St. Patrick’s Day is just around the corner! We are looking forward to all of the festivities taking place in the Omaha area, from Irish pub specials to our annual Omaha St. Patrick’s Day Parade — and everything green in between.
To ease your St. Paddy’s Day scheduling stress, we decided to hand select the best events happening in the area and tell you a little about them. This is a fun-filled, carefree and historic holiday that we think is worth experiencing to the fullest.
So do just that! Take part in these community events happening on (and before!) St. Patrick’s Day. SPOILER ALERT: One of the area’s biggest events, the Omaha St. Patrick’s Day Parade, is happening this Saturday, March 12, so make sure you don’t miss it by waiting until the week of St. Patrick’s Day to decide how you’ll celebrate. This is, in fact, one of Omaha’s most popular parades happening throughout the year!
But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s start with a run down on some local Irish pubs offering something special on their favorite day on the calendar. And more often than not, they’re willing to get the party started well before the 17th!
O’Connor’s Irish Pub
You could consider O’Connor’s Irish Pub your St. Patrick’s Day headquarters, as they are quite involved with the annual Omaha St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The parade actually culminates right at the doorstep of their pub, which makes for the perfect place to celebrate in true Irish fashion. They open at 8 a.m. that day, serving breakfast and lots of Irish coffees for $6. They also will be serving lunch with a limited menu and will have both of their floors open for business!
On St. Patrick’s Day, which falls on a Thursday this year, O’Connor’s will be opening early that day to commence the day’s festivities. They’ll offer some drink specials, including Irish coffees and Shamrock Shakes. O’Connor’s won’t serve food from their kitchen on the 17th, but will offer sack lunches packed with a corned beef and swiss sandwich and chips. And to top off the St. Paddy’s day fun, they’ll pass out lots of beads and pins until they run out!
Brazen Head Irish Pub
Brazen Head Irish Pub invites you to celebrate their favorite holiday with live Irish music, great food, and better beer — because the Irish sure love their beer! Brazen Head is opening their doors at 6 a.m. on the 17th, which means you can get the party started early.
Brazen Head was purposefully established to emulate the rich traditions that have made authentic Irish pubs famous. In fact, this Omaha staple mimics one Irish pub in particular — The Brazen Head on Bridge Street in Dublin, Ireland. They stay true to this model here in Omaha with a hearty food menu, including Irish pub fare, and a long beer list featuring some unique brews as well as the well-known basics.
If you make Brazen Head your destination this St. Patrick’s Day, you may just feel as though you’ve traveled to a different culture and continent!
The Dubliner Pub
The Dubliner Pub is a hidden gem in the Old Market — quite literally. This Irish pub is situated in the basement of the historic John A. Horbach building, which was named an Omaha landmark in 1979 and is included in the National Register of Historic Places.
What a place to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day! If you can’t travel to Ireland to take part in the celebration, you might as well raise a glass and experience an authentic Irish pub that truly is a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow.
Omaha St. Patrick’s Day Parade | March 12 from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for — the Omaha St. Patrick’s Day Parade!
This annual parade is hosted by the Ancient Order of Hibernians, a Catholic, Irish American fraternal organization founded in New York City in 1836. And this order traces its roots back to its parent organization of the same name, which has been active in Ireland for over 300 years. So you might say this organization knows what it’s doing when it comes to Irish holidays and traditions!
Therefore, the AOH’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade is a fun-filled celebration you don’t want to miss out on. Make your way to the Old Market area for the start of the parade at 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 12.
The parade will march through the Old Market area of downtown, starting on the intersection of 15th Street and Harney Street. It will travel east down Harney Street, make a right turn at 11th street, then another right turn on Howard Street. The parade will then end at the intersection of 14th Street and Howard Street.
Get a better view of the floats, cars and costumed participants by standing on one of the official viewing stands at The Old Chicago and O’Connor’s Irish Pub. (We told you O’Connor’s loves the parade!)
The official post-parade party will be held at Old Mattress Factory Bar, located a few blocks north of the parade. You can enjoy live Irish music, food and drinks in this historic 1883 building now hosting “Omaha’s best event bar”. Admission for adults 21 and over is $10 in cash, and those under 21 are free. Dig into $2 homemade corned beef sliders and chips for just $1. There will also be an all-cash bar available for guests over 21!
Fake Patty’s Day at North Shore Tavern | March 12 from 11 a.m. – 2 a.m.
The same day of the parade — Saturday, March 12 — you can party like it’s actually St. Patrick’s Day at North Shore Tavern’s Fake Patty’s Day celebration.
The purpose of this party is to provide an alternative option for those who are not able to take time off work to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. It will be an all-day party with specials you won’t want to miss. A mere $5 cover gets you some incredible drink specials, including $1 Jell-O shots, $2 domestic drafts, $7 domestic pitchers, $3 micro brew drafts, and $5 Vegas bombs! You can also participate in North Shore Tavern’s many giveaways happening all day.
St. Patrick’s Day Concert: Ayreheart | March 17 from 7 – 9 p.m.
Enjoy a true Irish music experience at a special St. Patrick’s Day concert performance featuring Ayreheart at First Unitarian Church of Omaha in their Common Room. Listen to Ayreheart’s eclectic musical mix including elements of folk, Celtic and bluegrass. This group of four musicians formed to feature the lute (the most popular Renaissance-era instrument) in a completely new context. They do so by mixing the ancient sound with vocals, eclectic bass, drums, hand percussions, guitar, violin, mandolin and komuz. Experience this unique sound for yourself by attending Aryeheart’s free concert performance on March 17. Keep in mind that a donation of $10 is recommended per person, and that free childcare will be provided by the church.
If It Wasn’t for Bad Luck Comedy Show | March 17 at 8 p.m.
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in an unconventional manner by laughing with critically acclaimed comedian Rachel Ware with her routine titled “If It Wasn’t for Bad Luck”. Rachel is an Omaha native who co-owns The Backline, a popular comedy club in Omaha. She has performed in over 20 stage productions and has been cast in four national running cartoon shows. Rachel regularly performs at The Backline, and teaches comedy classes for teens and adults.
This St. Patrick’s Day, Rachel will perform her comedic routine at Apollon, an art space providing creative space and resources for artists to learn and grow as part of the South Omaha community. Admission is just $5 at the door, and the show starts at 8 p.m.
Cheers, Omaha!
Now, get out there and get to celebrating. We wish you all the luck of the Irish during your St. Patrick’s Day festivities!
Photo Credit: O’Connor’s Irish Pub, Brazen Head Irish Pub, The Dubliner Pub, AOHOmaha.org