Pubs anticipate spirited weekend
Large crowds, live music, Irish dancers and plenty of Guinness will be on tap across Niagara
If you want an idea how busy Doc Magilligan’s Restaurant & Irish Pub expects to be for St. Patrick’s Day, the Niagara Falls establishment has brought in 35 kegs of Guinness.
“The phone has been ringing off the hook,” said Ken Ahern, general manager of the Lundy’s Lane business.
“We have bands scheduled until 1 (a.m.), but the crowd could dissipate by 11 (p.m.) because people have to work the next day. We’re anticipating Saturday being where most people do go out and party.”
Irish-style pubs across Niagara are preparing for their biggest day of the year, with some deciding to make it a weeklong celebration, with live entertainment and other activities leading up to St. Patrick’s Day on Sunday.
Doc’s started last Sunday, with its weekly Irish and folk music jam session, followed by Irish-style trivia Tuesday and a solo artist performing Wednesday and Thursday.
Live music will continue Friday and throughout the weekend, with a piper getting things started Sunday by playing through the pub.
The pub area seats 312 but has an overflow room where people can hang out and have a drink, which will also feature live entertainment, while waiting for a spot.
Adam Brooker, general manager of The Irish Harp, said Sunday will be “extremely busy” with lineups down the street of people waiting about 45 minutes to get into the Niagara-on-the-Lake establishment.
He said a wheel will be outside that waiting patrons can spin to win prizes, such as sunglasses, key chains, hat, and memorabilia the pub has received from Guinness and other Irish-related companies.
Brooker said along with 23 beers, live music will be on tap between noon and 11:30 p.m.
“Usually, I would say in a week we would sell about seven to eight kegs of Guinness. On (St. Patrick’s Day) alone, we sell seven to eight kegs of Guinness, so a week’s worth of sales just on St. Patrick’s Day and that’s only Guinness. That doesn’t include all the other brands I have. All of them are double the sales on St. Patrick’s Day. The turnaround is so crazy that we only have 20-ounce plastic cups because we can’t wash (glasses) fast enough.”
Maggie Jakubiak-MacDougall, one of the owners of The Feathery Pub in St. Catharines, said she expects it to be “crazy all day and night” Sunday, but that it will likely be busier during the day and afternoon because many people work Monday.
She said live music will start at 2 p.m., while Irish dancers will perform at 5.
“Our menu is catered to all Irish stuff. Last year, (St. Patrick’s Day fell on) a Friday, so the Thursday night did get a little bit busy for us as well, and then Friday and Saturday it kind of continued, so I’m assuming that Saturday (this year) will be a busy day as well for us.”
Cheryl Girard-Blais, owner of Ye Olde Squire in Welland, said “people are ready to have a good time.”
“We’ve all had the winter blues, right?” she said. “It’s the busiest day of the year for us, for our style of restaurant.”
Girard-Blais said the morning will start out with a traditional Englishstyle breakfast, while the rest of the day will feature an Irish-style menu.
There will also be live music throughout the day, along with Irish dancers at 6 p.m.
She said being accessible from inside Seaway Mall is a “positive thing” for the business, especially on St. Patrick’s Day.
“That kind of helps us grab some attention that way with people walking by and whatnot and then the music is playing, and we have balloons and everything set up. It’s an open to close kind of day (for staff) and everyone is super excited. We try and make it fun.”
Irish-style pubs across Niagara are preparing for their biggest day of the year, with some deciding to make it a weeklong celebration