With a large Irish community in Groningen, many pubs will be celebrating St Patrick’s Day this year. But you don’t have to be Irish to celebrate, just make sure to wear green!
O’Malley’s / Pacific
O’Malley’s is likely the best-known Irish pub in Groningen. They will be open the whole day on St. Patrick’s Day, until late, and will be serving your usual Guinness and other Irish ciders and beers while live music will be playing. They also will be serving chips but no sit down food like usual for the day.
O’Malley’s usually gets very busy on St. Patrick’s Day, so it’s smart to come earlier in the evening for drinks as it will be packed to the brim. They will open at 12:00. The Irish will usually start drinking relatively early in the afternoon for these kinds of celebrations.
O’Ceallaigh’s
O’Ceallaigh’s might be a bit lesser known by some, being located on the Kattendiep, but it is certainly one of the best places to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and imagine yourself in Ireland with the rich culture that fills the inside.
Every Sunday from 18:30 until 21:30, and especially this St. Patrick’s Day, they have trad sessions where traditional Irish music will be played.
Top tip: instead of opting for a Heineken coloured green with food dye, try a Guinness. It will certainly impress your Irish friends!
Again, since the pub is very popular, especially on St. Patrick’s Day, and it’s not very big inside, it’s a smart idea to come early in the evening to secure a table.
The Cabin
Though, not being a traditional Irish pub, The Cabin on the Gedempte Zuiderdiep is an international pub and therefore is a perfect place to celebrate your St. Paddy’s Day.
They will be serving homemade Irish Stew with Irish soda bread, bacon or sausage butties, and an all-day Full Irish Breakfast. Of course, they’ll also be serving Guinness and Magners cider.
The Cabin will also have live Irish music.
The Crown
Another international pub which has become known for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day is the Crown. They have an extreme offer on their beers (including Guinness) for only €3.50 and cocktails for €5 the whole night to celebrate the luck of the Irish!
De Toeter
De Toeter is the official sponsor of the GAA (Gaelic Football) team in Groningen: the Groningen Gaels and therefore they of course celebrate St. Patrick’s Day too.
They’ll be serving a full Irish Breakfast from 10:00 on which will contain all Irish produce, for example, the famous Clonakilty pudding and Dennys sausages and rashers, which aren’t normally available in the Netherlands
The pub will also have two happy hours, one at 13:00 and one at 23:00, where Guinness pints will only be €5 and Jameson Ginger Ale €6.60.
Presale tickets for the full Irish breakfast can be purchased here for €10, and on the day for €15.
They also have a St. Patrick’s Day raffle you can participate in where you can win drinks or exclusive Jameson accessories.
Many of these pubs will also be broadcasting the Ireland vs Scotland Six Nations match on Saturday, to make your Irish weekend complete!
Sláinte!
