. Later in the day they’ll have a $15 Corned Beef & Cabbage special, and they’ll be pouring $7 pints of Guinness all day long.
Pick Your St. Paddy's Party
Maine Irish Heritage Center: It’s never too early to start celebrating St. Paddy’s, and one of Portland’s biggest SPD events is actually happening this Sunday, March 12th.
The Irish American Club’s St. Patrick’s Parade kicks off at noon at the intersection of Commercial Street and Center Street, and continues down Commercial to Bell Buoy Park. The parade is the largest celebration of Irish and Irish-American culture north of Boston is always a highlight for St. Paddy’s festivities in Portland, including two bagpipe and drum bands, Irish dancers, local sports mascots and more.
This year, the parade will be followed by an open house at the Maine Irish Heritage Center for tours, music and family fun, beginning at 1PM. They’ll have food trucks and beverages on hand, as well as a few more surprises!
Après: They’ll be serving up an Irish variation of their canned 7 Majors Hard Seltzer for St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Think a green slushie Arnold Palmer with alcohol (sign me up). They’ll also be taking care of all those St. Paddy’s Day DD’s, with complimentary non-alcoholic seltzers all through the weekend.
Bull Feeney’s: This authentic Irish pub and restaurant is holding their 1st St. Patrick’s Day celebration since 2019 and going all out.
Opening at 10AM, stop on in for live music all afternoon and night, an Irish buffet from 10AM – 6PM with Shepard’s Pie, boiled dinner, and more and plenty of Guinness.
Bunker Brewing Co: Score $5 pints on their Nitro Oatmeal Stout and their “Green” Machine Pilz. Plus, they’ll be joined by the On a Roll food truck, who is coming up with some food collaborations made with some of Bunker’s own brews.
Commercial Street Pub: You can get in all the drinks you need for a proper St. Paddy’s Day with $3.75 Miller High Life bottles all day at the pub.
Dock Fore: They’ll be opening their doors early, beginning at 11AM, with their regular menu, as well as a St. Paddy’s Day menu, featuring Corned Beef & Cabbage sandwiches, and a Corned Beef & Cabbage pizza, and Irish flag Jell-O shots.
Free Street Portland: Stop by Free Street on St. Paddy’s Day for “Tip Me, I’m Irish,” a St. Patrick’s Day Burlesque with drunken karaoke (is there any other kind?).
The fun kicks off at 8PM, with a $20 cover for the show, $10 cover for the karaoke, or $25 for both! Don’t forget to wear green to avoid any pinches, and for $2 off your cover!
HiFi Donuts: Stop in to try their special HiFi Corn Beef Sandwich. They’ll also have a delicious St. Paddy’s Day donut on special, but the only way to know what it is is to follow them on social media.
Liquid Riot Bottling Company: Now through St. Patrick’s Day, you’ve got some amazing drink options to try out at Liquid Riot.
They’ve made their own Black & Tan featuring their Lagerbier topped with their Irish Goodbye Stout. Their Nama beer with a green brewers glitter to satisfy that green beer itch, and Irish Wolf Hound Shooter, for when you want something a bit stiffer.
Again these are all currently available, and will be through St. Patrick’s Day.
Munjoy Hill Tavern: The team over at Munjoy Hill Tavern are offering frozen drinks, green beer all day long, Miller pitchers for $12, Guiness for $4.25, Irish Car Bomb f0r $8, $4 domestics, Jameson for $7, Lucky day for $9 and a selection of Shamrock Shakes, either Jameson creme de mint and Island oasis ice cream mix, or a peppermint schnapps.
Novare Res Bier Cafe: Novare’s known for finding those niche foreign beers you won’t find anywhere else, and this St. Patrick’s Day will be no different.
They’ve special ordered a batch of OHara’s Dry Irish Stout straight from Ireland! They claim this is the best independently owned authentic Irish Dry Stout they’ve come across – and they certainly know their beer!
Other Irish libations include Green Spot and Jamesome whiskeys, and an Irish-style Red ale from Airline Brewing in Ellsworth.
The Portland Club: Bring the whole family to this day-after party on Saturday, March 18th from 5PM – 11PM. They’ll have family-friendly Irish entertainment including music, dancers, raffles as well as complimentary food and drink!
Portland Club members are free (but still asked to “purchase” a free ticket online), advance tickets are $25 for adults, $5 for minors. $30 for adults, $10 for minors at the door.
Rí Rá Portland: If you’re looking to party for a week straight this St. Paddy’s Day, Rí Rá has got you covered. Rí Rá’s “Paddy Fest 2023” kicks off Saturday, March 11th with 6 Nations Rugby and live music, and they’ve got live music, rugby, trivia and more right up until the big day on March 17th.
As is tradition, Rí Rá kicks off their day with a 5:30AM plunge into East End Beach to benefit the Portland Firefighters Children’s Burn Foundation. Pub doors open at 6AM, with an Irish Buffet Breakfast, a raffle, Irish dancers, bagpipers, and more live music all afternoon. Come back on Saturday for even more 6 Nations Rugby and live music!
Rosie’s Restaurant & Pub: Opening early and closing late at 1am, the beloved pub will be throwing it down for St. Patrick’s Day with traditional corned beef dinner for $24 available 11 AM – 11 PM.
Thompson’s Point: Thompson’s Point is planning a wild “hair of the dog” weekend. On Saturday, March 18th, head to the Point from noon to 5PM for a beer hall with local craft brews, live music, green beer, food trucks and games, all with no cost to get in!
Make it a three day rally on Sunday, March 19th with the Thompson’s Point Maker’s Market, serving up “the best Bloody Marys east of the Mississippi,” along with great, local crafts, again with no fee for entry.
Two Fat Cats Bakery: St. Paddy’s Day preorders are available now through March 14th, for pickup on St. Paddy’s Day, on special items like Banoffee Pie, Irish Soda Bread, Irish Coffee Whoopie Pie and more. These holiday specials are available through the weekend, as supplies last, if you do not preorder.
We’ll be adding to this list as we get closer to the big day and more events and food and drink specials are announced, so be sure to check back regularly so you can come up with the best plan for how you want to spend your St. Paddy’s Day.
Did we miss one? Let us know on Instagram: @portlandolport, or by email: info@portlandoldport.com.
