Green Beer and Frat Fatigue
by Audrey Ference
As I’m sure you know, St. Patrick’s Day is uponus. Now maybe I’m hanging out with the wrong crowd, but in my experience St. Paddy’s is celebrated primarily by two types of people: 1. Frat boys and 2. Irish people. And by Irish I mean white freckly American kids who have tattoos of shamrocks on their calves, or possibly some kind of Celtic knot on their lower backs.
I’m not Irish nor am I a frat boy, so for me St. Patrick’s Day has always fallen into the same category as Mardi Gras and Cinco de Mayo: vaguely alcohol-related holidays that feel a little dumb to be celebrating. You know what I mean? Like getting all het up about beads at some shitty bar in Hell’s Kitchen is almost more depressing than just admitting to yourself that you like to get drunk on Tuesdays.
Usually it’s pretty easy to sit out St. Patrick’s Day, but this year it’s on a Friday (and call me crazy, but I suspect you might be going out that night.) You’ll need to make a decision beforehand whether you want to give in and get date-raped by some green-mouthed NYU junior or try and avoid the whole thing. For the latter, I would advise going anywhere that charges more than $8 for a drink (and isn’t in the Meatpacking District. But really if you were planning on going anywhere near Little West 12th Street on a Friday night then my advice probably isn’t for you anyway). Consider it a down payment on your self-respect.
Those who decide to give in to the madness have many, many choices of venue. Safe to say that pretty much any Irish bar’s going to have some kind of green-tinted beer, and fratty wonderlands like Off the Wagon or No Idea are also good bets. But allow me to recommend Rocky O’Sullivan’s (29th and Lexington). Situated in lovely Murray Hill, Rocky O’Sullivan’s grabs both current and ex-frat boys for that awesome time-lapse effect (the hairlines, how quickly they recede). Also, it has the advantage of always being one million degrees and packed with screaming drunks. Seriously, I went there on a Thursday (don’t ask) and saw I-bankers cheering for men’s figure skating. So Happy St. Paddy’s Day, my pets, and a hearty “begorrah” to you all. I’ll be at SXSW.
For questions and comments, the writer can be reached at aference@thelmagazine.com
I’m not Irish nor am I a frat boy, so for me St. Patrick’s Day has always fallen into the same category as Mardi Gras and Cinco de Mayo: vaguely alcohol-related holidays that feel a little dumb to be celebrating. You know what I mean? Like getting all het up about beads at some shitty bar in Hell’s Kitchen is almost more depressing than just admitting to yourself that you like to get drunk on Tuesdays.
Usually it’s pretty easy to sit out St. Patrick’s Day, but this year it’s on a Friday (and call me crazy, but I suspect you might be going out that night.) You’ll need to make a decision beforehand whether you want to give in and get date-raped by some green-mouthed NYU junior or try and avoid the whole thing. For the latter, I would advise going anywhere that charges more than $8 for a drink (and isn’t in the Meatpacking District. But really if you were planning on going anywhere near Little West 12th Street on a Friday night then my advice probably isn’t for you anyway). Consider it a down payment on your self-respect.
Those who decide to give in to the madness have many, many choices of venue. Safe to say that pretty much any Irish bar’s going to have some kind of green-tinted beer, and fratty wonderlands like Off the Wagon or No Idea are also good bets. But allow me to recommend Rocky O’Sullivan’s (29th and Lexington). Situated in lovely Murray Hill, Rocky O’Sullivan’s grabs both current and ex-frat boys for that awesome time-lapse effect (the hairlines, how quickly they recede). Also, it has the advantage of always being one million degrees and packed with screaming drunks. Seriously, I went there on a Thursday (don’t ask) and saw I-bankers cheering for men’s figure skating. So Happy St. Paddy’s Day, my pets, and a hearty “begorrah” to you all. I’ll be at SXSW.
For questions and comments, the writer can be reached at aference@thelmagazine.com
