Having trouble getting in touch with your Irish roots this Saint Patrick’s Day? Not to worry. Large parties with lots of food, beer, and merry songs are a long-standing Irish tradition. The first thing you should do is go all-out with the color green. Ireland is known for its luscious rolling green acres and “lucky” green four-leaf clovers. To avoid the age-old tradition of pinching those who don’t wear green on Saint Patty’s Day, make sure to tell everyone to wear green to your party! Some students in Tallahassee may choose to embrace the color in their beer, while others prefer to stick to an article of green clothing. If you prefer not to drink green beer, there are great alternatives out there (and may I say much tastier) that will still have you singing along to your favorite pub song. If you are looking for beer, Guinness Stout is a famous traditional dark beer made in Ireland. If you are looking for a more milk-based drink, Irish coffee with a shot of Disaronno Amaretto or Bailey’s Irish Cream is another tasty favorite. However, if you prefer to skip the tasty drinks and get right down to business, you might like to try Irish whiskey. Irish whiskey can be used in several cocktail drinks such as an “Autumn Wind” or “Black and Red”.
Although it is often said that the Irish aren’t exactly known for their foods, there are several tasty yet handy recipes out there that are perfect for party finger foods. Stuffed potato skins are great for parties because they can be stuffed with a variety of food items including chopped peppers, pieces of meat, such as pepperoni and bacon, onions, olives, or cheese. A great complementary dish to any type of stuffed potatoes is celery sticks dipped in ranch or a vegetable platter of some sort. To make your food have an even bigger “Irish touch” and let your guests grab their grub more easily, stick some mini toothpick Ireland flags wherever necessary.
As for the entertainment at your party, you definitely want to sing some of the famous traditional Irish drinking songs. A great way for everyone to be able to sing along is to print out copies of each song’s lyrics and pass them around at the party. Some great song suggestions are “Danny Boy,” “Finnegan’s Wake,” “The Girl I Left Behind Me,” and my personal favorite, “Molly Malone.” Having been to Ireland myself, I can say that these songs are from the hearts of old-fashioned Irish bars.
For any games that you would like to entertain your guests with at your party, you can embrace the old tales of Leprechauns, gold, and luck. To make the night more interesting, hide several “golden nuggets” around your home and when someone finds one, they can redeem it for a prize like the best drink at the party. Another fun game is to have each person draw a tiny slip of paper from a hat when they arrive at the door. Each piece of paper will have a word written on it. These words will represent personalities for your guests to embody. You can choose to have your guests take on roles such as a common “Irishman,” a sneaky “Leprechaun,” or a “Saint Patrick” who keeps the leprechaun(s) from stealing everyone’s luck. Since Saint Patrick is also famous for driving all the snakes out of Ireland, you may also want to strategically place some plastic snakes around the apartment just for fun!
As Ireland’s traditional language, Gaelic is still used today in many wise sayings, short poems, and toasts. A fun way to embrace this Irish language is to place posters around your apartment with cute Irish blessings such as“May the saddest day of your future be no worse than the happiest day of your past,” “May you live to be a hundred years, with one extra year to repent,” or the forever famous “Erin go Bragh!”